BALTIMORE – UMBC led for all but 13 seconds of action and won their fourth consecutive game, defeating local rival Morgan State, 75-63, before 2,030 fans at Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena.
The Retrievers have also won four in a row at home and improved to 7-4 on the campaign, while Morgan fell to 4-7.
Junior guard
Matteo Picarelli hit a career high six treys and led three Retrievers in double figures with 18 points. Seniors
Jacob Boonyasith and
Yaw Obeng-Mensah had strong second halves and finished with 15 and 14 points respectively.
"It was a tough, hard-fought game," said Head Coach
Jim Ferry. "I thought that was our best half (the first) defensively, we really guarded them, we really protected the lane, I think we frustrated them."
HOW IT HAPPENED- FIRST HALF
· UMBC played tight defense in the early going, holding Morgan State to 3-of-17 shooting to open the game.
· The Retrievers used a 17-2 run over a 5:43 span to extend a 15-10 lead to 32-12 with 3:46 to play in the first half. Picarelli knocked down a pair of treys to spark the run.
· Morgan State trimmed the deficit to 34-20, but Tre'von Fagan hit a pair of free throws with 1.4 seconds to give the hosts a 36-20 halftime lead.
· The Retrievers held the Bears to 24.2 percent shooting (8-of-33) and outrebounded the visitors, 27-18, in the first 20 minutes.
· Picarelli hit 4-of-6 shots from the floor and led all players with 12 first half points, while Fagan amassed 8 points and 6 rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED- SECOND HALF
· Morgan State opened the second half on a 10-2 run, but a
Jacob Boonyasith trey extended the lead back to double figures at 41-30 with 15:38 to play in the half.
· Picarelli knocked down his sixth trey of the night to give UMBC a 61-45 lead with 7:26 remaining.
· Boonyasith heated up, scoring 13 second half points and helping the Retrievers build a 73-51 lead with 3:32 remaining.
· Obeng-Mensah scored 10 of his 14 points in the second half and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds.
The contest was the first meeting between UMBC and Morgan State since the 2011-12 season and UMBC tied the all-time series at 14-all. The Retrievers snapped a four-game slide to the Bears and the teams will play again at Morgan State next season.
"Having these local games is great," said Ferry. "It's great for the college community, it's great for the local community. Hopefully, we can keep doing this stuff.
NOTES
· The Retrievers shot 46.0 percent from the floor (29-of-63) and 41.7 percent (10-of-24) from behind the arc, while holding Morgan State to 35.4 and 21.1 percent respectively.
· UMBC dished out 21 assists, led by graduate student
Colton Lawrence and freshman
Mason Docks with five apiece.
UMBC plays another local rival as they travel to Loyola-Maryland on Tuesday.
