PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland -- Maryland Eastern Shore men’s basketball built a 14-point halftime lead and survived a late flourish to beat Central Penn 74-69 on Sunday afternoon at the Hytche Athletic Center.“I thought we lost our focus towards the end,” said Hawks head coach Bobby Collins after the close win. “We didn’t play tough, we didn’t quite make this a home court advantage. As we move on we need to start making those plays down the stretch.”
After an early scrum, the Hawks (4-11) grabbed an 8-6 lead at the 16:28 mark on a Miryne Thomas (Cleveland, Ohio) banked three-pointer. The Shore wouldn’t trail for the rest of the game, and after the Knights (7-8) tied it at 13-13 three minutes later, Cameron Bacote (Hampton, Virginia) connected from deep to give the home side a permanent lead.
The Hawks poured it on over the next nine minutes, using a 27-11 run to build a 40-22 lead, punctuated by Logan McIntosh’s (Atlanta, Georgia) three with 4:11 before halftime. Eastern Shore went into the break up 48-34.
Central Penn came out for the second half swinging, though. A 10-2 run over the first seven minutes of the half made it a two-possession game at 50-46. Sean Hoggs (Lawrenceville, New Jersey) boosted the Hawk cushion with an inbounds three from the left corner, and a Hoggs steal immediately led to a McIntosh layup to make it 55-46 with 11:05 to go.
The Knights surged back again over the next four. Randy Dupont’s layup at the 8:49 mark got it down to 59-55, and Joel Zola buried a trey one minute later to cut the Hawks’ lead to one. Zola then blocked a Bacote shot on the other end and CPC had a chance to take the lead, but Hoggs swooped in for another steal. The Shore held on defense one more time before Tyler Jones (Atlantic City, New Jersey) put one in from the post to give his team some breathing room at 61-58.
Bacote nailed another three with 5:10 to go to make it 65-59 Hawks, and Central Penn would never again get closer than five points. Free throws from McIntosh and late buckets from Ahmad Frost (Cincinnati, Ohio) and Thomas iced it to give Eastern Shore its third straight win in the series against the Knights.
Bacote led all scorers with 22 points on 7-of-16 shooting, including 15 in the first half. Hoggs came off the bench to contribute 15 points, three boards, and a pair of steals. McIntosh finished with 12 points, six rebounds, and six assists.
Dupont fueled Central Penn’s late comeback and finished with a team-high 21 points. Noah Baylor added 12 points and eight rebounds but factored little into the final 20 minutes.
The Hawks finish the nonconference slate with four wins, one more than the previous season’s total. As of publication, KenPom.com ranks The Shore’s non-league schedule as the 11th-toughest in the nation.
Eastern Shore now sets its sights on Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play. The Hawks open the league season against rival and preseason MEAC favorite Morgan State on Wednesday. Tip from the Talmadge L. Hill Field House is set for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday’s game will be broadcast locally on flagship radio station Fox Sports 960 AM WTGM and online at EasternShoreHawks.com. Pregame coverage starts at 7:15 p.m. with Will DeBoer on the call for The Shore Sports Network.
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UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND EASTERN SHORE SPORTS INFORMATION
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