WASHINGTON, D.C. — The University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's basketball team battled down the stretch, but could not dig out of an early hole against Howard, falling to the Bison 78-69 in Burr Gymnasium.

The Hawks (14-10, 6-3 MEAC) got on the board first, but Howard controlled the bulk of the first half. The Bison (16-10, 8-1 MEAC) put together 12-3 and 14-2 runs in the early-going to jump ahead 29-13 with 8:31 left of the opening period.

The MEAC foes traded punches for the remainder of the period, with Howard narrowly outscoring UMES 16-13 heading into the break. A fall-away prayer from Ahamadou Fofana fell at the buzzer, but was deemed to come a fraction of a second too late after review.

Howard opened the second with a 13-4 stretch over the first five minutes and kept the Hawks at arms-length through the first 10. UMES responded with a 13-3 run spanning just over five minutes of action, bringing the game within 11, but Howard pulled away late and sank important free throws in the final minutes to secure the win.

Zion Styles led the Hawk scoring effort with 15 points on the night and added six boards, three assists and three steals. Tuka Nugent ranked second on the team with 13 points, while Da'Shawn Phillip and Troy Hupstead each added 11 on the night.

Phillip also tallied two rebounds, two assists and three steals, while Hupstead brought down six boards.

Nathaniel Pollard Jr. finished with eight points and nine rebounds. Chace Davis scored seven with two made threes as well.

UMES will look to rebound from their first losing streak since early December this weekend when South Carolina State comes to Princess Anne on Saturday, February 18. Tip is scheduled for 4 p.m. as part of the usual men's and women's conference doubleheader.