PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland — The University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's basketball team returned to the win column on Saturday evening, knocking off visiting South Carolina State by a 78-62 final.
With the win, the Hawks (15-10, 7-3 MEAC) retain third place in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference standings. The Bulldogs (5-21, 2-8 MEAC) hold the seventh slot in the conference.
UMES opened the contest with a 7-2 run, parried by a 7-0 stretch from S.C. State. The Hawks responded with 11 straight points to take an 18-9 advantage with 14:28 left in the first.
The teams traded baskets over the ensuing six minutes, with the Hawks refusing to let their visitors within seven. That changed with around eight minutes left in the period, when the Bulldogs cut the margin to five, but UMES prevented the big run and went into intermission with a 35-28 lead.
The Hawks put their stamp on the opening minutes of the second half, leading by as much as 17 in the first five minutes of the period. Junior guard Rakeim Gary helped his side back into the game, scoring 10 straight Bulldog points and helping S.C. State tie the contest 60-60 with 7:34 to go.
From that point on, the defense took over. The Hawks stifled the Bulldogs down the stretch, forcing four late turnovers and holding S.C. State to just two points over the final seven minutes of the contest. UMES outscored their guests 16-2 in that span to claim their win.
Nathaniel Pollard Jr. led the Hawk offense on the night, pouring in 21 points and dishing out seven assists. Pollard also grabbed four rebounds and added a steal and a block.
Tuka Nugent added 13 off the bench with three boards, three steals and two dimes. Chace Davis scored 12, shooting 5-of-8 from the floor. The tandem of Nugent and Davis combined to make four threes on the night.
Da'Shawn Phillip rounded out the double-digit scorers and did the dirty work for the Hawks, scoring 11 and sinking three from range while collecting four boards, two blocks and three steals.
Zion Styles added nine points, five boards and three steals. Troy Hupstead made a pair of shots off the Hawk bench and Kohen Thompson helped steady the Hawks throughout the contest.
"Nate and Da'Shawn had big games for us," Crafton said. "Zion had some explosive plays, Chace and Tuka made big time shots in key moments … a lot of different guys came in and made plays tonight."
On a short-handed squad, Dionte Johnson stepped into the starting five and provided big minutes for UMES. The freshman did what was asked of him, scoring eight while collecting five boards, three steals and two assists.
"Credit to Dionte Johnson for being ready to play," Crafton said. "To come out in his first collegiate start and play 25 steady minutes, get three steals, five rebounds and also get eight points … we needed every single ounce of what he did as a freshman tonight."
The Hawks swiped 12 steals and forced 22 Bulldog turnovers on Saturday night. The defense held the Bulldogs to a critical 1-of-11 shooting clip in the final seven minutes.
Offensively, UMES shot 28-of-53 (52.8 percent) from the field, fueled by a final 20 minutes that saw the group hit nearly 58 percent of their looks. The Hawks sank eight threes and put in 14 of 18 from the stripe in the win.
UMES kept the rebounding battle close against the sixth-ranked offensive glass-cleaners in Division I, narrowly getting beat 28-27.
As part of the usual tandem trip, North Carolina Central comes to Princess Anne on Monday (February 20) to face the Hawks. Tip is slotted for 7:30 p.m., but will follow 30 minutes after the conclusion of the 5:30 p.m. women's game.
