WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The Hawks are going dancing! In its 37th season in Division I and as a conference member, Hartford claimed its first-ever America East men’s basketball title on Saturday at Chase Family Arena. Hartford used a strong defensive performance to knock off UMass Lowell, 64-50, and advance to the NCAA championship for the first time.
A 25-10 late second-half run propelled the fourth-seeded Hawks (15-8) offensively while defensively they held the sixth-seeded River Hawks (10-11) to just 50 points, 19 under their season average. Hartford is the first #AEHoops team to win four tournament games en route to the title.
Austin Williams scored 17 points and added eight rebounds as he earned Reggie Lewis Most Outstanding Player honors. Across his team’s four #AEPlayoffs games, he averaged 20.5 points and 8.3 rebounds. He was joined on the All-Championship team by teammates Traci Carter and Hunter Marks and UMass Lowell’s Obadiah Noel and Connor Withers. Marks, a junior with a 3.79 GPA majoring in entrepreneurial studies, was the men’s basketball Elite 18 honoree for having the highest GPA among champion game participants.
Hartford received a #16 seed in the NCAA tournament and will face #1 Baylor in the first round on Friday, March 19 at 3:30 p.m. on TruTV.
The Nitty Gritty
- Hartford jumped out to early 10-2 lead.
- Allin Blunt’s three-pointer with 3:23 left in the first half pulled UML within one at 17-16, but Hartford scored six of the final eight points of the period and led 23-18 at the break.
- Wither’s three-pointer at 17:11 gave UML a 23-22 advantage.
- The game remained back and forth and was 39-37 Hartford when it began its pivotal run to grow the lead to as many as 16 as Carter’s jumper with 3:33 made it 57-41 and iced the game.
The Numbers
- Hartford held UMass Lowell to just 50 points, its lowest output of the season, and just 30 percent shooting.
- The Hawks turned 14 UMass Lowell turnovers into 19 points.
- After a cold-shooting first half, the Hawks found their offensive rhythm in the second half, hitting 50 percent of their attempts (13-of-26).
- Carter scored a game-high 19 points and added four rebounds, four steals and three assists.
- Marks added 14 points and six rebounds while Miroslav Stafl had 10 points and eight rebounds.
- Noel finished with a team-high 15 points and eight boards.
- Kalil Thomas had 11 points off the bench.
- Withers contributed nine points and a game-high 11 boards.
The History
- With the win, Hartford matched UAlbany’s 2013 and 2014 squads as the lowest-seeded team to win the title.
- The Hawks are the first team to ever win four games on their way to winning the crown, beating #9 Binghamton, #5 UAlbany, #2 Vermont and #6 UMass Lowell in the process.
- Hartford improved to 1-1 in title games while UMass Lowell fell to 0-1.
- Home teams are now 30-7 all-time in America East championship games.
About America East: The America East provides its member schools and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field.
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