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Maine Edges Stony Brook, 63-61
ORONO, Maine-- The University of Maine men's basketball team overcame a nine point second half deficit to defeat Stony Brook 63-61 on senior day in Orono, Maine. The Black Bears improve to 12-17 overall and 7-9 in America East play. Maine finishes fourth in the America East regular season standings and will face UMBC in the quarterfinals of the America East Tournament. Stony Brook falls to 9-19 overall and 4-12 in conference play.
Chris Bruff was named the America East Player of the Game for Maine. He had 19 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals. Ricky Lucas was named the America East Player of the Game for Stony Brook. He finished with 21 points and seven rebounds. Before the game, Maine honored seniors Jon Sheets (Grass Valley, Calif.), Olli Ahvenniemi (Vaasa, Finland), Chris Bruff (Bloomfield, Conn.) and Kevin Reed (Yarmouth, Mass.). Stony Brook jumped out to an early 13-6 lead after a three-point field goal by Ricky Lucas with 13:23 remaining in the first half. The Black Bears cut the lead to just two points at 16-14 on a dunk by Philippe Tchekane Bofia (Yaounde, Cameroon). The Seawolves responded and grabbed a 35-28 lead at halftime. Maine, which shot 55 percent in the first half, was led by Reed who had eight points, while Tchekane Bofia and Sheets each added six. The Seawolves kept their lead early in the second half, leading by eight points at 43-35 with 15:23 to play in the game. The Black Bears then rolled off an 18-2 run to take a 53-45 lead. Mark Socoby (Houlton, Maine) started the run with a key three-point field goal. Bruff led the run with seven points for the Black Bears, while Socoby added four. Stony Brook, however, would respond. The Seawolves cut the Maine lead to just two points with a conventional three-point play by Mike Popoko with 1:32 remaining in the game. Bruff then hit a layup and Socoby a free throw as Maine regained a five point advantage at 63-58. Mitchell Beauford hit a layup for Stony Brook and was fouled with just 41 seconds remaining in the game. He made the free throw and Maine's lead was cut to just two points. Maine missed a shot with just five seconds remaining, giving Stony Brook one last chance. A half court shot by Ricky Lucas went just wide and the Black Bears earned the 63-61 victory on senior day. Bruff led Maine with 19 points, 14 of them coming in the second half. He grabbed six rebounds, had three assists and two steals. Socoby finished with 13 points and two assists. Reed added 12 points and six rebounds. Kevin Reed set a Maine record by playing in his 118th career game. He broke the record of Deonte Hursey who finished with 117 career games played. Ricky Lucas led Stony Brook with 21 points, while Mitchell Beauford added 16 points. The Black Bears return to action Saturday, March 3 when they face UMBC in the America East quarterfinals at Boston University. Maine, the fourth seed, will play at 2:30 p.m. -U-M-
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