Men's Basketball Posts 85-80 Victory Over Hartford

(boxscore)

12/10/05 -- Junior James Williams (DeSoto, Texas) netted 21 points and classmate Evan Meekins (E. Providence, R.I.) added 18 to lead Long Island University to an 85-80 triumph over University of Hartford in college men’s basketball action on Saturday afternoon at Schwartz Center.

The Blackbirds (2-3) drained a season-best 13 three-pointers, including a 4-of-4 performance from Meekins. LIU shot 51.9 percent (13-of-22) from behind the arc, its best team showing from ‘3’ since December 5, 1998. That LIU squad connected on 61.5 percent (8-of-13) of its 3-point shots in an 82-72 loss to Wagner.

Sophomores Randy Jones (West Palm Beach, Fla.) and Paska Morkeliunas (Kaunas, Lithuania) registered 13 and 11 points, respectively. Senior Aubin Scott (Hempstead, L.I.) added 10 points– all in the first half- and a team-high seven rebounds for LIU. Sophomore Eugene Kotorobai (Richmond Hill, Ontario) also grabbed a team-best seven boards.

The Hawks (4-2) were paced by senior Aaron Cook, who recorded a game-high 23 points. Paris Carter and David Ruffin contributed 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Tied 6-6 at the 15:42 mark, the Blackbirds erupted on an 11-0 run. Scott, who scored seven points during the spurt, capped off the sprint on a fast-break layup to push LIU ahead, 17-6, with 12:55 showing. The Hawks clawed back, pulling to six (20-14) on a jumper from Cook but LIU responded.

Consecutive 3-pointers from Williams gave the Blackbirds a 12-point cushion (30-18) with 5:01 left in the half. LIU led 41-28 at the intermission, recording its best first-half field goal performance (51.7 percent) and 3-point field goal percentage (55.6) of the season.

Hartford twice cut the advantage to four in the second half, lastly pulling to 51-47 on a triple from Paris Carter with 11:21 remaining. The Blackbirds out-scored the Hawks, 21-11, over the next 5:42, hitting eight of their 13 treys during the run. Meekins hit for three of his team-best four triples and Williams added eight points- including a pair of three’s- over the period as LIU went ahead, 72-58 with 5:18 remaining. They held for the 85-80 win.

LIU, riding a two-game win streak, travels to Harvard for a 7:00 p.m. contest on Wednesday, December 14.