BANGOR, Maine - The Husson University men's basketball team (3-3, 1-0 NAC) finally returned back to their home court on Saturday evening to face-off against the Northern Vermont University-Lyndon Hornets (3-5, 0-1) in their conference opener.  Despite a strong second half display by the Hornets, the Eagles were able to maintain a first half lead through to the end with a final score of 94-83.

IN THE ACTION:

The Eagles trailed throughout the opening 11 minutes of the half by just a few points, tying the game once at the 11:56 mark off a jumper by Derek Collin, 20-20, as Husson cruised on a 14-5 run jumping ahead as Isiah Hart followed through on a layup and free throw to bring the score in the Eagles' favor, 27-25.  Bruce St. Peter contributed to the offensive effort, netting nine points in just 6 minutes. The Eagles would continue to add depth to their lead, ending the half topping the Hornets 47-35. The Eagles' leading scorer on the half was St. Peter with 11. Meanwhile the Hornets' were led by Damon Denteh hitting 13 points.

NVU-Lyndon came out battling after halftime and cut Husson's lead to two with 15:20 left in the second half as they enjoyed a 14-0 run, 53-51. Both sides would maintain a balanced attack as the Hornets remained within a few baskets over the course of the half, leaving the Hornets trailing the Eagles, 70-68, with just seven minutes remaining. Justin Thompson made a fast break lay-up fed from a steal by Justice Kendall to give the Eagles a nine-point lead (77-68) with 5:13 left to play. The Hornets would try for one more push in the final seconds of the game, but a strong Eagle defense kept them consistently at least eight points behind, ending with a final score of 94-83.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Collin scored all nine of his points in the opening half as he came off the bench for 13 minutes of action while snatching three steals.
• Six Eagles hit double-digits on the scoreboard, including four starters led by St. Peter with 16. 
• Kendall added 11 points, four steals, four assists, and five boards to the mix for Husson.
• Denteh not only led in points in the first half, but maintained his momentum into the second stanza to notch a game-high of 23 points including six buckets from downtown.
• Kyle Cary was the lone player to achieve a double-double on the night, between 17 points and 12 rebounds.
• Zach Falkenburg went 5-6 from the charity stripe to contribute to his 11 points on the night. 

UP NEXT!

The Eagles will face Northern Vermont University Johnson tomorrow, December 8th at 2:00 p.m. for back-to-back conference action.