The University of Maine at Presque Isle men’s basketball team has lost five of its last six games heading into the final month of the season. The following are summaries of the team’s last six contests.
Berkeley (N.Y.) 80, UMPI 55
PRESQUE ISLE — Berkeley College defeated the Owls in a Jan. 10 matchup at Wieden Gym.
The final score was not a fair summation of a hard-fought game between two top-ranked USCAA squads. The Owls were down by just four points with eight minutes to play before Berkeley went on a scoring run late.
Chase Vicaire led the Owls with 19 points and sophomore Brandon McGill tallied 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
Bates 60, UMPI 47
LEWISTON — UMPI fought two injuries, foul trouble and missed lay-ins while battling on the road at powerful Bates, eventually dropping a hard-fought contest played Jan. 13.
The Bobcats held a 50-30 rebounding advantage, but the Owls battled behind Vicaire, freshman Trevor Lovely and sophomores Lenhard and McGill.
UMPI 74, Unity 60
UNITY — The visiting Owls returned to the win column behind a strong second half in their Jan. 19 contest.
UMPI trailed by 14 points early, but fought back behind good defense and cut the margin to two at intermission.
Vicaire popped two big three-point goals in the final two minutes of the first half to give his team a needed spark, while McGill battled strong inside to chip in key baskets and grab important rebounds.
Lenhard and junior Derek Healy turned in solid backcourt play and Kevin Collins hit an inside hoop to put UMPI on top for good midway through the second half. Lovely’s four consecutive free throws late put the game away.
Bowdoin 78, UMPI 57
BRUNSWICK — Looking to upset powerful Bowdoin Jan. 21, the Owls came out of the gate firing, but could not sustain its advantage against a relentless Polar Bear attack and eventually dropped the road contest Jan. 21.
Freshman Maurice Harris led the Owls with five rebounds and Lenhard chalked up six assists. Collins had a big performance from the free throw line, going seven of nine in the game.
SMCC 74, UMPI 64
PRESQUE ISLE — The Owls tried to rally its young troops to pull off a solid home win Jan. 24, but was undone by some key mistakes in the second half, and SMCC pulled out the victory.
The game was tied at intermission after UMPI got off to a solid start and a 14-6 advantage, but SMCC tallied the first seven points of the second half on offensive rebounds or defensive penetration, an area UMPI first-year coach Mike Holmes said is one that needs to be addressed in the team’s upcoming games.
“Playing with our detail is a challenge for 40 minutes,” Holmes said, “but we have 18 games under our belt and youth should only be an excuse for so long. We have the ability to avoid mental mistakes, and that needs to happen with greater consistency.”
Collins led UMPI with 17 points, while McGill grabbed six rebounds and Lenhard dealt out three assists.
UMM 74, UMPI 68
PRESQUE ISLE — The Clippers took advantage of the Owls’ slow start to build a huge halftime lead and they held on for the six-point win Thursday.
Healy, Collins and Maurice Harris played well in the second half and their Owls got to within four late, but UMM managed to come out on top.
Harris grabbed nine rebounds for the Owls, and Vicaire chipped in with four assists.
