ORONO, Maine -- Following a hard fought loss against UMBC on Wednesday night, the Maine Black Bears return to action on Saturday to face UAlbany at the Cross Insurance Center. The tip is slated for noon in Bangor.
TICKET DISCOUNT OFFER: With the NFL Playoffs in full swing, fans can purchase $5 general admission tickets for Saturday's men's basketball game against UAlbany by wearing NFL gear to the Cross Insurance Center! Start your Saturday at the Cross Insurance Center by supporting your Black Bears and favorite NFL team. The game is set to tip at noon, which leaves plenty of time before the playoffs kickoff at 4:35 p.m. Discounted tickets are general admission only, and can only be purchased on Saturday at Cross Insurance Center box office.
COACH WALSH CHALK TALK: Before every home America East Conference game, fans can hear Coach
Bob Walsh breakdown the upcoming game on the club level (third floor) of the Cross Insurance Center behind the Maine bench. Saturday's edition of Chalk Talk will start at 11:30 a.m.
LAST TIME OUT: With the score tied at 61-61 with two and a half minutes left in the second half, the University of Maryland Baltimore County ensued on a 7-0 run and would not give up the lead, as the Retrievers defeated Maine, 72-67, on Wednesday night at the Cross Insurance Center.
Aaron Calixte set a new career-high in points against the Retrievers, connecting on 9-of-12 field goal attempts, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range for 24 points. He recorded four assists and a steal in 38 minutes played. The redshirt junior scored 14 points alone in the second half, and has now registered 13-plus points in the final 20 minutes in the last four games.
THE SERIES: The Great Danes lead the all-time series by a count of 21-13, earning wins in the last three contests. Maine last defeated UAlbany on Jan. 15, 2016, when the Black Bears downed the defending America East Champions 81-79 at the Cross Insurance Center.
Aaron Calixte notched 16 points, shooting 5-of-9 from the floor in the win.
A LOOK AT UALBANY: The Great Danes finished their non-conference slate with a 12-3 record, but started the America East schedule with losses against Hartford (72-64) and New Hampshire (64-61). UAlbany got back on track in its last contest, defeating Stony Brook 78-65 on Wednesday night. Joe Cremo (17.6 ppg), David Nichols (15.7 ppg), and Travis Charles (14.7) all average above 14 points per game. Greg Strie (8.1 rpg) leads the team off the glass with 146 rebounds on the season, which ranks 50
th in the country. Charles leads the America East in field goal percentage, making an impressive 61 percent of his shots from the floor.
D-FENCE: Maine's defense has often kept the Black Bears in games, including last Wednesday's game against UMBC. The Retriever's entered the contest leading the nation in 3-point field goals per game, with 12 per contest. The Black Bears held UMBC to one of its worst performances from 3-point land on the season, making just seven of 27 attempted 3-pointers. The Retrievers' seven 3-pointers against Maine is tied for its fewest in a game this season (7-38 against Maryland). The game also marked UMBC's second-lowest 3-point field goal percentage on the season (also Maryland). Maine's 3-point field goal defense ranks second best among all American East schools (31.9 percent) which ranks 63
rd among 351 schools nationally.
THE FINAL 20: Despite having a 4-14 record, Maine has only been outscored in the second half by a combined five points (663-658) in 18 games this season. Over the course of the first 13 games, Maine only outscored the opposition just twice in the second half. Since, the Black Bears have thrived in the second half, earning more points than the opponent in five consecutive games. Maine has put up at least 41 points in each of the second halves during that span, (UMass, 48-34), (Columbia, 44-37), (Stony Brook, 42-30), (Binghamton, 49-39), and (UMBC, 41-39). The Black Bears have outscored foes by a combined score of 224-179 during that stretch in the second half, which averages to a score of 44.8 to 35.8 in the final 20 minutes
THE CONFERENCE SLATE: Since the New Year started and the America East schedule commenced, Maine has improved significantly in many different varieties. The Black Bears are averaging 71.0 points per game through three conference games, compared to an average of 65.7 points per game during the non-conference season. Maine's shooting has drastically improved during the new year, with a conference field goal percentage of 43.4 percent to 38.8 percent against non-conference foes. 33.3 percent of 3-pointers have tickled the twine against America East opponents compared to 29.3 percent in the non-conference.
Aaron Calixte leads Maine in both the non-conference and conference season scoring, averaging 21.0 points per game since Jan. 3, compared to 14.8 points per game in the first 15 games this season.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
Aaron Calixte was named America East Co-Player of the Week after averaging 19.5 points, six assists, and 3.5 rebounds in two games this past week. Calixte shot a combined 67 percent (12-18) from the floor against Stony Brook and Binghamton this past week. The Stoughton, Massachusetts native excelled in the second half, dropping 13 of his 21 points in the second half against Stony Brook, while pouring in 15 of his 18 total points in the final 20 minutes against the Bearcats. The award marks Maine's first America East Player of the Week award since Xavier Pollard won the award on February 3, 2014.
UP NEXT: Maine will have a quick turnaround, hitting the road to play Vermont on Monday. The Martin Luther King Jr. Day matchup against the Catamounts is set to tip at 7:00 p.m. at Patrick Gymnasium.
