PITTSBURGH – The University of Maine men's basketball team could not comeback from an early first-half deficit, falling to Duquesne 72-46 at the Palumbo Center on Sunday afternoon. Isaiah White recorded game-high 17 points in the loss.
 
Along with White, Vilgot Larsson (10 pts, 5-7 FG), Vincent Eze (9 pts, 3-6 FG,  3-3 FT) and Andrew Fleming (7 pts) were also factors offensively. The Black Bears led the Dukes off the glass by a count of 35-34, with Fleming (8 reb.) and Ilija Stojiljkovic (7 reb.) leading the way.
 
The Black Bears (2-10) fell behind early against the Dukes (8-2), as Maine struggled offensively in the first half. With Duquesne holding a 15-5 advantage, the Dukes embarked on a 18-4 sprint over the next 5:20 of game time to extend their lead to 33-9 over the Black Bears with 3:32 left. Maine responded with a Larsson tip in, but Duquesne would score the next seven points. White slammed in a dunk and connected on a triple in Maine's final two possessions of the first half, but Duquesne would take a 40-16 lead into the locker room.
 
The Black Bears improved its shooting performance from 29.2 percent during  the first 20 minutes to 42.3 percent in the second half, as White tallied 10 of 17 points in the second half. All nine of Eze's points came in the second frame, as well. Maine was outscored by just two points to the Atlantic-10 foe in the final 20 minutes, but could not overcome the early deficit.
 
Marcus Weathers (13 pts) and Eric Williams Jr. (11 pts) led the Dukes in scoring, both reaching double figures.
 
Maine is back in action on Sat. Dec. 22 at the Cross Insurance Center, when the Black Bears battle Central Connecticut State in the final non-conference home game of 2018. The contest will be Ugly Sweater Day at the Cross Center, as fans wearing the best Ugly Sweaters will receive prizes. Stay tuned for more details. For tickets, visit ticketmaster.com.
 
-UMaine-