BANGOR, Maine – The UMaine men's basketball team put together a strong overall performance against America East regular-season champion Vermont, but the Black Bears ultimately fell 74-62 on Tuesday night at the Cross Insurance Center. Maine (6-25, 3-13 AE) and Vermont (25-6, 15-1 AE) will play again this Saturday in the America East Quarterfinals.
 
"I thought our approach to the game tonight was really good," said head coach Bob Walsh at the post-game press conference. "I told the guys afterwards that our approach was good enough to beat Vermont.
 
"We took care of the basketball and we had more assists than turnovers. I thought we defended with a lot of toughness. Ultimately, they are just really good. We just have to get more engines firing on the offensive end. I feel really good about the way this team continues to fight for each other, despite everything we have gone through."
 
Aaron Calixte led Maine with 19 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the floor, while also distributing six assists. Andrew Fleming netted a season-high 18 points, grabbing seven rebounds, while adding a block and two steals.
 
Isaiah White and Ilija Stojiljkovic also registered double-figures in scoring, pouring in 10 points each. White added two steals, while Stojiljkovic was just one rebound away from a double-double.
 
Vermont built a seven-point lead after eight minutes, leading 19-12 with 12:23 left in the opening half. Maine scored four unanswered points on layups from Stojiljkovic and Fleming to cut Vermont's advantage to just three at 19-16.
 
The visitors increased their lead up to 10 at 31-21 with 5:02 to go in the first half after a 12-5 sprint, but Maine finished the half down by just five at 33-28 after a 7-2 charge. Calixte, Fleming, Stojiljkovic, and Vernon Lowndes Jr. all scored in the run to end the first half on a high note.
 
After the halftime intermission, Vermont established another 10-point lead at 38-28, but Maine roared on a 11-1 run to tie the contest at 39-39 with 15:47 remaining. Calixte connected on six points, while Fleming posted five during the streak.
 
The Catamounts ensued to score nine of the next 10 points, holding an eight-point lead at 48-40 with 12:18 to go. Over the next four minutes, Vermont extended its lead to a game-high of 13 points at 60-47. The Black Bears would twice slice the Catamounts' lead to single digits at 66-58 and 68-60, but Vermont held off a late Maine comeback, earning its 15^th America East win in 16 games with a final score of 74-62.
 
On the stat sheet, Maine led in points in the paint (36-24), bench points (15-10), offensive rebounds (14-8), steals (6-4), and had fewer turnovers (14-13). Vermont held significant advantages in field goal percentage (47.1% to 38.5%), along with free throw percentage (81.8% to 58.3%).
 
Prior to the game, the UMaine Athletic Department honored Black Bear seniors Ilker Er and Garvey Melmed for their contributions to the men's basketball program. The duo has combined to score 393 points in 108 games entering the America East Playoffs.
 
Four Catamounts reached in double-figures in scoring, with Trae Bell-Haynes leading the pack with 16 points. Ernie Duncan and Drew Urquhart tallied 14, while Payton Henson added 12.
 
With Maine facing off against Vermont again this Saturday, Walsh was asked what the Black Bears could do better in the third game against the conference's regular-season champions.
 
"Composure," responded Walsh. "It will be a little bit different. It's Patrick Gym in the playoffs. The energy they get off of that crowd. We try to prepare in an environment every day where we demand a lot, so that we don't really have talk about going on the road."
 
The No. 8 seed Black Bears will travel to No. 1 seed Catamounts on Saturday in the opening round of the America East Playoffs. The opening tip at Patrick Gymnasium is set for 7:00 p.m. in Burlington. For tickets, visit uvmathletics.com.

-UMaine-