VESTAL, NY – The University of Maine men's basketball team fell to the Bearcats of Binghamton, 69-60 on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Black Bears found themselves out to a fast 9-3 lead after a Ja'Shonté Wright-Mcleish layup.
 
Binghamton would start to chip into the Black Bears lead as Ogheneyole Akuwovo made a layup of his own and Dan Petcash buried a pair of free throws in back-to-back possessions.
 
The two sides would find themselves locked into a 1-point contest at halftime, with the Bearcats holding onto a 24-23 lead.
 
Maine was led offensively by Wright-Mcleish (7 pts) and Stephane Ingo (7 pts). Ingo also contributed with 3 blocks in the half.
 
The Bearcats had a pair of 7-point scorers of their own as George Tinsley and Petcash each led the scoring for Binghamton.
 
The second half would find both teams finding more of an offensive rhythm, but with the Bearcats hitting more shots and eventually pulling away from the Black Bears for a game-high 17-point lead with 3:57 remaining in the second half.
 
Maine would try to chip into the lead by the Bearcats, but ultimately would run out of time before making a sizable dent into it.
 
Binghamton would go to win at a final score of 69-60.
 
Jacob Falko would drop a team-high 18 point for the Bearcats, as George Tinsley also chipped in for 17 points.
 
Ja'Shonté Wright-Mcleish dropped a career-high 20 points for the Black Bears in the losing effort. Stephane Ingo (16 points, 5 blocks, 2 steals) and Vukasin Masic (10 points, 6 assists) were key contributors for the Black Bears.
 
Maine will head back on the road as they face off against UAlbany on Wednesday, Feb. 9.
 
-UMaine-