HAMDEN, Conn. -- The University of Maine men's basketball came up just short at Quinnipiac on Friday evening, fighting back but ultimately falling by a final of 58-55.

The Black Bears trailed Quinnipiac by 15 with 4:20 remaining in regulation before going on a 14-0 run to cut the deficit to one. Falling a Bobcat bucket, Maine found itself down by three with 22-seconds on the clock. The Black Bears had two looks to tie the game but were unable to even the score.

AJ Lopez posted a season-high 18 points with five rebounds on 7-of-15 shooting while Jaden Clayton hit four triples for 12 points.

Maine, which shot 44.0 percent in the first half, finished the contest 22-of-61 (36.1) with seven triples. The Black Bears held a slight edge, 35-34, in rebounding.

The opening 20 minutes of action saw four lead changes and four ties in a seesaw battle.

Maine, trailing by four early, put together a 7-2 run as Clayton's three gave the Black Bears their first lead of the evening with 14:18 left in the first.

Quinnipiac responded late on the half to take its largest lead of the opening stanza, 30-25, with 1:39 on the clock before entering the break with a 32-28 advantage.

After Clayton opened the second half with a triple, the Bobcats answered with a 11-0 run to extend their lead out to 43-31 with 11:36 remaining.

Quinnipiac built its largest lead of the night when Zimmerman's triple pushed the lead out to 15 with 4:20 to play in the contest.

Maine responded with a 14-0 run to claw right back into the game late. Clayton's step-back triple off an offensive rebound brought Maine within six before five-straight points from Lopez cut the deficit to just one with 46-seconds to play.

Quinnipiac's floating jumper stopped Maine's run and pushed the lead to three. The Black Bears would have two shots to tie it from three but each missed the mark as Quinnipiac escaped with the 58-55 victory.

Maine returns to action on Wednesday, Nov. 20 when it travels to meet Richmond at 7 p.m.

-UMaine-