Second Half Outburst Propels Men’s Hoops to 75-56 Win Over UMPI

QUINCY, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene men's basketball team posted a 75-56 non-conference victory over UMaine-Presque Isle Thursday afternoon at the Lahue Physical Education Center.

The Lions rise to 7-1 on the year with the win while the Owls drop to 4-5 overall with the result.

Eric Lynch (Alpharetta, Ga.) paced Eastern Nazarene with 21 points. Christian Lynch (Alpharetta, Ga.) scored 12 points and grabbed a team-best seven boards while Dylan Saenz (Port Lavaca, Texas) also netted 12 points off the bench in the victory. Jaylen Owens (Johns Creek, Ga.) chipped in with nine points, three rebounds and three assists.

After the visitors knotted the score at 6-6 with 15:17 left to play in the first half, the Lions tallied 10 unanswered points to grab a 16-6 advantage with 11:29 remaining.

The Owls cut the home side's lead to 28-27 with 2:10 left in the opening period as Sean Manganti sank a jump shot.

Christian Lynch converted the first of two free throws to push the margin to two with less than 30 seconds to go.

At the midway point of the contest, Eastern Nazarene controlled a narrow 29-27 advantage. The Lions shot 37.1% from the floor in the first frame while the Owls connected on 45.8% of their attempts.

Owens and Saenz each notched six points in the opening minutes of action to lead the hosts at halftime. Eric Lynch and Jarman each added four points in the first half.

Eastern Nazarene erupted for 46 points in the second half to cruise to their seventh win of the season.

The Lions scored the first seven points of the second stanza to stretch their lead to eight with 17:46 on the clock.

The hosts widened the gap to 20 with 9:16 remaining in the contest as Eric Lynch banked in a lay-up, 62-42.

Eastern Nazarene's largest lead came with 2:33 left to play as Duamarius Benford (Boston, Mass.) tossed in a lay-up for his lone basket of the game, 73-50.

Presque Isle was led by Sean Manganti with 15 points while Claude Lewis registered a double-double with 13 points and 10 boards.

Eastern Nazarene shot 46.9% from the field in the second frame to finish the contest with a field-goal percentage of 41.8%. Presque Isle drained 44.4% of its field-goal attempts on the day.

Up next, the Lions resume conference play with a road game at Curry January 4.