Bears beaten twice> Wolves, Syracuse topple UMaine

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The University of Maine men’s basketball team lost its second game in two days at the Great Alaska Shootout Friday and will play for seventh place today.

The Black Bears dropped to 1-3 with a 85-65 loss to Syracuse, the No. 12 team in the nation, on Friday. In Thursday’s game, UMaine lost to the home team, University of Alaska Anchorage, 75-65.

The Black Bears will face Arizona State at 4 p.m. EST today for seventh place in the eight-team tourney.

UMaine coach John Giannini said he was disappointed with the Black Bears’ performance against the Division II Seawolves, but was pleased with strong second half against Syracuse, during which the Bears outscored the Orangemen 40-37.

“We didn’t make any adjustments [against Syracuse],” Giannini said. “We just did what we do more effectively.”

On Friday, Todd Burgan scored 18 points, including three 3-pointers, to lead Syracuse to the win.

The 2-1 Orangemen made a team-record 13 3-pointers a day after going 1-for-11 from long range in an 87-53 loss to No. 8 Kentucky.

Otis Hill scored 16 points for Syracuse, one of five Orangemen to reach double figures.

Terry Hunt scored 16 for 1-3 Maine, and Corey Thibodeau added 13 – all in the second half.

Burgan and Maine’s Don Long each collected nine rebounds.

Syracuse led by as many as 31 points midway through the second half before Thibodeau scored 13 points in the final 6:55 to help the Black Bears close the gap.

Maine stayed close for the first five minutes. But with the score 9-7 Syracuse went on a 31-9 spurt during the next 10 minutes, putting the game well out of reach.

“Against Syracuse the likelihood of us winning was not great because they have some of the best players in the country,” Giannini said.

But the response of the Alaska crowd to the Bears was encouraging, he said.

“The crowd in Anchorage gave our kids a standing ovation when they left the floor because they were the hardest working team,” he said.

On Thursday, Rick Stafford scored 22 points to lead Alaska Anchorage to its win over Maine in the tournament’s opening round.

The Seawolves advanced to a second-round game Friday against Kentucky.

Maine, which trailed by 11 at the half, got as close as 58-52 with about nine minutes play, but then fell apart at both ends of the court. Alaska Anchorage, 5-0, ran off seven straight points, while the Black Bears turned the ball over in four consecutive possessions.

“I just felt like we did not do the things a winning basketball team needs to do,” Giannini said. “Specifically, we did not come out with the right intensity, and then when the game was in question, we made self-destructive mistakes.”

The Seawolves got 12 points each from Ryan Williams and Jim Hajdukovich. Williams also grabbed 10 rebounds, and point guard Butch Lincoln added eight boards and five assists.

John Gordon nailed six three-pointers to pace Maine with 23 points. Hunt scored 22 and collected 13 rebounds.

The Seawolves jumped out to a 17-7 lead in the game’s opening minutes before Maine tossed in eight unanswered points.

Stafford, who finished the half with 16 points, then connected on back-to-back three-pointers and converted a steal into a layup to rebuild the margin to 26-17.

The lead would grow to 13 points before Gordon hit his third three-pointer of the half and Hunt drilled a jumper to help Maine cut its deficit to 38-27 at the break.

Orangemen 85, Black Bears 65

(Friday’s Game)

Syracuse (2-1) Maine (1-3)

Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP

Hill 6 8 4 6 16 Hunt 7 16 0 0 16

Cipolla 5 9 0 0 14 Ledbetter 0 1 0 0 0

Ovcina 1 2 0 0 2 Long 3 4 4 6 10

Hart 0 3 0 0 0 Gordon 3 7 0 0 7

Burgan 5 13 5 5 18 Jones 3 8 2 2 10

Lloyd 2 5 0 0 5 Thibodeau 4 7 4 5 13

Howard 1 5 1 2 3 Thompson 0 0 0 0 0

Thomas 6 6 0 2 12 Faison 3 7 0 2 7

Janulis 5 8 0 0 15 Thomas 1 5 0 0 2

Totals 31 59 10 15 85 Totals 24 55 10 15 65

Syracuse 48 85

Maine 25 65

3-pt. goals: Syracuse (13-25): Cipolla 4-6, Hart 0-1, Burgan 3-6, Lloyd 1-3, Howard 0-1, Janulis 5-8; Maine (7-23): Hunt 2-5, Gordon 1-5, Jones 2-5, Thibodeau 1-3, Faison 1-3, Thomas 0-2

Seawolves 75, Black Bears 65

(Thursday’s Game)

Maine (1-2) Alaska Anchorage (5-0)

Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP

Hunt 10 25 0 1 22 Anderson 3 7 0 0 9

Ledbetter 0 5 0 0 0 Carlisle 4 7 0 0 8

Long 0 1 0 0 0 Williams 3 8 6 8 12

Gordon 8 19 1 1 23 Lincoln 2 4 0 0 6

Jones 5 9 1 4 13 Stafford 7 14 5 7 22

Thompson 1 3 2 4 4 Hamey 1 5 0 0 2

Faison 0 1 1 2 1 Larrabee 0 3 0 0 0

Thomas 1 2 0 0 2 Hajdukovich 4 9 2 3 12

Wallace 0 3 0 0 0

Meckel 2 2 0 0 4

Totals 25 65 5 12 65 Totals 26 62 13 18 75

Maine 27 65

Alaska Anchorage 38 75

3-pt. goals: Maine (10-26): Hunt 2-9, Gordon 6-11, Jones 2-5, Thomas 0-1; Alaska Anchorage (10-33): Anderson 3-6, Carlisle 0-1, Lincoln 2-4, Stafford 3-9, Hamey 0-2, Larrabee 0-2, Hajdukovich 2-7, Wallace 0-2