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ORONO – With leading rebounder and inside scorer Philippe Tchekane Bofia serving a two-game suspension, the University of Maine men knew they’d all have to pitch in to earn their first America East conference victory.
Thanks to contributions up and down the lineup, a breakout effort from Chris Bruff, some clutch plays by veteran players, timely adjustments and solid shooting all around, the Black Bears rallied late and pulled out an 85-82 overtime basketball win over Vermont Sunday at Alfond Arena.
Junior guard-forward Bruff filled in as Maine’s primary inside presence in the small forward spot and delivered with a game-high 26 points – 18 coming after halftime – while helping Maine erase a 10-point deficit with 5:23 left in regulation. Bruff was a one-man wrecking crew on the blocks as his guards found him often on dribble-penetration plays in the second half and OT.
“They kept giving us chances and all we had to do was just take one of them,” said Bruff, who also had a game-high four blocks to go with three assists and three rebounds.
The Bears, now 6-10 overall and 1-4 in league play, were able to overcome a 40-29 Vermont rebounding edge and committing 18 turnovers to Vermont’s 12 because of defense (nine blocks) and shooting (58.7 percent from the field and 75.8 from the line).
“They did a good job at the foul line and obviously we did a horrible job,” said Vermont coach Mike Lonergan. “But [Bruff] really hurt us. I give him credit. He’s definitely the MVP of that game and probably the reason we lost.”
After Vermont took a 62-51 lead with seven minutes left in regulation, Bruff scored back-to-back baskets and followed an Ernest Turner put-back from the post with two free throws and a hoop from the right block. Meanwhile, Vermont was going 0-for-4 from the line as Maine used a 12-3 run to make it 65-63 with three minutes left. Vermont went up 68-65 when Mike Trimboli (23 points) scored on a drive to the low post with 44 seconds left.
Nine seconds later, veteran guard Freddy Petkus, who’s been limited due to back problems the last two seasons, hit a 3-pointer from the left wing off a fake. Vermont had two tries to score, but Trimboli’s shot from the low post went left off the rim and Ryan Schneider’s shot from the left corner was errant.
Rashard Turner opened overtime with a hoop off a drive to the low post. Bruff’s three-point play on a rebounded miss with 3:32 left was the only other Maine basket in OT as the Bears shot 17 free throws and made 13 – two of which came via a technical foul on Lonergan.
Maine led by five in OT, but it still came down to a final shot, one that would have sent the game into double overtime if the Catamounts hadn’t called timeout with a second left. Kyle Cieplicki’s running 3-pointer from the left corner was good, but didn’t count because Lonergan called timeout just as he was taking the shot.
“I told the guys on the bench to take a timeout, so everybody was screaming for one, but once they finally heard it, we shot it, Lonergan explained.
Maine junior guard Jon Sheets had 14 points, seven boards and four assists.
“There were a few times where we put our quickness out there, which hurt them quite a bit and helped us make our run,” said Sheets of Maine’s switch to a four-guard lineup for most of the final 15 minutes.
Ernest Turner had 17 points and Rashard Turner added 11.
Chris Holm came off the bench to lead 7-8 (3-2 in AE) Vermont with 24 points and pick up starter Martin Klimes, who was held scoreless.
BLACK BEARS 85, CATAMOUNTS 82 (OT)
Vermont (7-8) Maine (6-10)
Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP
Schneider 1 6 2 2 4 Bruff 9 10 26
Duell 2 8 0 0 4 Ahvennmi 2 7
Klimes 0 5 0 4 0 R.Turner 4 11 2 4 11
Trimboli 10 18 0 0 23 E.Turner 5 17
Cieplicki 4 9 1 3 10 Sheets 4 8 14
Sisca 0 0 0 0 0 Hight 1 2 2
Powlovich 1 2 0 0 2 Petkus 2 5 8
McCrory 3 4 0 2 6 Scales 0 0 0
McIntosh 3 6 3 5 9 Cavangh 0 0 0
Holm 9 12 6 7 24
Totals 33 70 12 23 82 Totals 27 46 25 33 85
Vermont 36 68 82
Maine 32 68 85
3-pt. goals – Vermont (4-15): Trimboli 3-5, Cieplicki 1-5, Duell 0-1, Schneider 0-4; Maine (6-16): Sheets 3-5, Petkus 2-5, R. Turner 1-4, E. Turner 0-1, Hight 0-1
Attendance: 1,754
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