BIDDEFORD, Maine – Junior Alex Kravchuk (Mansfield, Conn.) scored a game-high 26 points to help the University of New England men's basketball team fend off Wentworth Institute of Technology, 84-80, in Commonwealth Coast Conference action Tuesday night.

With the win the Nor'Easters improve to 11-8 overall and 5-5 in league play while the Leopards stand at 12-7 (5-5). Both teams sit just a game out of second place in what is shaping up to be a tightly contested race in the standings coming down the stretch.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

LEADING SCORERS:  Kevin Fernandez, 25; Stephen Azums, 19; Trey Carrier, 14
LEADING REBOUNDER:  Stephen Azums, 18
ASSIST LEADER:  Tyler Lennon, 4

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• UNE used a 12-4 run in the game's first five minutes, taking an eight-point lead on a three-pointer from freshman Siddiq Canty (Dallas, Texas). Wentworth countered with an 11-0 run – with all 11 points coming from sophomore Kevin Fernandez (Lawrence, Mass.) – and took a 15-12 lead with 12:06 left. The Nor'Easters came right back and used an 8-0 run of their own with Kravchuk's three-point play with 10:50 left in the half, putting UNE ahead, 20-15.
• Wentworth scored the next six points, capped off with a layup from junior Kyle Henseler (Coventry, R.I.) with nine minutes left before the Nor'Easters would take a four-point edge on a Kravchuk jumper two and a half minutes later. A 13-4 Leopard run gave the Black & Gold a five-point advantage (36-31) after Fernandez hit a three with just over three minutes remaining. The hosts scored the next seven points and took a 38-36 lead after a freshman Nathan Holt (Taunton, Mass.) basket with 60 ticks left. Freshman Jack Schaake (Hampton, N.H.) and junior Trey Carrier (Wilton, N.H.) hit back-to-back layups in a span of 33 seconds to give Wentworth a 40-38 advantage at the break.
• The second half began with a basket from Kravchuk to tie the game, the first of two ties in the first three minutes of action. Senior Stephen Azums (Hyde Park, Mass.) turned a three-point deficit into a one-point lead after a layup and two free throws in a span of 30 seconds. However, the Nor'Easters outscored the Leopards by a 19-8 margin and took a 10-point lead (67-57) after a three from Canty with 10:06 remaining. After freshman Conor Rubenskas (Bridgewater, Mass.) converted a layup, Kravchuk pushed the lead back to 10 with two free throws.
• An 11-3 Wentworth run was capped off by two free throws from Azums and brought Wentworth back within two with 5:13 left. The Leopards pulled within a pair on three other occasions in the next two and a half minutes, including when Fernandez hit a jumper with just under three minutes to play. On the next possession, sophomore Ray Evans (Troy, N.Y.) hit a three to put UNE up by five but a jumper from Carrier and one of two free throws from Henseler brought the Black & Gold back to within two. Junior Avery DeBrito (New Bedford, Mass.) hit a pair of throws, making it 82-78 with 19 seconds left before Azums was fouled after he grabbed an offensive rebound. After Azums hit both free throws to make the score 82-80 with seven seconds left, the Leopards fouled Canty who doubled the lead and sealed the win with five seconds left.
• In addition to Kravchuk's 26 points, Canty had 21 points and seven rebounds, and DeBrito added 16 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists.
• Fernandez netted a career-high 25 points, with 19 of those coming in the first half. Azums recorded his 12th double-double of the season after scoring 19 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. Wentworth had a 41-34 rebounding advantage.

SERIES NOTES:

• Tonight marked the 42nd meeting between these two programs. Wentworth leads 28-14, which includes an 87-83 overtime win on November 23 in Boston.

NEXT UP:

• Wentworth is at Roger Williams on Saturday, February 1.

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