Hartford Men’s basketball lost to the first place Vermont Catamounts at home Saturday, Feb. 16, by a narrow margin of 77-75. This one was tight throughout the contest, kicking off with 10 lead changes in the first half. 

After the Hawks took a 31-28 lead on a Jason Dunne three with 3:34 remaining in the first half, Vermont showed why they are the number one team in the conference, securing an 8-0 run in the following two minutes. 

In the last minute of the first half, John Carroll converted a pair of free throws, followed by an electrifying three-point buzzer beater courtesy of Max Twyman to tie it up for the Hawks going into halftime. 

Both teams saw high-octane offense to open up the second half leading to Travis Weatherington nailing a three to provide Hartford with its largest lead of the night, at 52-45 with 13:13 to go. It was after this point however that the Catamounts would battle back riding a 15-6 run that would prove to be the difference in this one. 

This was a tough loss to swallow for the Hartford Hawks as they were a mere two points away from knocking off the first-place team in the America East Conference. 

Despite the loss, J.R. Lynch turned in an impressive performance shooting 8-12 from the field, scoring 21 points on the night. Other Hawks scoring double digit figures during the contest include Jason Dunne (16), John Carroll (13), and Travis Weatherington (10). As a team, Hartford’s scoring was efficient as they shot 52.8 percent from the field and 54.5 percent from behind the arc. 

The Hartford Men’s basketball team will look to rebound at New Hampshire Thursday, Feb. 21, which begins a three-game road stint against conference opponents.