The University of Maine men’s basketball team hadn’t beaten Vermont at home in Orono for over a decade.
That changed Thursday night as the Black Bears held on to defeat the Catamounts 76-70.
After a slow start this season, the Black Bears are suddenly in striking distance of a home playoff game with a 4-5 record in America East Conference play. And they got Thursday night’s win over one of the top teams in the conference. Vermont came into the game with a 6-2 record in America East.
UMaine head coach Chris Markwood told ESPN after the win that his team played with the right type of smart aggressiveness against Vermont.
“I just think it was a good team win for us,” Markwood said. “I thought we played really hard, set the tone on the defensive side, had pretty good flow offensively in the first half. And we made enough plays down the stretch — got a little dicey there — but made enough plays down the stretch against a really good team.”
The Black Bears boasted a 20-point lead at one point in the second half, but Vermont battled back and made the game interesting until the final seconds.
UMaine senior guard Mehki Gray closed the door emphatically on the Catamounts with a rim-rocking dunk that put the Black Bears up six with under 30 seconds left.
Gray had 17 points on the night, as did UMaine forward TJ Biel. Sophomore guard Caleb Crawford had his best game yet in Orono with a team-high 21 points.
Vermont’s TJ Hurley led all scorers with 27 points.
UMaine next heads to Rhode Island to take on Bryant University at 4 p.m. on Saturday. Vermont will host New Hampshire on Saturday.