River Hawks Pull Through with 65-59 Win Over Franklin Pierce

Williams Leads the Way with 19 Points; UMass Lowell Holds Franklin Pierce to 28% Shooting

LOWELL (Dec. 7, 2010) – In a game that saw 13 lead changes and seven ties, it was the UMass Lowell defense, which held Franklin Pierce to just 17 field goals, and a 19-point performance by freshman guard Akeem Williams (Brockton, Mass.) that helped to lift the River Hawk men’s basketball team to a 65-59 victory over the Franklin Pierce Ravens in conference action in Rindge, N.H. on Tuesday evening.
          
With the victory, UMass Lowell improves to 5-2 overall with a 3-2 clip in NE-10 play, while Franklin Pierce falls to 3-6 overall with a 1-5 mark against NE-10 opponents.
          
The Ravens jumped to an 8-0 lead to start the game, but the River Hawks followed up with a 9-1 run over the next four minutes to knot the game at nine apiece, led by five points from Williams.  The teams traded leads and ties until Franklin Pierce owned a 17-8 advantage near the end of the first half and entered the break with a four-point lead, 32-28.
          
In the second, UMass Lowell came out of the gate strong, scoring seven of the first nine points of the half.  Before long, the teams were neck and neck again and stayed within four points of one another before Williams went on a spree.
          
He knotted the game at 52 all with just under six minutes left in regulation before grabbing a rebound on a missed shot by the Ravens and converting a layup to put the River Hawks ahead by two, followed by a three-pointer to put his squad up by five.  He then assisted on a Robbie Walton (South Boston, Mass.) jumper and UMass Lowell was up by seven with 4:06 remaining in the game.
          
Franklin Pierce pulled back closer, but a pair of free throws by freshman Nomso Emetarom (Framingham, Mass.) in the final second of the game sealed the cushion the River Hawks needed to come away with their fifth victory of the year and fifth straight over the Ravens over the past three seasons.
          
Williams finished the evening with 19 points, a pair of assists and six rebounds.  Sophomore Romeo Diaz (Methuen, Mass.) was just shy of a double-double with nine points and a game-best 11 rebounds.  He helped the River Hawks outrebound the Ravens 53-38.
          
Walton also chipped in nine points, adding five assists and seven rebounds in the victory, while freshman Antonio Bivins (Miami, Fla.) also grabbed seven rebounds, contributing eight points, three steals and a pair of blocks on the night.
          
UMass Lowell shot 40% from the floor (26-65), holding Franklin Pierce to just 27.9% shooting in the game (17-61).  The River Hawks held the decisive 40-12 advantage in the paint and capitalized on 11 Franklin Pierce turnovers by converting them into 14 points.  The Ravens were only able to turn UMass Lowell’s 17 turnovers into seven points.
          
Next, the River Hawks will host the Merrimack Warriors as part of the Holiday Hoop Jam at the Tsongas Center on Saturday, Dec. 11 at 5:00 p.m.

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