University of New Hampshire Athletics
University of New Hampshire
5-3
Rutgers University
5-4
UNH 2nd Half Comeback Falls Short at Rutgers, 60-56
12/9/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Freshman Tanner Leissner (Converse, Texas) led the way with 15 points and the University of New Hampshire basketball team roared back in the second half, but the Wildcats came up just short and lost to Rutgers, 60-56, on Tuesday night at the Rutgers Athletics Center.
The loss to the Scarlet Knights of the Big Ten snapped UNH's four-game winning streak. The Wildcats are now 5-3 on the season. Rutgers is 5-4.
Sophomore Daniel Dion (Cedar Park, Texas) joined Leissner in double figures with 13 points, all of them in the first half. Sophomore Jaleen Smith (Freeport, Texas) added eight points and led UNH with nine rebounds.
The Wildcats trailed by as many as eight points in the first half, were down by six points at the halftime break and fell back by nine early in the second half when they cranked up the defense and staged their comeback.
They took the lead at 42-41 with 11:47 to play on a Jacoby Armstrong (Sachse Texas) dunk off a feed from Joe Bramanti (Andover, Mass.).
The teams swapped the lead and then UNH pushed its edge to 48-44 on a Leissner dunk off a Smith feed. The Wildcats had a chance to run the lead to six points, but missed a layup.
Rutgers guard Myles Mack took over from there. It was tied at 52-52 when he made two foul shots to give his team the lead for good with 2:31 left in the game. Mack finished with 20 points and also had seven rebounds.
UNH held Rutgers to 5-for-24 shooting (20.8 percent) in the second half. The Scarlet Knights made only one of their first 16 shots in the second half and that was a banked-in three pointer.
The Scarlet Knights made 16 of their 28 shots (57.1 percent) in the first half.
The Wildcats trailed 11-5 early and then 22-14 in the first half.
Then Dion got hot. He made a fastbreak layup and a pair of quick three-point baskets. UNH worked its way to a 26-25 lead on Smith's long two-pointer from out front with 8:31 left in the half.
Rutgers pulled away late in the half to the 38-32 edge at the break.
UNH chipped away at the lead early in the second half.
The only field goal by the Scarlet Knights in the first 13 minutes and 35 seconds of the second half was that banked trey by Khalil Batie with 11:22 left. A Mack jumper and foul shot with 6:25 left cut UNH's lead to 48-47 and got Rutgers going again.
The Wildcats had a slight edge (38-37) in rebounding and 12 turnovers to 15 by Rutgers.
UNH returns home to play Colgate on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Lundholm Gymnasium. The Wildcats are 3-0 on the season at home. They have three games remaining before Christmas, including Sunday. They are at Sacred Heart on Saturday, Dec. 20, and play Long Island University-Brooklyn at home on Monday, Dec.22.
To purchase tickets for the upcoming season, visit UNHWildcats.com/tickets or call (603) 862-4000, ext. 5.
For the latest news and information on the UNH men's basketball program, check out UNHWildcats.com.
