Hawks Rally, Fall Short at Yale

Joe Zeglinski's 21 second-half points helped rally the Hawks to within one point of Yale in the closing minute.

This might be what the people who organized the Connecticut 6 had in mind. In a game that had all the intensity of a prize fight, two state teams played their hearts out on Tuesday night. The Hartford men's basketball team put up a frenetic late rally, but did not have the manpower to finish it off, losing at Yale, 81-76. Joe Zeglinski led the Hawks with 21 points, all of which came in the second half.

The Bulldogs led by as many as 14 in the second half, going on an 8-0 run out of intermission. The Hawks did not score for the first 3:59 of the second half, when Zeglinski lit a fire under himself and the team with a three-pointer. Clayton Brothers followed with a three from the left corner to cut the lead to eight.

Brothers finished with seven points. He added six rebounds, tying his career high.

Whenever the Hawks looked ready to establish momentum, the Bulldogs answered with key three-pointers. Yale finished 12-for-20 from downtown, compared to just 6-for 27 for the Hawks. Nevertheless, Hartford did not back down. The Hawks pulled down 34 rebounds, eight more than Yale. They limited the Bulldogs to just three offensive boards, and four second-chance points.

Yale led 75-68 with 1:27 to play when Brothers scooped in a lay-up to cut it to five. After Porter Braswell hit one of two free throws, Mustafaa Jones hit a runner to make it a four point game. The Hawks got the ball back with 46 seconds to play, and Zeglinski nailed an NBA-range three ten seconds later to pull Hartford back within one. The Hawks could not get closer, as Braswell hit two free throws and the Hawks came up empty on their next possession.

Despite the loss, there was a lot to take out of Tuesday's contest. Hartford mounted its comeback despite tremendous foul trouble which eventually saw Morgan Sabia, Anthony Minor and Genesis Maciel foul out. As play wound down, the Hawks stayed in it despite putting five guards on the court for long stretches. As a team, Hartford scored 19 bench points, outscoring Yale's reserves, 19-15. That marked the most bench points the Hawks have scored this season, and the first time they outscored an opponent.

Maciel had nine points off the bench, while Jones added a career-high eight. Joe Nardi also recorded his first collegiate points, a 15-foot jumper from the right wing in the first half.

Milton Burton added 13 points, five rebounds and two assists. He helped keep Hartford close in the first half with an impressive four-point play, nailing a three from the left wing despite getting knocked down in the process.

Despite the poor showing from outside, Hartford shot 41.4% from the floor overall, its best percentage of the year. Hartford did a strong job cleaning up their misses, snaring 12 offensive rebounds and putting up 14 second-chance points.

The game opens a busy week for Hartford, which continues on Thursday with its only home game of December. Hartford will host Brown on Thursday night at 7 p.m. (TV: CTSN, Radio: WDRC-AM 1360).