Box Score  

PLYMOUTH, N.H. – You can easily count on one hand the number of games this year where the Eastern Connecticut State University men's basketball team has enjoyed a height advantage over its opponent.

Saturday against Plymouth State University proved to be one of those games, and the Warriors – especially 6-foot-7 inch senior Jalen Hamblin (West Hartford) -- capitalized on the opportunity.

With Plymouth (6-8, 2-3 LEC) starting only one player taller than 6-foot-1, Eastern (10-4, 2-3 LEC) out-rebounded the Panthers by 19, scored 13 points off second-chance opportunities, collected a season-high six blocked shots, and with Plymouth forced to foul inside in an effort to neutralize the height disadvantage,  Eastern went to the foul line a season-high 31 times, sinking a season-high 25 of them in a 74-66 Little East Conference victory at Foley Gymnasium.

While Eastern benefitted from  the height advantage as a whole, no one took more advantage of it than Hamblin. Accustomed to giving away three or more inches this year, Hamblin took advantage of the rare height advantage. Hamblin continued to excel this year as one of the top big men in the LEC with game-highs of 22 points and 12 rebounds without turning the ball over in 33 minutes. Twelve of his points came at the foul line on 14 attempts as he consistently drew two-shot free throws. He also had three steals and a blocked shot.

Although Eastern had won 16 of the previous 19 decisions against Plymouth, the Panthers had held their own against the Warriors at Foley Gym, winning four of the previous ten heading into Saturday.

After stumbling out of the gate in Thursday's LEC loss at Keene State College – spotting the Owls a 12-0 lead before outscoring them the rest of the way in a seven-point loss that was its third setback in a row – Eastern set the tempo early against Plymouth and maintained control until the final five minutes.

On Saturday, Eastern spotted Plymouth an opening three-point field goal, then settled in by scoring the next ten points. The lead reached double figures (26-15)  just prior to the second media timeout and crested in the first half at 14 points when Hamblin sank a pair at the stripe with 81 seconds left before the break.

The Warriors appeared headed toward a comfortable 20-point win after senior Dominick Dao's (Terryville)  three-point field goal with the shot clock expiring pushed the lead to 21 (64-43) with just under five minutes left. From that point, Plymouth forced numerous Eastern turnovers and missed shots with an effective full-court press that eventually cut the spread to the final eight-point margin. The Panthers outscored Eastern 23-10 over those final five minutes, with all of the Warriors' points coming from the stripe. Having nailed 19 of its first 21 from the stripe, Eastern missed four of its final ten as it limped to the finish line.

Brady Hulland's steal and breakaway with 50.3 seconds left cut the Eastern lead to eight (72-64), and after senior Michael Carothers (Queens, NY) stuck the first of two free throws, Plymouth missed its next three-point field goal with 30 seconds left that would have cut deeper into the Warriors' lead. Junior Pedro Perry (New London) then connected on the back end of a two-shot free throw with 20.9 seconds that finally put the game away at 74-64.

Junior forward Julian Sanchez (Willimantic) scored 16 points off the bench – his 13^th double-figure game in 14 contests. He was 6-of-10 from the floor and 3-of-3 from the stripe. Junior Ray Carter (Springfield, MA) added 11 points -- nine on three-point field goals -- and Dao ten points (5-of-6 from the stripe) and four assists. Carothers had six assists and six rebounds.

Plymouth played without leading scorer and assist man Yansel Reyes, 6-foot-3 inch senior guard who missed his first start of the year. Reyes averages 17.8 points and four assists.

Eastern hosts VTSU Castleton Wednesday at 3 p.m. in an LEC game.