FARMINGTON – The University of Maine at Farmington men’s basketball team (0-1) had a balanced scoring attack with three starters scoring in double figures en route to a 76-62 loss to the University of New England (3-1) in Thursday night’s season opener.
Sean Murphy (Westbrook, Maine/Westbrook) led the Beavers with 11 points and sank three shots from beyond the arc in his UMF debut. Nick Hilton (Wilton, Maine/Mt. Blue) and Anfernee Dent (Jackson, Miss./Daegu) added 10 points apiece. Eric Berry (Weld, Maine/Mt. Blue) was only two points shy of grabbing a double-double with eight points and matched a game-high with 10 rebounds.
UNE relied on the scoring of its senior captain, Devin Thompson, who charted a game-high 26 points on 10-of-19 shooting and nailed six three-pointers. CJ Autry contributed 11 points and five boards. Drew Coveney also had a double-double with a pair of dimes, 10 points and 10 rebounds, and dished six assists.
UMF’s defense held UNE to 25 percent (9-26) from the floor in the first half, but the persistent Nor’easters found their groove in the second half and shot 46 percent from the field. The Beavers were feisty in the second half and tried to overcome a double-digit lead late in the final period, but UNE’s shooting guided the team to the non-conference victory.
Farmington hosts UMaine-Presque Isle on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.
