Jaykyri Simpson tallied a season-high 23 points, but it was not enough as UNE fell at Gordon
Box Score
WENHAM, Mass. -- Gordon College used a 13-0 run late in the second half to break open a tight game, as the Fighting Scots ended the University of New England's winning streak at 19 games with an 82-75 victory Wednesday evening at the Bennett Center.
The loss was the first Commonwealth Coast Conference setback for the Nor'easters (20-4, 11-1 TCCC), who had the second-longest win streak in the nation. Gordon now stands at 18-6 overall, 8-4 in TCCC play.
Trailing 60-58 with 6:18 remaining, the host Fighting Scots scored 13 consecutive points over a span of just over three minutes to take a 71-60 lead with 3:09 on the clock. Brady Bajema tallied seven points during the spurt to key Gordon.
The Nor'easters would recover and closed to within four on three separate occasions -- the last coming on a bucket by Quentin Thompson with 37 seconds remaining.
Gordon made 6 of 6 free throw attempts the rest of the way to secure victory. For the game, the Fighting Scots were 24 of 27 (88.9 percent) from the line.
Aaron Trigg poured in a game-high 27 points to pace the Scots. He made three 3-pointers and was 8-for-8 at the line. Bajema also made all eight of his free throw attempts and supported with 19 points. Gregg Walker chipped in with 13.
Gordon utilized a decided height advantage to out-rebound UNE, 32-18.
UNE senior guard Jaykyri Simpson made 10 of 11 shots from the floor on his way to a season-high 23 points. Thompson finished with 18 points on a 9-for-12 effort from the field, while senior Johnnie Jefferson added 14 points.
The game was tight most of the way with 12 ties and 11 lead changes. UNE held a slim 37-34 lead at the break after shooting 64 percent (16 of 25) from the floor. Gordon made 61.9 percent (13 of 21) of its shots but committed 12 turnovers.
UNE, which has already secured the top seed and homecourt advantage throughout the upcoming conference tournament, concludes its regular season Saturday with a home game versus Nichols College. All the action tips off at 3:00 p.m. and can be viewed live on the Web at http://athletics.une.edu/stream.asx
