Box Score

BIDDEFORD, Maine -- The University of New England closed with an 11-2 run over the final 2:50 to pull away from Mount Ida College and pick up its first win of the season, notching a 67-54 non-conference men's basketball victory Saturday afternoon at the Campus Center.

Senior Chas Rentrope (Peoria, Ariz.) paced the Nor'easters (1-5) with a game-high 18 points to go along with six steals and five rebounds. Junior Marcus Winn (Austin, Texas) added 17 points, including a 5-for-6 performance from behind the arc. Junior Ryan Knotek (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) posted his first career double-double, tallying 14 points and a personal-best 14 boards.

For the Mustangs (2-2), junior Isiah Benjamin (Windsor, Conn.) had 13 points, while fellow classmates Travis Hillery (Tyngsboro, Mass.) and Joe Cabral (Walpole, Mass.) finished with 12 and 11 points, respectively.

After the opening basket of the game went for Benjamin, a Rentrope hoop and a trey from junior Jordan Stinglen (South Berwick, Maine) at the 16:16 mark gave UNE the advantage for good. The cushion got up to as many as eight (14-6) during the first half, before the hosts settled for a 30-25 lead at the break.

Cabral, Winn, and Benjamin exchanged three-pointers to start the second period, before Big Blue went on a 14-4 spurt over the next 4:33 to increase the margin to 12 (47-35).

With 8:08 left to play, the Mustangs had closed the gap to within two points (49-47), but could not get any closer.

UNE shot 52.6 percent (10 of 19) from the floor after halftime, and hit 4-of-6 from deep. Mount Ida struggled to just 26.9 percent (7-for-26) shooting in the final frame.

The Nor'easters host Colby College on Tuesday (7 p.m.), while the Mustangs are off until next Saturday (Dec. 4) when they visit Emmanual College.