Duncan's 35 Points Lead to 102-87 Victory for Men's Basketball

Duncan's 35 Points Lead to 102-87 Victory for Men's Basketball

LOWELL, MA. – The Merrimack men’s basketball team got a career-high 35 points from Darren Duncan (Briarwood, NY) and scored 102 points in regulation time for the first time since January 8, 2000 in a 102-87 victory over UMass Lowell Tuesday night.

Duncan, who scored 33 points earlier this season against Assumption, added six assists, and was 9-for-12 from the field and 13-for-14 from the free throw line.

Gerry Cocoran (Norwell, MA), who scored 16 points off the bench Saturday, drained six three-pointers off the bench tonight, eclipsing his Saturday total by two.

Both teams were dominant from behind the arc, each shooting 16-for-26. Darin Mency (Hagerstown, MD) and Micky Burtnyk (Phoenix, AZ) chipped in 10 points each. The Warriors forced 28 River Hawk turnovers.

The Warriors started very slowly trailing by as much as 12 midway through the first half, 26-14, but recovered, firing back with a 32-10 run in the final ten minutes to take the 46-36 lead at halftime. Duncan tallied 18 first-half points, leading the Merrimack comeback.

The Warrior lead grew to as much as 27 in the second half, allowing the visitors bench to clear. Corcoran’s total of six three-pointers is a career high for the senior.

Kevin Carr led UMass Lowell, who is 0-2 against Merrimack this season, with 28 points, on 10-of-13 shooting. Victor Colon added 17 points and seven boards for UML, who actually shot 54% in the game.

For Merrimack, who snapped its four-game conference losing streak, they reached the century mark for the first time since beating Southern Connecticut 102-92 in overtime on February 4th, 2006. The last time they scored 102 or more points in regulation was against Le Moyne (105-77 victory) on January 8, 2000.

The Warriors (9-4, 4-4 NE-10) will host Stonehill College Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Volpe Gym.