Thirteen months ago the Terriers suffered the first of three losses that would ultimately turn their season around and lead to their first NCAA Tournament berth in almost a decade. That first loss occurred against the University of Maryland-Baltimore County at the RAC Arena, when the Retrievers finished a huge comeback to earn a 71-67 win, one of their five victories on the season.
This time around-the Terriers were ready. Sophomore forward Travis Robinson connected on two 3-pointers and the Terriers were rolling and never relented, knocking the Retrievers and the crowd gathered to honor the team's lone senior (Jake Wasco) out of the game.
Senior guard Darryl Partin led the Terriers with 17 points on 5-of-13 shooting and a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line. Sophomore Zach Chionuma had one of his best games of the season. The reserve guard had twelve points and played strong defense in extended minutes for head coach Joe Jones.
Patrick Hazel and Travis Robinson chipped in with 10 points apiece to join Partin and Chionuma in double figures. Despite recovering from a knee injury, Hazel led the Terriers with seven rebounds in just 19 minutes of play.
Senior forward Chriz Kurz recorded his first career points and made basket in 18 career games, when he finished on a fast break layup in the game's closing minutes. The senior joined the squad two season ago as a transfer from Arizona State where he was never a part of the program. He had attempted just five field goals before tonight's game but went 1-of-4 in two minutes.
Sophomore guard Chase Plummer led all players with 21 points for the Retrievers in their final home game of the season. Plummer connected on 7-of-15 attempts from the field and recorded a game-high 8 rebounds as well. Junior guard Brian Neller added 13 points for UMBC which dropped to 1-11 at home this season.
Boston University shot 46 percent (26-of-56) from the field and earned a 13-rebound (43-40) advantage over the Retrievers. UMBC hit just 18-of-61 (30 percent) of their shots but did manage to only turn the ball over nine times.
The Terriers will be back in action Saturday when they host their own Senior Day against Hartford. Gametime is set for 3 p.m. EDT when Boston University will honor their five seniors: Matt Griffin, Jeff Pelage Kurz, Partin and Hazel.