LOWELL, MA (Nov. 28, 2007) – Sophomore F Victor Colon (Chicago, IL) scored a career-high 20 points to lead UMass Lowell over Stonehill, 76-64, Wednesday night in a Northeast-10 Conference men’s basketball tilt at the Costello Athletic Center.

The victory was the first for the River Hawks, who improved to 1-2 overall and 1-2 in the NE-10 entering Saturday’s clash at Bryant (3:30). Stonehill slipped to 3-4 overall and 1-1 in the Conference and host Franklin Pierce Saturday at 3:30.

Colon converted 5 of 9 field goals (2 of 4 from long range) and meshed all eight of his free throws. Sophomore C Ali Kanaan (Montreal, QUE) scored 12 points (5-8 FG shooting) and grabbed nine rebounds while senior G Jamael Lynch (Brooklyn, NY) also scored 12 points and dished five assists.

Senior G Dashon Harper (Columbus, OH) scored 12 points, 10 of which in the second half.

Freshman G Vince Rosario (Perth Amboy, NJ) led the Skyhawks with 15 points while junior C Nick Smith (Colonia, NJ) added 11 points and five rebounds. Junior G Matt Hall (Springfield, MA) and sophomore G Randall Stallworth (Toms River, NJ) each chipped in 10 points and three assists.

Stonehill shot .522 in either half (24-46) and had a slight edge over UML, which shot .511 (24-47), including .565 in the first half (13-23). But the River Hawks outscored the Skyhawks 30-18 from 3-point range and 18-10 from the free throw line.

UML also had a significant advantage on second chance points (13-5) and off the bench (25-14).

The Skyhawks jumped out to a 22-11 lead with 9:26 left in the first half, but the River Hawks responded with a 13-4 run to cut the deficit to 26-24 with 5:50 left in the half. Lynch led the spurt with five points.

After layups by Rosario and Hall to give Stonehill a 30-24 lead, UML ended the half with a 12-2 run fueled by six points from senior F Mike Gore (Wilmington, MA) and treys by Lynch and sophomore G Craig Heatherly (Mishawaka, IN) for a 36-32 lead.

 The River Hawks led 43-38 with 17:00 left to play and went on a 13-2 run – led by five points from Harper and four from Kanaan – to give UML its biggest lead, 56-40, with 13:21 to play.

Colon scored 11 of his points in the final 9:09 to help UML preserve the lead. The River Hawks never let Stonehill within 11 points the remainder of the game.