Boston College 70, UMass Lowell 47: Eagles Run Past River Hawks In First Meeting Between Schools

Boston College let UMass Lowell hang around probably a little more than they would have liked, but a huge run at the start of the second half allowed the Eagles to pull away for a 70-47 win over the River Hawks. BC was up by seven, 29-22, at halftime and would never trail in the contest. The Eagles improve to 7-4 on the year. UMass Lowell falls to an even 6-6.

The Eagles were once again led by 5th year transfer Aaron Brown, who scored 22 points, including 13 in the second half. Brown connected on 9-of-12 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc to pace the Eagles. Clifford had statistically one of his best games of the year, adding 19 points and pulling down 4 boards. The big man's 19 points matched his season high in the victory over Maine.

Other assorted thoughts:

– Who is this Olivier Hanlan and what have you done with the real Olivier Hanlan? Hanlan continues to struggle on the offensive end of the floor. The junior guard went just 4-of-12 from the floor, missing badly on several takes. BC was able to make quick work of a pretty marginal Lowell team, but if Hanlan doesn't turn the corner, it could be a long second half of the year in conference play...starting this weekend against Duke.

– The Eagles were on fire to start the game, going 7-of-7 from the floor in the first half. The hot shooting would not continue, however, as BC finished the rest of the half just 2-of-15, a slump that allowed the River Hawks to roar back within a possession.

– BC did a good job of protecting the basketball for the most part. The Eagles committed just 11 turnovers while Lowell had 22.

– The much smaller Lowell team chucked up a ton of three pointers—likely by design—but didn't have a ton of success. The River Hawks connected on 7-of-23 three-point attempts, including 8 misses in the first half. Marco Banegas-Flores, Tyler Livingston and Lance Crawford combined to go 0-for-10.

– Nice to see Alex Dragicevich get extended minutes (16). The senior connected on a pair of threes for 6 points and finished 2-for-2 from the floor.

– BC walk-on Steve Perpiglia found the scoring sheet for the first time this season in garbage time; a basket that was met with a hearty cheer from the BC faithful in attendance.

– The Eagles jumped out to a 25-point lead late in the second half; their largest lead of the season to date.

Overall, a solid, workmanlike victory despite not getting Hanlan going offensively and having limited contributions from guys like Patrick Heckmann (22 minutes, 1 point), Eddie Odio (22 minutes, 2 points) and Lonnie Jackson (5 minutes, 0 points). Hopefully Hanlan finds a spark, otherwise it's going to be a long afternoon against Duke at Cameron Indoor on Saturday.