Boston College Basketball Blows Late Second Half Lead, Upset by UMass Lowell 68-66

Despite the UMass Lowell River Hawks taking a one point lead late in the second half, the Boston College Eagles had a chance to respond when Mark Cornelius fouled Ervins Meznieks just before the one minute mark. With the Eagles in the double bonus, Meznieks had the chance to drain two foul shots and take the lead back for the Eagles.

Clunk went the first.

Clunk went the second.

Such was the latter part of the second half for the Eagles, as the Eagles blew a lead late in the second half and fell 68-66 for their fifth straight loss.

From the beginning of the contest, or rather before the beginning, it was obvious that the Eagles were going to be at a disadvantage. According to Jim Christian, two players called at 6:30 in the morning and informed him that they had food poisoning. Hours later, Eli Carter sprained his left ankle, and was ruled out for the game. Between the three absences, the Eagles were forced to start five freshmen, and three players who historically have come off the bench.

BC starters: Robinson/Meznieks/Turner/Reyes/Barnes-Thompkins

— Arthur Bailin (@arthurbailin) December 6, 2015

Despite the difficulties presented with the starting lineups, there were some positives gained. Johncarlos Reyes got his first crack at a full time role as a big man. With 14 rebounds, and 11 points, Reyes double-double was one bright spot for the Eagles.

"He played great," Christian said. "But we lost. He's not doing anything that we didn't think he could do. He had an opportunity to play against a team who was obviously small, not very physical. He did a great job of rebounding the ball and playing inside, but we knew he could do that."

The Eagles went into halftime with a six point lead over the River Hawks, a lead that held without challenge until 3:59 left in the game. Issac White made his fourth three pointer of the game to bring the River Hawks to within five points. Following a media timeout, Logan Primerano knocked down a trey of his own to make the game a one point game. BC called a timeout immediately afterward, and it was a race to the finish for both teams for the last 2:28 of the game.

Tyler Livingston made a jumper coming out of the BC timeout, and the River Hawks had a lead.

On the ensuing possession, after Garland Owens missed a jumper, Meznieks was fouled, and the Eagles had a chance to take the lead back on two foul shots.

Clunk.

Clunk.

The Eagles did not have another chance to take the lead, as any bid for the Eagles to take the lead was mitigated by a subsequent UMass Lowell basket.

The Eagles, Sunday afternoon, dropped their fifth game in a row and fall to 3-5.