Box Score WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – Hartford used a strong second half to rally past Saint Peter's 66-56 in non-conference men's basketball action on Sunday.
Marvin Dominique (Miramar, Fla./Miramar [Fordham]) paced the Peacocks (3-7) with 11 points and 14 rebounds for his fifth double-double this season. Desi Washington (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin [Delaware State]) added 11 points and Trevis Wyche (Neptune, N.J./Saint Peter's Prep) chipped in 10 points in the loss.
Mark Nwakamma fueled the Hawks (5-8) with 15 points while Yolonzo Moore II registered 13 points and Taylor Dyson added 11 points in the winning effort.
Hartford used a strong run midway through the second half and never looked back to win its second-straight against Saint Peter's in the second meeting in the last three seasons. The two teams played in the 2012 Sears Bracketbuster Game in Jersey City.
With the Peacocks holding a 41-33 lead, the Hawks went on a 15-2 run to take the lead for good.
Taylor Dyson started the decisive run with a 3-pointer at 10:58 before Oren Faulk scored in the lane a minute later. Wes Cole nailed a trey from behind the arc at 9:21 and Nwakamma scored in the paint at 8:38 to give Hartford a 43-41 edge.
Welton momentarily halted the run and tied the game at 43 with 8:04 on the clock, but Moore gave the Hawks the lead it would not reliniquish on a 3-ball at 7:39 for a 46-43 lead. Wyche trimmed it to a one-point margin with a layup at 6:54 only to see Nwakamma answer right back with a layup of his own at 5:21 to restore the three-point difference.
Dominique cut it to one point one last time with a layup at 4:11, but Dyson nailed a trey at 3:51 to give Hartford a 51-47 lead and start an 18-9 run to end the game. Saint Peter's would trim it to seven points and six points after a pair of Washington 3-pointers, but the Peacocks could get no closer in its final road game in the five-game stretch.
The Hawks jumped out to a quick 7-0 and 11-2 advantages in the game thanks to baskets from five different players.
Saint Peter's answered with a 9-0 run to tie the gam at 11 with 10:51 left in the first half. Dominique started the run with a layup at 13:30. After Wyche made the second of two at the line at 12:47, Wyche scored in the lane at 12:23. Tucker tied the game at 11 after consecutive jumpers at 11:24 and 10:51.
The two teams then traded the lead for the next eight minutes before Saint Peter's closed the half with seven unanswered points to take the five-point lead at the half.
With Hartford holding a 20-18 edge, Saint Peter's scored the final seven points to take a 25-20 advantage going into the locker room.
Tyler Gaskins (Roswell, Ga./Centennial [Lawson State]) tied the game at 20 with a layup at 1:49 before Markese Tucker (Trenton, N.J./Trenton Catholic) went into the lane at 1:11 and Washington converted a traditional 3-point play off a layup with 39.4 seconds on the clock to give the Peacocks the five-point lead at the break.
Saint Peter's used that momentum to start the second half and take a 41-33 advantage with 11:19 left in the game. Quadir Welton (Philadelphia, Pa./Math, Science and Civics Charter) had seven points in this stretch for the Peacocks, but Hartford then went on a 15-2 run to take the lead and never looked back for the win.
Washington, the current Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Week, now is 34 points away from 1,000 points for his career. Welton finished with nine points and seven rebounds.
After 32 days away from Jersey City, Saint Peter's returns home to close out non-conference play against Cornell on Saturday. Game time is 2 p.m.
