The win was the second in a row for the Huskies who improve to 4-5 overall. Suffering their second consecutive loss, UMaine Farmington falls to 4-5.
Whitaker was 5-for-7 from the floor and was joined by juniors guard Josh Daniels (Everett, Wash./Maine Central Institute) and center Nick Gooding (Concord, Calif./Mount Diablo) in double-figures. Daniels tossed in 12 points and a game-high five assists, while Gooding added 13 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots.
Junior forward Sean Fry (Jay, Maine/Jay) led UMaine Farmington with 11 points and eight rebounds while junior guard Matt St. John (Wayne, Maine/Maranacook) was the only other Beaver in double-figures netting 10 points. Junior forward Isaac Hutchinson (Oakland, Maine/Messalonskee) added nine points.
Southern Maine took control of the game early limiting UMaine Farmington to just three points in the opening eight minutes of the game to lead 17-3 with 12:31 remaining in the half. The Huskies shot a solid 43.3 percent (13-for-30) in the first half en route to a 31-23 halftime advantage. Daniels led the Huskies with seven points on a 3-for-5 mark from the field, while sophomore guard Charlie O’Neill (Seymour, Conn./Wilbraham & Monson) scored six of his nine points in the opening half.
UMaine Farmington stayed on the Huskies heels in the opening minutes of the second half, trailing Southern Maine by nine, 35-26, with 16:51 to play, but USM used an 8-1 mini-run over the next two minutes to give itself an 16 points cushion, 43-27 with 14:24 left.
Southern Maine maintained a double-digit lead for most of the second half, before a lay-up from sophomore forward Ted Neil (Strong, Maine/Mt. Blue) trimmed the Huskies advantage to nine, 60-51, with 2:40 remaining. USM countered however with a jumper from Whitaker to start a 6-2 run to close out the game for the 66-53 final.
Southern Maine finished the game shooting 44.4 percent (24-for-54) from the floor while committing just 13 turnovers. UMaine Farmington shot just 36.5 percent (19-for-52) from the field while turning the ball over 17 times.
Southern Maine returns to action on Friday (December 29) in The Maine Event hosted by St. Joseph’s College (Maine). The Huskies will face Colby College at 5 p.m. UMaine Farmington returns to action in the New Year and will face Bowdoin College at 2 p.m. on Saturday (January 6).