Junior guard-forward Ethan Roberts poured in a game-high 23 points including seven during a decisive 19-7 run over the final 5:36 of the game that gave the University of Pennsylvania a 77-64 win over the University of Maine in the Cathedral Classic round-robin tournament at The Palestra in Philadelphia on Saturday evening.
Penn improved to 3-4 overall and UMaine fell to 4-4.
Elon beat Navy 69-63 earlier in the day meaning all four teams go into Sunday’s final day at 1-1 in the tourney.
UMaine will take on 3-5 Navy at noon while 4-3 Elon and Penn will square off at 2:30 p.m.
With Penn holding a 58-57 lead, senior guard George Smith sparked a 10-0 run for the Quakers with a 3-pointer off a Nick Spinoso pass. It was Smith’s only points of the contest.
Following a couple of Black Bear misses, sophomore guard Sam Brown sank two free throws with 4:47 remaining and added two more foul shots to make it 65-57 with 4:09 left.
Junior guard Dylan Willilams then hit a three for the Quakers following a Roberts steal to cap the 10-0 surge.
UMaine graduate student guard Kellen Tynes tried to rally his team with a dunk and a turnaround jumper to make it 68-61 with 2:11 remaining.
Roberts responded with a pair of free throws but UMaine senior guard A.J. Lopez converted a traditional play with 1:29 remaining to cut the deficit to six.
But the Black Bears couldn’t get any closer.
Roberts, who had a career-high 33 points in a tourney-opening 86-78 loss to Navy, also led all rebounders with 10 and he contributed four assists and three steals as well.
Brown finished with 19 points and he also had four rebounds. He went 13-for-14 from the free throw line.
Senior forward-guard Spinoso chipped in with 14 points, nine rebounds, a game-high eight assists and two steals.
Williams scored 12 points for the Quakers, who sank 21 of their 24 free throw attempts.
Tynes paced the Black Bears with 15 points, six assists, three rebounds and three steals. Senior guard Lopez had 13 points and three assists.
Quion Burns, another senior guard, produced 13 points, four rebounds and three assists.
Senior forward Christopher Mantis had eight points and two steals.
