NORTHFIELD, Vt. (December 7, 2025) – The Western New England men's basketball team bounced back for an 81-66 victory on Sunday afternoon in the 2025 Ed Hockenbury Classic at Norwich University, defeating the Bengals of the University of Maine at Fort Kent behind a career-high 22 points from sophomore Eddie McCoy, while four total Golden Bears were in double figures in scoring on the afternoon. 

Records:

• Western New England: 7-2
• University of Maine Fort Kent: 5-6

How it Happened:

First Half:

• Looking to bounce back from their second straight loss of the season, the Golden Bears saw the Bengals open the game with a quick five points, knocking down a triple and getting to the rim for a bucket, opening with a 5-0 lead. A pair of free throws from Nate Kasper got Western New England on the scoreboard while Luka Vlajkovic had the first field goal of the game for WNE, a jumper at the two-minute mark. WNE went on a quick 7-0 run following the first five points from Fort Kent, capped off by a triple from Eddie McCoy, giving the Golden Bears a 7-5 advantage early on.
• The two teams went back and forth through the midway point of the opening half, as Western New England held onto just a two-point lead with 9:33 remaining. Vlajkovic led the Blue and Gold with six points early in the contest. Eddie McCoy began to get hot from the field, scoring back-to-back layups for the Golden Bears, followed by a Matt Houde triple, giving WNE a 28-20 lead with 7:31 left. 
• McCoy continued to be effective for the Golden Bears, rattling in his third triple of the afternoon with four minutes left of the half, giving the Golden Bears a 31-26 lead following a small run from the Bengals. Fort Kent got within three with two and a half minutes remaining when Deandre Johnson scored his second three of the game, but Avery Mickens answered for the Golden Bears with his second triple overall, putting WNE ahead by six, 35-29. Frantz Pierre Jr. ended the first half on a high note for the Golden Bears, getting hit on a jumper and converting on a three-point play. Western New England took a 38-32 lead at the end of the first half. 
• WNE shot an even 50% from the field in the opening half. Both teams registered six triples. Eddie McCoy ended the opening half with 13 points, shooting 5/8 from the field. Antonio Speed led UMFK with eight points in the opening half.

Second Half: 

• A 7-0 run for Western New England opened the second half, with Frantz Pierre Jr., Matt Houde, and Eddie McCoy recording points early for the Golden Bears, who picked up their first double-digit lead of the game. Scoring continued to favor the Blue and Gold as Pierre Jr. put down a thunderous alley-oop on an assist from Houde while McCoy continued to impress on the floor, leading to a 17-point lead with just under 14 minutes remaining in the game, 58-41.
• WNE's lead grew to as many as 19 in the game before Fort Kent found their shooting over a three-minute span, going on a 12-3 run to cut the Golden Bear lead down to ten at the midway mark of the half. Both teams went cold from the floor over a three-minute stretch, seeing Western New England remain ahead 65-55 with less than seven and a half minutes to play in the game.
• After the Bengals got back within single digits, the Golden Bears saw Travis Mangual get into double-figures in scoring with a made layup, following an offensive rebound, leading 71-60 with just over five minutes to play. Fort Kent got within single digits again following a layup from Sam Williams, who was up to 14 points on the afternoon for the Bengals, pulling Fort Kent within nine, 71-62, with 3:25 remaining. 
• In the final three minutes of the game, Western New England was able to put the game away, despite only hitting two triples on 17 attempts and making just seven free throws on 15 attempts in the half to down the Bengals by a final score of 81-66.

Inside the Lines:

• Four Golden Bears scored double-figures in the win, including a career-high 22 points from sophomore Eddie McCoy, who shot 9/14 overall from the field, collected seven rebounds, a pair of steals, and an assist in the game. McCoy breaks his previous career-high of 14 from last night's loss to Eastern Connecticut. For his effort, McCoy was named to the All-Tournament team.
• Luka Vlajkovic registered his fourth double-double of the season, scoring 14 points and adding ten rebounds. Vlajkovic also had six assists, two steals, and a block for WNE. 
• Travis Mangual picked up 13 points, matching his season best for the year. 
• Frantz Pierre Jr. picked up 11 points on 5/8 shooting, his first career game with double-figures. 
• The Golden Bears shot 48.4% from the field in the game, hitting eight threes. WNE cleaned up the glass, outrebounding Fort Kent 46-29. The Golden Bears had 19 offensive rebounds. 
• Sam Williams led the Bengals with 18 points, six rebounds, four assists, and a steal. 
• The Golden Bears get back in the win column following two straight losses this week.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears play in one final non-conference game before the New Year, taking on Wesleyan University (Conn.) on Saturday, December 13 at 3:00 PM.