WILMINGTON, N.C.  – The Monmouth men's basketball team had a second-half lead, but eventually fell to UNCW, 79-69, on Thursday night in Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) action.

The Hawks (14-13, 8-6 CAA) were led by a career-best 27 points from Kavion McClain, but a late 10-0 run from the Seahawks handed Monmouth its first loss in its last four games.

Stefanos Spartalis scored six of Monmouth's first 11 points off the bench, as the Hawks trailed by one, 12-11, after 8:27 of play. The Hawks went on a run out of the media timeout to go up 22-16, highlighted by an and-one from Jason Rivera-Torres, but UNCW responded with seven in a row to go back up a point with 6:32 to go in the half. The teams went back and forth over the closing minutes of the first half, before the Seahawks finished the stanza on a 5-0 run to take a 36-31 lead at the break. Spartalis had a game-high 11 first-half points for Monmouth.

A three-pointer from Rivera-Torres highlighted an 7-0 Monmouth run to start the half, giving the Hawks a 38-36 edge. With the game tied at 41-41, back-to-back threes from Justin Ray and Jack Collins ignited another 8-0 spurt, giving the Hawks an eight-point lead, 49-41.

UNCW bounced back with 10 in a row, retaking a 53-51 lead at the midway point of the half. The home side went up 64-58 with six minutes to play, but the Hawks bounced back with seven straight of their own, retaking a 65-64 advantage. The Seahawks scored the game's next 11 points to take a 10-point lead with 40 seconds to play, eventually closing out a 79-69 victory.

Notes

• Kavion McClain scored a career-high 27 points and is averaging 19.5 points in four games this season. 
• McClain has at least 14 points in every game and has two performances with at least 20 points.
• Stefanos Spartalis scored 13 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, earning his second double-double of the season.
• Spartalis has reached double figures in 13 games this season.
• The Hawks outrebounded UNCW, 38-32.
• The game featured 14 ties and 17 lead changes.
• Each team had the lead for just over 16 minutes of game time, while the score was tied for over seven minutes.

Up Next

• Monmouth continues its southern swing when it takes on the College of Charleston on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 4 p.m. That game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.