Men's Hoop Drops Season Opener to Yale

The Central Connecticut men's basketball team opened the 2013-14 season with a 93-77 loss to Yale in the Connecticut 6 Classic in Bridgeport, CT.  Central led by 17 in the second half, but the Bulldogs went on a big run in the second half to claim the victory. 

Junior Kyle Vinales led the Blue Devils with 30 points, he had 24 in the first half.  The Blue Devils scored just 30 second half points after leading 47-40 at halftime.

Junior Juwan Newmen had 10 points and eight rebounds in his first game as a Blue Devil.  His eight rebounds led the team.  Yale held a 44-33 edge on the boards in the game.

After leading by seven at halftime the Blue Devils came out hot in the second half and built their lead to 63-46 with 14:12 to play in the second half.  The Blue Devils used a 14-2 run over a four minute span to build the lead, including nine points in a span of 3:16. 

The Blue Devils, however, would go cold from the field, as the Bulldogs used an 18-1 run over the next seven minutes to tie the game 64-64 with 7:19 on the clock.  Central went eight minutes without a field goal, shooting 0-for-5 from the field and turning the ball over four times in that stretch.

Meanwhile, Yale made 15-of-27 from the field in the second half and 19-of-26 from the free-throw line to move to 1-0 on the season.  Justin Sears ended the game with 26 points and 13 rebounds.  He was 10-of-17 from the field.

Vinales led all scorers with 30 points, his eighth career game with 30 or more points.  He added three assists and three steals.  Senior Matt Hunter had 11 points, five rebounds and four steals.  Junior Malcolm McMillan added 11 points and five assists in the loss.

Central returns to action again on Wednesday night on the road at Purdue.  Fans can listen in Hartford on Fox Sports Radio 1410, in New Haven on ESPN Radio 1300 and online and on their mobile device at www.iHeartRadio.com.