FARMVILLE, Va. – Led by 16 points from forward Ilker Er, Maine broke out for a 47-point second half to cruise to an 80-58 win over Longwood in Sunday's season opener in Willett Hall.
 
Er hit 4-of-9 shots from long range, including 3-of-7 in the second half, to finish as one of five double-figure scorers for Maine (1-1), which outscored Longwood 47-29 in the second half. That late surge included 31 points from Maine's bench, a combined 21 of which came from the reserve duo of Ryan Bernstein and Marko Pirovic.
 
Wes Myers added 15 points for the Black Bears, who committed just seven turnovers against a Longwood (0-1) team that forced Division III Hampden-Sydney into 27 giveaways in the preseason exhibition on Nov. 5. Maine's sure-handed approach started up top with Myers, who dished three assists without a turnover, and point guard Aaron Calixte, who added 10 points, three assists and a pair of three-pointers.
 
"I tell you, we're just not a very good basketball team right now," said Longwood head coach Jayson Gee, who embarked on his fourth season as Longwood's head coach. "We have a long way to go. We have some moving parts, and we have to get our point guard play up to another level. The biggest thing I was disappointed in was our lack of mental toughness. Difficult times came, and we didn't respond very well. We have to get better at that, for sure."

The runaway second half followed a punch, counter-punch first half in which the teams battled through 11 lead changes before Maine took hold of the lead for good in the closing minutes before halftime. Longwood's captain duo of senior Darrion Allen and redshirt junior Khris Lane kept the Lancers in it early, combining for 23 of Longwood's first 25 points to stake a 25-22 lead. However, Maine delivered the final counter-punch of the half with an 11-4 run punctuated by a go-ahead three from Er and a late layup from Danny Evans that put the Black Bears ahead 33-29 at the break.
 
"[Allen and Lane] gave us all the effort we needed, but they just didn't have enough help," Gee said. "They got some shots at the basket that they didn't carry through, but at the end of the day, we gave up 17 offensive rebounds. You can't do that and win the game. Certainly that was a disadvantage from our perspective."
 
The second half was a different story with Maine riding that momentum to outscore Longwood 47-29 the rest of the way. That turning of the tide was the byproduct of 46-40 rebounding margin that led to 22 second-chance points and a 38-32 scoring edge in the paint, which came despite a nine-block night from Longwood's interior defense.
 
Sixteen turnovers plagued Longwood's comeback effort, as well, preventing the Lancers from stringing together more than a five-point run the entire second half. Maine turned those giveaways into 18 second-half points.
 
"We just have a long way to go from a discipline standpoint," Gee said. "Discipline in our game, our minds, becoming more mentally tough. These guys are in position now where they have to respond."
 
Longwood will have little time to dwell on the season-opening loss with a nationally televised matchup against Stephen F. Austin on ESPN2 looming Tuesday at 11 a.m. EST. That game, part of the ESPN College Basketball Tip-Off Marathon, marks Longwood's second appearance on one of ESPN's three main networks in the past two years.
 
The matchup pits the Lancers against a Stephen F. Austin team coming off a Southland Conference championship and an NCAA Tournament upset over West Virginia in the 2016 second round.
 
"We have to go back to the drawing board, really challenge the guys, get out there and compete," Gee said. "We have to get over the hump because our guys are going to be put in a lot of adverse conditions here in the next 48 hours."

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