THE BASICS:

• Score:  Holy Cross 76, Maine 75
• Records: Holy Cross 5-6; Maine 2-9
• Location: Hart Center, Worcester, Mass.
• Date: December 21, 2015
• The Lead: Junior center Matt Husek posted his second double-double of the season with career highs of 19 points and 13 rebounds, to lead the Holy Cross men's basketball team to a 76-75 victory over Maine at the Hart Center.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Husek hit seven of nine field goal attempts and three of four free throws on the night.
• Junior guard Robert Champion added a game-high 20 points, while handing out a career-best seven assists.
• Senior guard Cullen Hamilton and freshman forward Karl Charles also scored in double-figures for the Crusaders with 13 points each.
• Troy Reid-Knight led five Maine players in double-digits with 15 points.
• Holy Cross hit 49.1 percent of its field goal attempts on the night, but was able to connect on only 60.7 percent of its free throws.
• The Crusaders also had a season-high 24 turnovers, while Maine gave the ball away 23 times.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Holy Cross started the game hot, jumping out to an 11-4 lead after the first five minutes of play.
• The Crusaders were still up by seven (27-20) with 7:41 left in the half, before the Black Bears scored the next six points to make it a one-point game.
• Holy Cross would eventually take a 36-31 lead into the locker room.
• The Crusaders would open the second half with an 8-0 spurt to increase their lead to 13 points (44-31), and later held a 58-45 advantage with 11:25 remaining.
• Maine then went on a 15-3 run over the next 5:17 to make it a one-point game (61-60).
• A fast break layup by Charles ignited a 6-0 run to put Holy Cross back up by seven (67-60), before the Black Bears responded with a 9-3 spurt of their to make the score 70-69 with one minute left to play.
• But the Crusaders went on to hit six of eight free throw attempts in the final 19 seconds of play, to escape with the victory.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• Holy Cross improves to 8-1 all-time against Maine, including a perfect 5-0 mark in Worcester.
• The Crusaders grabbed a season-high 36 rebounds, while outrebounding the Black Bears 36-33.

UP NEXT:

• Holy Cross will take an eight-day break for Christmas, before returning to action on Wednesday, Dec. 30, when it plays host to Turnpike Trophy rival Boston University in its Patriot League opener at 7:05 p.m.

BE PART OF THE ACTION:

• Single-game tickets, season tickets and mini plans to see the Crusaders are on sale now. Make sure you don't miss the opportunity to see the best collegiate basketball in Central Massachusetts! Tickets for Holy Cross basketball can be purchased online at GoHolyCross.com/tickets or over the phone by calling 1-844-GOCROSS.

KEEP CONNECTED:

• To stay updated on the Holy Cross men's basketball team, follow the Crusaders on Twitter @HCrossMBB and on Facebook at HolyCrossBasketball.
• You can also subscribe for email alerts for all news and information on the team by clicking here.