Explosive Bench Provides Energy And Production For Umaine Men’s Basketball Team

Stephane Ingo’s shot-blocking potential was apparent as soon as he joined the University of Maine men’s basketball program in the fall of 2018. After a redshirt season last winter, Ingo’s rim protection has become a significant contribution to a Black Bears’ bench contingent that is starting to have its own influence. Take Sunday’s 86-63 victory over Binghamton at the Cross Insurance Center. The visiting Bearcats were struggling but hanging around, trailing 62-46 eight minutes into the second half. Then the 6-foot-9 forward from Mississauga, Ontario — via Gould Academy in Bethel — turned fly swatter, rising up to reject a close-range shot by Binghamton 7-foot center Yarden Willis. That led to a transition layup by senior guard Sergio El Darwich, part of a game-clinching 8-3 energy burst that also included a dunk by senior forward Andrew Fleming and a steal by Ingo that was followed by his pass ahead for a dunk by freshman guard Peter Stumer. Suddenly the Black Bears’ lead was 70-49 with 9½ minutes left, and the advantage dropped no lower than 19 points the rest of the way. “We want that energy to begin with but it’s so much easier to get that energy when there’s a big block like that or a nice steal or a charge,” said Fleming, whose team closes out its three-game homestand at 7 p.m.