Massachusetts held the lead for most of the game, but St. Joseph’s found a way to battle back to a 68-64 win.

February 4, 2009 | AP Press

AMHERST, MA — Ricky Harris scored a game-high 24 points as Massachusetts came on strong in the second half Wednesday for an 80-71 win over Richmond.

Harris was 7-for-13 from the field, including 5-for-8 on 3-pointers, as UMass (8-12, 3-4 Atlantic 10) snapped a three-game losing streak.

Richmond (11-11, 3-4 Atlantic 10) was led by David Gonzalvez and Kevin Anderson, both with 18 points.

The Minutemen led the entire second half. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Anthony Gurley and Harris got UMass ahead 71-59 with a little more than four minutes to play.

Chris Lowe added 13 points for UMass, bringing his career total to 1,012, and 10 assists. Tony Gaffney had 12 points.

UMass used a 10-0 run to take a 25-19 lead in the first half. The lead changed hands seven times, but a 3-pointer by Luke Bonner and a free throw by Lowe brought UMass to a 32-32 tie at intermisson.

January 31, 2009 | AP Press

CINCINNATI, OH – Derrick Brown matched his career high with 23 points Saturday, and No. 10 Xavier used its balance and free-throw shooting to hold on for an 82-80 victory over Massachusetts, its 10th straight win.

B.J. Raymond added 22 points and C.J. Anderson had 19 for the Musketeers (19-2, 7-0), who remained unbeaten atop the Atlantic 10. This one was in doubt down to the final rebound. Anderson got that off Chris Lowe’s purposely missed free throw with 3 seconds left.

UMass (7-12, 2-4) set a pedal-to-the-metal pace on offense and kept it a game by forcing Xavier into a season-high 23 turnovers, but couldn’t break through in the closing minutes. Ricky Harris led the Minutemen with 17 points.

The shot clock rarely came into play in a fast-paced game of catch the ball and shoot — a pace that suits UMass but not the Musketeers. Brown, Raymond and Anderson were a combined 24-for-32 from the field, and made the biggest plays in the closing minutes.

The Minutemen stayed in the game by exploiting Xavier’s biggest weakness — a propensity for sloppy passes. UMass scored three straight baskets off turnovers early in the second half. Harris had a driving layup and a 3-pointer, and Lowe had a steal and layup that tied it at 58 with 11 minutes left.

There were three ties and six lead changes down the stretch, with neither team ahead by more than three points until the final minute. Raymond’s 3 and Anderson’s putback put Xavier ahead to stay, 78-74 with 53 seconds left.

Harris responded with a 3-pointer, then missed another one with 10 seconds to go. Raymond got the rebound and made both free throws for an 80-77 lead. Brown added two free throws.

Rather than let Lowe try to take a 3-pointer that would tie it, Xavier fouled him with 3 seconds left. He made the first and, after a timeout, missed the second, hoping UMass could get a tying putback. The ball was slapped around and Anderson came down with it.

The points piled up fast in the first half. UMass hit nine of its first 13 shots, while Xavier went 9-of-14. It didn’t take either team long to find an open shot and make it.

Xavier’s player with the can’t-miss touch temporarily took over the game.

Brown had a game this season when he didn’t miss, going 6-for-6 from the field and 5-for-5 from the free-throw line in a win over Saint Louis on Jan. 8. He made his first eight shots on Saturday, including a 3-pointer that started Xavier’s nine-point run in the first half.

His three-point play off a driving dunk made it 41-31 with 2:52 left in the half, the biggest lead of the game. Xavier shot 68 percent in the first half against one of the conference’s worst perimeter defenses.

January 21, 2009 | AP Press

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Lamont Mack scored 23 points and Charlotte won its first Atlantic 10 Conference game of the season in a 69-64 overtime win against Massachusetts on Wednesday night.

Ian Andersen scored 13 for Charlotte (6-11, 1-3), including a 3-pointer that tied the game with 33.3 seconds left in regulation. He also hit four foul shots in overtime.

Ricky Harris scored 19 and Luke Bonner had 15 for Massachusetts, which saw its eight-point lead disappear in the final 5:30 of regulation. Anthony Gurley scored 10 for Massachusetts (7-10, 2-2).

Massachusetts regained control with a 18-0 run midway through the second half, taking the lead on David Gibbs’ drive at 43-42. Charlotte’s skid at the end of the second half began with a foul on Mack after a missed dunk by Tony Gaffney and a technical foul on coach Bobby Lutz.

January 14, 2009 | AP Press

ST. LOUIS, MO – Tommie Liddell III had 14 points and nine rebounds and Kwamain Mitchell added 14 points to lead Saint Louis over Massachusetts 69-64 on Wednesday night.

Kevin Lisch added 13 points and Paul Eckerle scored 12, all from 3-point range, as the Billikens (10-6, 1-1 Atlantic 10 Conference) won their eighth straight home game.

Chris Lowe led UMass (6-9, 1-1) with 21 points. Ricky Harris added 18 points for the Minutemen, who’ve dropped three of their last four games.

Saint Louis trailed 31-27 at the half in a game that saw 17 lead changes. The Billikens hit just 33 percent of their field goals in the first half but improved to 58 percent in the second.

The Minutemen suffered at the foul line, hitting only 2-of-5 attempts.

January 10, 2009 | AP Press

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Ricky Harris scored a game-high 23 points as Massachusetts used a strong second half to beat Dayton, 75-62, in an Atlanic 10 Conference opener Saturday.

The Minutemen (6-8, 1-0 Atlantic 10) led by only two points at halftime but vaulted to a 24-9 edge in the first 10 minutes of the second half to take 59-42 lead. The Minutemen had a 15-0 run over 6:43 in the second half while Dayton went without a field goal over an 8:36 span.

The Flyers (14-2, 0-1 Atlantic 10) saw their six-game winning streak snapped.

The game was tied four times in the first half, the last time at 33. A hoop by Harris put the Minutemen on top 35-33 at the break.

January 6, 2009  by WH | A10CollegeHoops

Here are my final noncon rankings and comments. Per usual, I am unlikely to post again until the end of league play once conference games begin.

Even though some teams have outperformed or underperformed my expectations, I can’t say any team has truly surprised me with the exception of GW (just terrible lately). I didn’t anticipate such a slow start for Charlotte, and UMass struggled more than I expected, but both teams had obvious question marks before the season began.

As of now, we only have two schools that look like NCAA teams, but Rhody has a decent chance and I expect another team to make a big run in league play (Temple with a full roster?). I would be thrilled to get three teams in given the so-so noncon performance.

Speaking of which, looks like I will finish 5 games below my noncon forecast. Ironically, this is the first year in awhile that I did not automatically deduct five wins from my combined forecast. Had I done so, I might be perfect! (not that it would be a good thing). Too many damned near misses and blown leads late in games.

VALEDICTORIANS

1)XAVIER (unchanged). The Muskies (11-2). The Musketeers bounced back from a two-game losing skid with convincing wins over Robert Morris and at Virginia. Frosh PG Terrell Holloway has taken over the starting position, allowing Dante Jackson to play more at his natural position of off-guard. Two other touted frosh, Kenny Frease and long-range gunner Brad Redford, have come on strong. Upperclassmen Derrick Brown and BJ Raymond have also stepped up. If Holloway continues to mature rapidly, the Musketeers have to be considered the clear league favorite.

2)DAYTON (unchanged). The Flyers (13-1) have beaten all the teams they are supposed to beat and have a marquee win over Marquette to put themselves in line for an NCAA bid. Dayton does struggle at times to put the ball in the basket, but the team is very athletic and plays topnotch defense. With just a little better shooting and scoring, the Flyers have all the tools to battle archrival Xavier for the league title.

HONOR ROLL

3)RHODE ISLAND (+1). The Rams (10-4) are a few points away – agonizingly close losses at Duke and Oklahoma State – from being locked in for an at-large bid. The team is still well positioned, but URI needs to rack up 11 or 12 wins in conference play and advance deep into the league tourney to merit consideration. Seven-foot sophomore Will Martell has been a surprise contributor while Jimmy Baron Jr. and Keith Cothran have performed like All-Conference players. The defense is still a bit unreliable, but the Rams are deep and athletic and have the talent to make a run for the conference championship.

AVERAGE STUDENTS

4)CHARLOTTE (+1). The 49ers (5-7) might be playing the best ball of any A-10 team outside of Xavier, Dayton and URI, but a rash of injuries has further depleted an already-thin roster. Sophomore forward An’juan Wilderness is out for a few weeks and sophomore Charles Dewhurst was lost for the year to a knee injury. Charlotte has no backup point guard and needs a few of its healthier players to step up. Hard to believe a 5-7 team might be the fourth best squad in the A-10, but every program in the conference has significant flaws.

5)RICHMOND (+1). The Spiders (8-6) are one of the most disappointing teams in the league despite eight wins. The team blew a late lead at Virginia Military Institute and has lost to all three in-state rivals (ODU and VCU are the others) even though the Spiders arguably have the most talent of the bunch. The defense has been soft and the offense mistake prone. Yet Richmond still has the size, athleticism and backcourt play to finish in the conference’s top four if the players learn how to close out games.

6) TEMPLE (-3). After beating Tennessee, the Owls (6-6) stumbled badly with three straight losses, including a whopper at Long Beach State. Temple rebounded Monday night with a win over Kent State. Sophomore forward Craig Williams had a career game (16 points) and touted Argentine PG Juan Fernandez (8 points, 4 assists) wowed the crowd in his debut. Temple’s problems have stemmed from poor point play – a concern of mine in my preseason review – and lethargic play among bigmen Lavoy Allen and Sergio Olmos. The addition of Fernandez and further contributions from Williams could make the Owls a big factor in conference play, however.

7)LASALLE (+2). The Explorers (8-5) beat several mediocre opponents to enter conference action with a three-game winning streak. Ruben Guillandeaux seems to be awaking from a season-long slumber while Rodney Green and Kimmani Barrett have stepped up their games. Defense and rebounding have kept LaSalle in most games, but postseason possibilities rest on whether the offense shows major improvement. The lack of consistent point play and outside shooting have been the team’s undoing.

*8*)ST. BONAVENTURE (unchanged). The Bonnies (7-3) recovered from a blowout loss at home to Niagara by topping Bucknell and Central Arkansas on the road. Granted, the competition wasn’t great, but two road wins of any sort is a big accomplishment for the rapidly recovering program. The 6-10 freshman sensation Andrew Nicholson looks like the program’s biggest recruiting find in a decade or more. Expect the Bonnies to be very competitive in most games, especially at home, and a winning record is by no means out of the question. The team now has enough talent to compete with almost any team in the A-10. Point play is just so-so, however, and the Bonnies lack outside shooting when Chris Matthews is cold.

9)DUQUESNE (+4). The Dukes (9-4) are one of the two big surprises in nonconference play, along with St. Bonaventure. They lost to the four best teams on their sked but have handled all the opponents from lesser conferences. Aaron Jackson, who’s playing like an A-10 First Teamer, is one of four “veterans” who have carried the program while the youngsters mature. Touted frosh Melquan Bolding has come on strong to join PG Eric Evans as top candidates for the league’s All-Rookie team. Shooter Jason Duty, formerly a recruited walk-on, has been a surprisingly big contributor. If only the Dukes had one legit bigman …

10) ST. LOUIS (+2). The Bills (9-5) have won seven of their last eight games against mostly weaker competition, though not without some struggles. Rick Majerus has his young squad playing solid defense and a controlled offense, but points sometimes are hard to come by. Frosh bigman Willie Reed looks like a future all-conference player and two other newcomers, PG Kwamain Mitchell and F Brian Conklin, have impressed. The Bills are a middle-of-the-pack team at best, but they will pull some upsets in league play.

BACK OF THE CLASS

11)ST. JOSEPH’S (-4). The Hawks (6-7) simply don’t have enough Division 1 players. Sophomore forward Idris Hilliard has shown marked improvement, but none of the reserves has contributed significantly. St. Joe’s has to rely on no more than 3-4 players, led by Ahmad Nivins, to do the scoring, but the core group doesn’t have tons of energy leftover for defense at the end of a game. The tank could run dry in late February unless Martelli develops a bench.

12)MASSACHUSETTS (-1). The Minutemen (5-8) followed a four-game win streak with a two-game skid in which the team lost by a combined 56 points to Houston and Vanderbilt. What to make? Impossible to say. Rookie coach Derek Kellogg sure looks green and senior point guard Chris Lowe is struggling mightily to run the new offense. Yet UMass is still capable of beating virtually any team in the A-10, as the win at Kansas attests. The first game in league play vs. Dayton could be telling.

CLASS CLOWNS

13)FORDHAM (+1). The Rams (2-10) have gotten a boost from 6-9 West Virginia transfer Jacob Green, but this team is headed for 20-plus losses. Much too young and much too small (-10 rebounding margin). Coach ain’t all that great, either.

14)GEORGE WASHINGTON (-4). The Colonials (6-6) aren’t worse than Fordham, but while the Rams are getting better, the Colonials have badly regressed. The team lost four straight to Vermont, Hawaii, Coppin State and … Longwood! Travis King is still not his old self, but at least he has an excuse. The same cannot be said for Rob Diggs, Wynton Witherspoon, Damian Hollis – or Karl Hobbs. GW is near the bottom of the league in scoring, shooting, rebounding and assists. Call the Coast Guard.

ALL-CONFERENCE PROJECTIONS (based on current performance)

POY

Dionte Christmas

FIRST TEAM

Dionte Christmas, Temple
Ahmad Nivins, St. Joseph’s
Derrick Brown, Xavier
Aaron Jackson, Duquesne
Chris Wright, Dayton

SECOND TEAM

Tony Gaffney, UMass
Jimmy Baron Jr., Rhode Island
Damian Saunders, Duquesne
Ricky Harris, UMass
Keith Cothran, Rhode Island

THIRD TEAM

Jonathan Hall, St. Bonaventure
David Gonzalvez, Richmond
Tommie Liddell, St. Louis
Andrew Nicholson, St. Bonaventure
Dijuan Harris, Charlotte

DEFENSIVE POY

Tony Gaffney, UMass

ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM

Tony Gaffney, UMass
Garrett Williamson, St. Josephs
Aaron Jackson, Duquesne
Andrew Nicholson, St. Bonaventure
Ahmad Nivins, St. Josephs

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

Andrew Nicholson, St. Bonaventure

ALL-NEWCOMER TEAM

Andrew Nicholson, St. Bonaventure
Eric Evans, Duquesne
Terrell Holloway, Xavier
Jio Fontan, Fordham
Brian Conklin, St. Louis

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER

Tony Gaffney

January 3, 2009 | AP Press

AMHERST, Mass. — A.J. Ogilvy had 14 points and 8 rebounds as Vanderbilt blew things open in the second half and coasted to a 78-48 win over Massachusetts on Saturday.

Lance Goulbourne added 10 points and 8 rebounds, Jermaine Beal had 10 points and 6 assists, while Darshawn McClellan bagged 10 points to help Vanderbilt (11-3) to its fifth straight win.

The Commodores never trailed in the game, but were forced to cling to a 28-23 lead at halftime.

The tide started turning early in the second half when Vanderbilt strung together three straight 3-point hoops to push the Commodores’ lead to 41-27 with 15:54 to play.

The Commodores later were in front by as many at 34 points (72-38).

Chris Lowe had 14 points and 3 assists for Massachusetts (5-8). Ricky Harris added 12 points for the Minutemen, who were outrebounded, 48-28.

December 30, 2008 | AP Press

HOUSTON, TX — Qa’rraan Calhoun scored 26 points and Aubrey Coleman had a double-double to help Houston beat Massachusetts 80-54 on Tuesday.

Coleman scored 16 points and had 12 rebounds, and Kelvin Lewis added 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting for the Cougars (8-2). Calhoun hit four 3-pointers for Houston.

Anthony Gurley led Massachusetts (5-7) with 17 points. Ricky Harris added 11 and was the only other player in double figures for the Minutemen, whose four-game win streak ended.

December 27, 2008 | AP Press

AMHERST, MA. — Ricky Harris scored 12 of his game-high 23 points in the second half to spark Massachusetts to a 62-57 win over Indiana-Purdue-Indianapolis on Saturday.

Tony Gaffney added 11 points and 11 rebounds for Massachusetts, which led 34-31 at halftime and stayed on top the rest of the game.

IUPUI (7-5) fell behind by 10 points early in the second half, but staged a 9-0 run to come within one of a tie at 44-43 on a hoop by Alex Young, who led the Jaguars with 19 points.

John Avery added 13 points and 7 rebounds for IUPUI, which had won 6 of its last 7.

Massachusetts (5-6) used its defense to hold IUPUI without a field goal for nearly nine minutes in the second half.

The Minutemen, who started their season by losing six of seven, now have won their last four.