University of Massachusets Athletics
Men's Basketball Gunning For St. Bonaventure
March 02, 2000 | Men's Basketball
March 2, 2000
UMass Basketball Game Notes
UMass (15-13, 9-6 A-10)
vs. St. Bonaventure (18-8, 10-5 A-10)
March 4, 2000 - 7:30 p.m.
Reilly Center (6,000)
St. Bonaventure, N.Y.
Gameday Quick Facts
Television: None
Radio: UMass Radio Network (WHMP 99.3 FM / 1400 AM, Northampton, flagship, Bob Behler, play-by-play, Skip Connors and Jack Leaman, color) UMass Student Radio (WMUA 91.1 FM, Amherst)
St. Bonaventure Radio Network (WHDL 1450 AM, Olean, N.Y., flagship, Gary Nease, play-by-play, Mark Saglimben, color)
The Series with St. Bonaventure
This will be the 41st meeting between UMass and St. Bonaventure. The Minutemen hold a 28-12 lead in the all-time series and had won 20 in a row over the Bonnies, before St. Bonaventure won three of the last four meetings. Earlier this year, the Bonnies posted a 70-60 victory over UMass at the Mullins Center. The Minutemen are 10-8 all-time against St. Bonaventure on the road, winning eight straight before the Bonnies won the last two meetings.
Probable Starters & Key Reserves
No. Name Pos. Yr. Ht. Wt. PPG RPG 22 Chris Kirkland F Sr. 6-6 228 15.3 6.0 23 Mike Babul F Sr. 6-6 230 3.6 3.5 33 Kitwana Rhymer C Jr. 6-10 256 7.3 7.3 5 Monty Mack G Sr. 6-3 200 19.4 3.5 30 Shannon Crooks G So. 6-2 222 11.7 3.5 40 Micah Brand C Fr. 6-11 243 4.4 3.3 1 Jonathan DePina G Jr. 5-9 185 3.2 2.0 20 Winston Smith F Jr. 6-5 228 1.8 1.6 3 Ronell Blizzard F So. 6-8 205 2.0 1.3 0 Anthony Oates C Sr. 6-10 285 0.7 1.1
Series Quick Facts
Overall Series UMass, 28-12
Bruiser Flint vs. St. Bonaventure 4-3
Last Meeting SBU (70-60) on 1/6/00 at UMass
Most UMass Points 104, (104-67) on 2/22/92 at UMass
Fewest UMass Points 39, (39-43) on 1/29/87 at UMass
Largest UMass Margin 38, (98-60) on 2/24/90 at SBU
Most SBU Points 104, (104-80) on 1/5/81 at SBU
Fewest SBU Points 43, (43-29) on 1/29/87 at UMass
Largest SBU Margin 24, (104-80) on 1/5/81 at SBU
In Overtime Tied, 1-1
Playing for the Bye
The result of the UMass-St. Bonaventure game will have a major impact on the seedings for next week's Atlantic 10 Tournament, to be held at the First Union Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pa., from Mar. 8-11.
If St. Bonaventure wins, the Bonnies will receive the second seed in the East Division with an 11-5 conference record, while the Minutemen would claim the third seed with a 9-7 mark.
If UMass is victorious, the teams would tie for second with identical 10-6 league records, with the Minutemen claiming the second seed due to better record against the East Division (7-3 to 6-4).
The second seed from the East Division will receive a first round bye, and will not have to play until the final quarterfinal game on Mar. 9 (against the winner of the Xavier-Rhode Island game).
The third seed will open up with a first round game at 2:30 p.m. on Mar. 8 against the sixth seed from the West Division (either Duquesne or La Salle).
Since the Atlantic 10 expanded to 12 teams in the 1995-96 season, no team seeded lower than second in its division has ever advanced to the championship game.
Going for 10 in the A-10
With a victory against St. Bonaventure in the regular season finale, UMass will once again reach the 10-win plateau in Atlantic 10 Conference games.
If the Minutemen do make it 10 wins, it would mark the 10th time in the last 11 seasons they have reached that mark. UMass posted 10-8 conference records in 1989-90 and 1990-91, went 13-3 in 1991-92, had an 11-3 mark in 1992-93 and posted a 14-2 record in 1993-94.
The Minutemen then went 13-3 in conference games in 1994-95, posted a 15-1 mark in 1995-96, had an 11-5 mark in 1996-97 and went 12-4 in 1997-98. The only time in the last 10 years UMass did not win 10 A-10 games was last season, when it had a 9-7 league record.
The Minutemen have not had a losing record in Atlantic 10 play since 1988-89, when they went 5-13.
Mack Continues to Score
Senior Monty Mack has led the team in scoring 15 times in his last 20 games. During that span he scored at least 20 points 13 times, while hitting for 19 points on two other occasions.
Against George Washington, he had 22 points and hit four of nine from three-point range, in addition to grabbing six rebounds. At Temple, Mack totaled 20 points and six rebounds, hitting on five of 12 attempts from three-point range. Against St. Joseph's, he totaled 23 points and pulled down six rebounds, while also connecting on eight of nine free throw attempts. In the Xavier game, Mack scored 32 points while hitting 11 of 20 field goals and six of 12 three pointers. The 32 points are the second most he has scored in his UMass career, behind only a 34-point performance at the College of Charleston last year. Against La Salle, Mack scored 20 points, while making nine of 17 field goals and two of four from three-point range.
Mack has scored in double figures 25 times in his 27 games this season, and has now reached double digits 79 times in his 89-game UMass career. For the season, Mack is averaging 19.4 points per game to rank 29th in the country and second in the Atlantic 10. He has a chance to become the first UMass player to average 20 points per game for a season since Marcus Camby, who scored 20.5 points per game in 1995-96.
Kirkland Keeps On Producing
Senior co-captain Chris Kirkland has been one of the top offensive threats for the Minutemen all season long.
Against George Washington he led the team with 26 points, making eight of 12 field goal attempts and 10 of 13 free throws. Against St. Joseph's, Kirkland recorded his third double double of the season with 12 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. In the win at Fordham he had one of his top all-around games of the season, scoring 17 points while leading the team in rebounds (seven), steals (six), assists (four) and blocks (three). At Xavier, Kirkland scored 18 points while hitting a blistering 75 percent of his field goal attempts (nine of 12). In the La Salle game, he tied his career high with 26 points, while also recording team-bests of eight rebounds and four steals. He has led the team in scoring seven times this year and in rebounds 10 times, while scoring in double figures in 23 out of 28 games.
For the season, Kirkland is averaging 15.3 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, while hitting on 46.1 percent of his field goal attempts. He currently ranks sixth in the Atlantic 10 in field goal percentage, 13th in scoring and 16th in rebounding. Dating back to last season, Kirkland has scored in double figures 30 times in his last 35 games, including six double doubles.
Stealing the Show
Through 28 games this season, UMass has totaled 262 steals as a team, a mark which leads the Atlantic 10 Conference. During the victory over Rhode Island the Minutemen totaled 18 steals, their highest mark in a single game since recording 21 steals against St. Joseph's on Feb. 28, 1990.
Currently averaging 9.36 steals per contest, the Minutemen have a good shot at breaking the school record for steals per game, which is currently held by the 1989-90 squad with an average of 8.58 steals. UMass could also break the school record for total steals in a single year, depending on how far it advances in the postseason.
At their current pace, the Minutemen would need to play five postseason games (in addition to their 29 regular season contests) to break the mark of 311 steals, which was set by the 1995-96 squad in 37 games.
Monty Mack currently leads the team in steals with 57, followed by Chris Kirkland and Shannon Crooks with 51 each. This marks the first time in school history more than one player has recorded 50 or more steals in a single season.
The Dynamic Duo
Monty Mack and Chris Kirkland are becoming one of the most prolific scoring combinations in school history. With one more regular season games and the postseason remaining, Mack and Kirkland have combined to score 953 points. With 47 more points, the pair will become only the eighth combination in school history to total 1,000 points in a single season.
The record for most combined points by two players is 1,213, set by Marcus Camby and Donta Bright in 1995-96. Here is a look at the top UMass scoring combinations all-time:
Players Year Points
Marcus Camby (675) and Donta Bright (538) 1995-96 1,213
Lou Roe (650) and Mike Williams (453) 1993-94 1,103
Jim McCoy (623) and Tony Barbee (460) 1990-91 1,083
Julius Erving (727) and John Betancourt (340) 1970-71 1,067
Julius Erving (643) and Ray Ellerbrook (413) 1969-70 1,056
Jim McCoy (556) and Harper Williams (488) 1991-92 1,044
Jim McCoy (640) and Will Herndon (404) 1989-90 1,044
Mack on the Scoring Charts
Senior Monty Mack enters the George Washington game as the seventh all-time leading scorer in UMass history with 1,509 career points. He passed Julius Erving (1,370 points / 1969-71) during the first Temple game, then moved ahead of Marcus Camby (1,387 points / 1993-96) against La Salle.
Mack, who is only in his third season with the Minutemen, has also scored the second-most points ever in a UMass player's first three seasons. Jim McCoy holds the record with 1,818 points in his first three years as a Minuteman (McCoy finished his career as UMass' all-time leading scorer with 2,374 points from 1988-92).
Mack stands in second followed by Camby, who scored 1,387 points in his first three seasons (Camby played only three years before moving on to the NBA). At his current pace, Mack should finish the year with close to 1,600 career points.
If Mack returns to UMass for a fifth year, he is on pace to join McCoy as the only players in school history with over 2,000 career points (Lou Roe currently ranks second all-time with 1,905 points).
Crooks Steps Up On Offense
Sophomore guard Shannon Crooks has turned in some of the top performances of his young career during the last few games. With Monty Mack out of the lineup due to illness at Fordham, Crooks started at shooting guard and scored a career-best 29 points. He made 12 of 24 field goal attempts and three of seven from three-point range against the Rams, while also totaling four steals, four rebounds, two blocks and two assists. Then against St. Joseph's, Crooks scored the second highest total of his career with 20 points.
Following his performances against Fordham and St. Joseph's, Crooks was honored as the Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Week. In UMass' last three games, Crooks scored 12 points at Rhode Island, 10 points at Temple and 14 points against George Washington.
Over the last five games, he is averaging 17.0 points and 4.4 rebounds. Earlier in the year, Crooks led the team in scoring for the first time in his career against Texas with 17 points. For the season, Crooks has now reached double figures in scoring 18 times. He is averaging 11.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, to lead the team in assists and rank third in scoring.
Rhymer Playing Big in the Middle
Junior Kitwana Rhymer has been a consistent force in the paint for UMass all season long. Against George Washington, Rhymer had a huge game with 16 points and 16 rebounds, connecting on seven out of eight field goal attempts. He had another solid game at Temple, totaling six points and seven rebounds on the afternoon. In the victory at Fordham, he scored a career-high 19 points while connecting on seven of eight field goal attempts and five of seven free throws. Rhymer scored 10 points in the first meeting with Temple, hitting on three of five field goals and four of six free throws. He had a huge game on the boards at Virginia Tech, pulling down 15 rebounds while also scoring six points. At Duquesne, Rhymer recorded his third double-double of the season, scoring a career-high 16 points to go along with 14 rebounds, four blocks and three steals. He totaled eight points, six rebounds and a career-high three assists in the first meeting with Rhode Island, while just missing a double double against Dayton with 11 points and nine rebounds.
Rhymer currently ranks ninth in the Atlantic 10 Conference with an average of 7.3 rebounds per game, while scoring 7.3 points per contest. He has been the top rebounder for the Minutemen 13 times in 28 games.
George Washington Recap
Chris Kirkland tied his career high with 26 points and Monty Mack added 22, but it was not enough as the Minutemen lost a tough 87-86 game to George Washington at the Mullins Center on Feb. 29. The Colonials led by one with 35 seconds remaining, but Mack was unable to convert on a jumper in the lane. After SirValiant Brown hit one of two free throws on George Washington's next possession to make it a two-point game, Shannon Crooks was called for a charge in the lane to give the ball back to the Colonials once again and essentially put the game out of reach.
Brown led George Washington with 35 points on 10 of 27 shooting from the floor, while Chris Monroe added 18 points and eight rebounds. Kitwana Rhymer had a double-double for the Minutemen with 16 points and 16 boards.
The 500 Club
When Monty Mack scored 20 points at Temple last Saturday, it marked the 17th time in school history a player has scored over 500 points in a single season.
Heading into the St. Bonaventure game, Mack has 524 points on the year. He is also the fifth Minutemen to ever score 500 points in a season more than once, as he also accomplished the feat last season with 542 points.
The other four UMass players to have scored 500 points in a season more than once are Jim McCoy (555 in 1988-89, 640 in 1989-90, 623 in 1990-91 and 556 in 1991-92), Lou Roe (650 in 1993-94 and 560 in 1994-95), Julius Erving (643 in 1969-70 and 727 in 1970-71) and Clarence Hill (511 in 1964-65 and 554 in 1965-66).
The Road Warriors
So far this season, UMass has turned in some of its top performances on the road. The Minutemen stand 5-2 this year in road games against Atlantic 10 foes.
UMass owns victories at St. Joseph's (73-69), Duquesne (84-75), Virginia Tech (49-41), Fordham (81-72) and Rhode Island (57-37), with its lone conference road losses coming at Xavier (87-77) and Temple (72-54). Overall this season, UMass stands 8-5 in games played on the opposing team's home court, including wins at Iona (85-77), Boston College (74-67) and American-Puerto Rico (102-65).
The Stopper
Senior Mike Babul is known nationally as one of the best defensive players in the country. In the season opener he locked down MAAC preseason player of the year Tarik Kirksay. Babul clamped down on Connecticut's Kevin Freeman early in the season, with Freeman going 1-8 from the field and scoring only two points in 37 minutes of action. At Providence, Babul shut down Erron Maxey who was averaging 16.7 points per game. Maxey could manage only seven points, all of them coming while Babul was on the bench. In the victory at St. Joseph's, Babul helped shut down Tim Brown, the Atlantic 10's top three-point shooter. Brown did not score, and managed only two three-point attempts. Against Temple last Saturday, Babul held Mark Karcher to only three points on one of 10 shooting from the floor Player(school)
fg-a 3fg-a Points Avg. Kevin Freeman (UConn) 1-8 0-0 2 13.3 Erron Maxey (Providence) 2-4 1-1 7 16.7 Tim Brown (St. Joseph's) 0-3 0-2 0 11.6 Mark Karcher (Temple) 1-10 0-5 3 16.0 *second half only
The Last Meeting
Caswell Cyrus scored 22 points and had 11 rebounds as St. Bonaventure dominated the inside to beat UMass 70-60 in Amherst on Jan. 6. Peter Van Paassen chipped in with 17 points as the Bonnies won for the first time at the Mullins Center. UMass trailed by as many as 23 points and never came closer than nine points, 69-60, in the final seconds. Monty Mack led the Minutemen with 19 points, while Chris Kirkland scored 16 and Shannon Crooks chipped in with 14.
UMass fell behind from the opening buzzer, and made only one basket in the last nine minutes of the first half. The Bonnies, led by Cyrus, finished the half with a 19-5 run to take a 39-21 lead into the break. Cyrus had 14 points before the intermission, going seven of 10 from the field. The Bonnies shot 54.5 percent in the first half, in contrast to UMass' 32.0 percent. For the game, the Bonnies hit 50.0 percent and UMass 34.4 percent.
A Visit with St. Bonaventure
St. Bonaventure is currently in second place in the East Division of the Atlantic 10 Conference, with an overall mark of 18-8 and a 10-5 record in conference games. The Bonnies have won four of their last five games, and have won three straight at home since falling to Fordham on Feb. 6.
Senior guard Tim Winn leads the team in scoring with an average of 13.6 points per game, in addition to leading St. Bonaventure in both assists (109) and steals (88). Junior forward Peter Van Paassen leads the team in rebounds with an average of 7.1 boards per game, while also scoring 9.9 points per contest. Senior center Caswell Cyrus ranks second on the team with averages of 12.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.
Climbing the Charts
Senior Monty Mack is attacking the UMass career leader boards for three-point shooting. He has made 81 of 219 three-pointers on the season, to rank fifth on the UMass single season lists for both three-pointers made and attempted.
Mack has also moved into second place all-time at UMass in three-pointers made and attempted. For his career, Mack has now made 221 of 602 three-point attempts, good for a 36.7 percentage. He now trails only Carmelo Travieso (245 of 666 / 1993-97) on the UMass career charts, with his percentage of 36.7 ranking eighth all time.
Hitting for 70
So far this season, 70 points has been the magic number for the UMass offense. When the Minutemen have scored 70 or more points in a game, they have come out victorious 11 out of 13 times.
The wins this year in which UMass has scored 70 points were against Iona (85-77), Boston University (70-51), Boston College (74-67), American-Puerto Rico (102-65), Fordham (82-52), St. Joseph's (73-69 and 76-65), Rhode Island (89-50), Duquesne (84-75), La Salle (82-48) and Fordham (81-72).
The only losses in which the Minutemen scored 70 points came at Xavier (77-87) and against George Washington (86-87).
During the Bruiser Flint Era, the Minutemen are 37-10 when making it to the 70-point mark. Conversely, UMass is 11-32 under Flint and 3-7 this season when its foe scores 70 points.
Block Party
Once again this season, UMass is one of the top teams in the Atlantic 10 Conference at blocking shots. Through their first 28 games, the Minutemen have blocked a total of 117 shots, with their average of 4.18 blocks per game good for third place in the Atlantic 10.
Leading the way has been junior center Kitwana Rhymer, who has totaled 44 blocks this season for an average of 1.57 per game. He currently ranks fifth in the Atlantic 10 in blocked shots, only seven blocks behind Dennis Mims of Virginia Tech, who leads the conference with 49 blocks (an average of 1.88 per game).
Rhymer has a chance to become the fourth player in school history to lead the Atlantic 10 in blocked shots, a feat which has previously been accomplished by Edwin Green (2.3 blocks per game in 1983-84), Harper Williams (2.1 blocks per game in 1990-91) and Marcus Camby (3.62 blocks per game in 1993-94, 3.43 blocks per game in 1994-95, and 3.88 blocks per game in 1995-96).
Sparking with Flint
Coach Bruiser Flint has already established himself as one of the best young head coaches in the country and his record at UMass supports it. With 40 wins in his first 63 games at the helm, he achieved that win total faster than any other UMass coach in Minuteman history. In only his fourth season he is already moving up the career wins chart by leaps and bounds. Flint moved into fifth place on the career wins list with win number 58 after beating Villanova at the Mullins Center on December 6th.
Coach Years Wins
1. Jack Leaman 1966-79 217
2. John Calipari 1988-96 193
3. Harold M. Gore 1916-30, 1931-32 119
4. Robert Curran 1952-59 81
5. BRUISER FLINT 1996-present 69
6. Matthew Zunic 1959-63 57
7. Ron Gerlufsen 1983-88 55
8. John M. Orr 1963-66 39
Atlantic 10 Commissioner's Cup
UMass sits atop the Atlantic 10 Commissioner's Cup standings through championships of Feb. 19. UMass has earned 74.5 points so far this year, to rank just ahead of Virginia Tech. Massachusetts has relied on a strong showing from its women's programs, grabbing 44 of its points on that side of the ledger. The Minutewomen earned first-place finishes in field hockey and women's cross country to catapult to the lead.
Overall Men Women 1. UMass 74.5 30.5 44.0 2. Virginia Tech 71.0 34.0 37.0 3. Rhode Island 64.5 26.0 38.5 4. La Salle 48.5 24.5 24.0 5. Duquesne 39.5 11.0 28.5 6. Dayton 38.0 20.0 18.0 7. St. Bonaventure 36.5 18.5 18.0 8. St. Joseph's 35.0 17.0 18.0 9. Xavier 30.0 6.0 24.0 10. Temple 30.0 6.5 23.5 11. George Washington 29.5 11.0 18.5 12. Fordham 24.0 12.0 12.0
Brand Contributes off the Bench
Freshman center Micah Brand has contributed some key minutes off the bench along the UMass front line so far this season. At Rhode Island, Brand led the team in scoring for the first time in his career, totaling 14 points and five rebounds while hitting on six of nine field goal attempts. In the St. Joseph's game, he scored eight points on three of four shooting, while also pulling down four rebounds. In the first meeting with Rhode Island, Brand led the team with a career-high 10 rebounds, while also totaling nine points and a pair of blocks.
Through his first 28 games as a Minuteman, Brand has averaged 4.4 points and 3.3 rebounds per contest. The only freshman on the UMass roster, Brand has played 13.3 minutes per game, while hitting over 50 percent of his field goal attempts (53 of 103).
Statistical Matchup
UMass Statistics SBU
68.6 Scoring Average 69.2
64.7 Scoring Defense 64.2
+3.9 Scoring Margin +5.0
42.6 Field Goal % 45.2
41.2 FG % Defense 41.1
34.3 3-Point Field Goal % 34.9
33.2 3 FG % Defense 34.6
63.3 Free Throw % 66.7
36.3 Rebound Average 36.6
38.1 Rebounds Against Average 32.8
-1.8 Rebound Margin +3.8
14.9 Turnovers 16.3
17.3 Turnovers Forced 16.2
+2.4 Turnover Margin -0.1
Where To Find UMass Basketball
On Television
The Minutemen will make at least 20 television appearances during the 1999-2000 season. The George Washington contest was the 20th television game of the season, and was carried by the Atlantic 10 Television Network. On the year, UMass has appeared on ABC once, on ESPN three times, on ESPN2 three times, on the Atlantic 10 Network six times, on New England Sports Network twice, on SportsChannel Florida once, on Fox Sports Detroit once and WGGB TV in Springfield three times. So far this season, the Minutemen have gone 9-11 in televised games.
On Radio All University of Massachusetts basketball games can be heard live on the UMass Basketball Radio Network, with WHMP 99.3 FM / 1400 AM (Northampton) serving as the flagship station. Bob Behler has taken over as the play-by-play announcer this season, while former UMass coach Jack Leaman is in his sixth year as color analyst and former Minuteman Skip Connors is in his third season.
Here is a list of affiliates for the St. Bonaventure game: * WXKS 1430 AM (Boston) * WCRN 830 AM (Worcester) * WATD 95.9 FM (Marshfield) * WBNW 1120 AM (Concord) * WBRK 1340 AM (Pittsfield) * WSAR 1480 AM (Fall River)
In addition, WMUA 91.1 FM, the UMass student station, will carry a number of games during the 1999-2000 season.
The UMass basketball Show
Head coach Bruiser Flint's weekly television show, "The UMass Basketball Show with Bruiser Flint presented by the TJX Companies," airs on WGGB TV, channel 40 in Springfield, on Sunday evenings at 11:35 p.m. The show will also be shown by WGGB on Sunday afternoons at 12:30 p.m., on weekends when UMass does not play a Sunday game. Fox Sports New England will carry the show on a tape delay basis on Monday evenings.
THE BRUISER FLINT SHOW
Head coach Bruiser Flint's weekly radio show, "The Bruiser Flint Show," is on live from Rafter's Sports Bar & Restaurant in Amherst from 6:00-7:00 p.m.., on WHMP 99.3 FM / 1400 AM (Northampton). Selected shows will also be broadcast on WORC (Worcester) and WBRK (Pittsfield). The show, hosted by Bob Behler, runs throughout the entire season. The show generally takes place on Monday evenings, but the night may vary in accordance with the UMass schedule.
On the Internet
Information on Minuteman basketball and all 29 of UMass' varsity sports is available through the UMass Athletics home page at "http://www.umassathletics.com". Links to UMass basketball radio broadcasts can also be found on the home page.
1999-2000 Atlantic 10 Standings
(through games of 3/1/2000)
EAST A-10 Pct. Overall Pct. Temple 13-2 .867 22-5 .815 St. Bonaventure 10-5 .667 18-8 .692 UMass 9-6 .600 15-13 .536 St. Joseph's 7-8 .467 12-14 .462 Fordham 6-9 .400 13-14 .481 Rhode Island 2-13 .133 5-23 .179WEST A-10 Pct. Overall Pct. Dayton 10-4 .714 20-6 .769 George Washington 9-6 .600 15-13 .536 Xavier 8-7 .533 18-10 .643 Virginia Tech 7-8 .467 14-14 .500 Duquesne 4-10 .286 9-17 .346 La Salle 4-11 .267 10-16 .385
