University of Massachusets Athletics
UMass Looks To Stay Hot Against Fordham
January 26, 2004 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 26, 2004
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Game Day Quick Facts
The Teams: Massachusetts (6-11, 1-5 A-10) vs. Fordham (4-12, 1-4 A-10)
Date: January 28, 2004
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Place: William D. Mullins Memorial Center (9,493), Amherst, Mass.
UMass Radio Network: Bob Behler, play-by-play; Jack Leaman, color; WRNX 100.9 FM, Holyoke, flagship
UMass Student Radio: WMUA 91.1 FM, Amherst
Fordham Radio: Joe Buono, play-by-play; Mike Ratti, color; WFUV 90.7 FM, Bronx
Series Record: Massachusetts leads, 18-8
Last Meeting: Massachusetts 76, Fordham 66; February 1, 2003; Amherst, Mass.
PROBABLE UMASS STARTERS Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. F 11 Maurice Maxwell 6-5 175 Fr. F 22 Jeff Viggiano 6-6 215 So. C 1 Rashaun Freeman 6-9 255 So. G 12 Anthony Anderson 5-11 170 Sr. G 34 Art Bowers 6-4 190 Fr.
THE SERIES WITH FORDHAM: This will be the 27th meeting between UMass and Fordham, with the Minutemen leading the all-time series 18-8. The teams have split four games over the last two seasons, with each school winning at home twice, but UMass had won 12 of 13 prior to that. For games played in Amherst, the Minutemen lead the series 10-2, with a 7-1 mark at Mullins. The teams first met on Dec. 13, 1967 at Fordham, with the Rams posting a 77-66 victory. UMass coach Steve Lappas owns a 3-7 career mark against the Rams, including a 2-2 mark with the Minutemen.
BOWERS HAVING A FINE ROOKIE CAMPAIGN: Freshman guard Art Bowers (Wilmington, Del.) has turned into one of the team's top players in his first season with the Minutemen. In last Saturday's 66-65 victory over Temple, he hit the game-winning three-point shot with only 32 seconds remaining, to bring UMass back from a 65-63 deficit. Bowers finished the Temple game with a career-high 19 points on seven of 11 shooting, to go along with seven rebounds, two assists and two blocks. In the previous game at Saint Joseph's, he scored 10 points with four rebounds and a team-high four assists, while at Duquesne, Bowers totaled nine points and a career-high eight rebounds. Bowers, who has been in the starting lineup at shooting guard for 11 games this season, turned in some other outstanding performances against George Washington (11 points), Albany (13 points, two rebounds, two assists and three steals), Vermont (16 points on seven of 11 shooting, team-best seven rebounds) and Saint Francis (14 points on five of eight shots from the field, including two of three from three-point range). In the 15 games he has played this season, Bowers is averaging 8.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists. Bowers came to UMass from Saint Benedict's (N.J.) Prep School, where he averaged 18 points and six rebounds per game last season. He was a two-time All-State selection, and was ranked among the top 50 high school seniors in 2002-2003 by both ESPN.com and PrepStars.
ANDERSON LEADS MINUTEMEN IN BACKCOURT: Senior guard Anthony Anderson (Lynn, Mass.) has been the leader on the court for a young UMass team this season. In UMass' last game against Temple, Anderson totaled 12 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. In the Saint Bonaventure game, he scored a game-high 26 points on nine of 14 shooting (including six of nine three pointers), while also leading the team in rebounds (eight) and steals (three). Earlier this season, Anderson was named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week and Dinn Brothers UMass Athlete of the Week on Dec. 7, after a pair of outstanding performances against Boston College (20 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals) and Vermont (career-best 29 points, while hitting nine of 13 shots from the floor and seven of nine from three-point range). Some of his other big games this season have come against La Salle (team-best 20 points, three rebounds, three steals), Tennessee (15 points, seven assists, five rebounds and two steals), Connecticut (15 points, four rebounds), Marshall (17 points, six assists, two rebounds, two steals) and Saint Francis (21 points, five rebounds, six assists). Through 17 games so far this year, Anderson is averaging 14.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists, while hitting 41.3 percent from three-point range and posting a 1.6:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
FREEMAN HAS IMPRESSIVE START TO SEASON: Sophomore forward Rashaun Freeman (Schenectady, N.Y.) has had some outstanding games to open his collegiate career, and has already been named Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week five times this season (on Nov. 23, Nov. 30, Dec. 28, Jan. 11 and Jan. 25) and Dinn Brothers UMass Athlete of the Week once (Dec. 29). In UMass' last game against Temple, he scored 16 points on five of seven shooting from the floor. In the previous game at Saint Joseph's, Freeman led the team with 17 points and 12 rebounds, recording his seventh double-double of the season. At Duquesne, he posted another double-double with team highs of 16 points and 13 rebounds, while at Saint Bonaventure, Freeman totaled 19 points and five rebounds, while hitting seven of 12 shots from the field and five of seven at the line. Freeman also had big games against George Washington (19 points, 10 rebounds), Connecticut (15 points, three boards), Albany (22 points, 10 rebounds), Maine (career-high 23 points, six rebounds, three steals), Marshall (18 points, 10 rebounds, three steals), Central Connecticut (15 points, 13 boards), Hartford (team-high 19 points and nine rebounds), Texas Tech (team-high 17 points on eight of 13 shooting) and Saint Francis (11 points and 14 rebounds). Through 17 games this year, Freeman is averaging a team-best 15.3 points and 8.0 rebounds, while hitting 53.2 percent of his shots. Freeman came to UMass from Schenectady High School, where he averaged 17.8 points per game during his senior season in 2001-2002. He was named Player of the Year by the Albany Times Union as a senior, in addition to earning All-State honors and leading his team to the New York Section II Class A title.
ANDERSON CLIMBS CAREER CHARTS: With his strong start to the 2003-2004 season, senior guard Anthony Anderson continues his assault on the all-time school records for three-point shooting. He currently stands fourth on the school's all-time charts for three-pointers made (197) and three-point attempts (498), while ranking fifth in three-point percentage (.396). On track to earn a fourth season of competition by graduating by the summer of 2004, Anderson will have a chance to break Monty Mack's school record for three-pointers made (331), which was set from 1997-2001. Anderson, who also needs just 126 points to become the school's 36th career 1,000-point scorer, already owns two of the top 10 places on the school's single-season chart for three-point goals made.
TEMPLE RECAP: Guard Art Bowers hit a three-point basket with only 32 seconds remaining, to lift the Minutemen to a 66-65 victory over Temple at the Mullins Center on Jan. 24, 2004. After the Owls took an early 4-2 lead, UMass dominated play for the rest of the first half, outscoring the Owls 37-18 to take a 39-22 lead into the locker room. The Minutemen continued to play well early in the second half, and were up 54-31 with 14 minutes remaining when Temple began to make a move. The Owls used a 13-0 run to cut the lead to 10 points, but UMass was still up 60-49 with just under seven minutes left in the game. But Temple then used an 11-0 run to tie the score at 60-60 with four minutes remaining. The Owls then took a 65-63 lead, but forward Michael Blackshear missed the front end of a one-and-one with 42 seconds left, before Bowers hit the three-point shot to give the Minutemen the victory. Forward Rashaun Freeman scored 16 points for UMass, while guard Anthony Anderson added 12 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Guard David Hawkins led Temple with 22 points.
VIGGIANO PROVIDES A SPARK: Sophomore forward Jeff Viggiano (Suffield, Conn.) has been a key player for the Minutemen this year, while seeing time at both power forward and small forward. In UMass' last game against Temple, he pulled down a team-best nine rebounds, to go along with nine points, three assists and two blocks.. In the previous game at Saint Joseph's, Viggiano posted the first double-double of his collegiate career with 12 points and 10 rebounds, while also posting two assists and two steals. At Duquesne, he totaled 13 points, five rebounds and three blocked shots, while hitting three three-pointers. Earlier this year against No. 1-ranked Connecticut, Viggiano had a huge night with a career-best 22 points on nine of 12 shooting, in addition to totaling four rebounds, two assists and two steals. He was also solid in the Tennessee game, with eight points, five rebounds and two blocks. In 16 games played so far this year, including 13 starts, he has averaged 8.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists per contest. Last year, Viggiano averaged 7.0 point and 2.9 rebounds per game, while starting 21 out of 29 games. He became one of 16 true freshmen in UMass history to start at least 20 games, and the first since Tony Barbee and Harper Williams each made 26 starts in 1989-1990.
BLOCK PARTY: Throughout the 2003-2004 season, the Minutemen have been the top team in the Atlantic 10 Conference, and among the best in the nation, at blocking shots. UMass currently has 99 blocks though 17 games, good for an average of 5.8 blocks per contest. The Minutemen are blocking over one more shot per game than every other school in the Atlantic 10, as Richmond currently ranks second with an average of 4.6 blocks. In the latest NCAA statistics, through games of January 19, UMass stood 13th in the nation with 6.1 blocks per game. Leading the way for the Minutemen is junior center Gabe Lee (Camilla, Ga.), with an average of 3.2 blocks per game. He currently ranks first in the league and 11th in the nation, while averaging more blocks than five Atlantic 10 teams. In addition, Lee has blocked at least one shot in each of his last 19 games, during a span in which five teams opposing UMass went an entire contest without a block. Freshman forward Stephane Lasme (Libreville, Gabon) has also come up big for UMass, totaling 24 blocks to rank fifth in the Atlantic 10 with an average of 1.4 blocks per game.
THE LAST TIME: In the last meeting between the Minutemen and the Rams, center Gabe Lee totaled 14 points, eight rebounds and four blocks, to lead UMass to a 76-66 victory at the Mullins Center on Feb. 1, 2003. The game was close early on, and Fordham held a 16-14 lead with 10 minutes remaining in the first half. UMass then went on a 15-2 run over the next seven minutes to take an 11-point lead, and was up 36-27 at the half. The Rams then scored the first four points of the second period to make it a five-point game. The Minutemen tried to reestablish control, but were unable to build their lead to any more than eight points in the early part of the second half. Fordham then used a 7-0 run to make it a one-point game with nine minutes left to play. UMass scored 12 of the next 15 points to go back up by 10, before four Ram free throws made it a six point game with four minutes left. But Fordham then went cold from the field, and the Minutemen made 13 out of 15 free throws in the final three minutes to hold on for the win. Guard Marcus Cox recorded the first double-double of his UMass career, with 12 points and a career-best 11 rebounds. Center Glenn Batemon had a double-double for the Rams with 11 points and 14 rebounds.
HEAD COACH Steve Lappas: Now in his third season as the head coach of the Minutemen, Steve Lappas has an overall record of 30-45 while at UMass. He owns a career mark of 260-217 in 16 seasons as a head coach, including nine years at Villanova (174-110) and four seasons at Manhattan (56-62). A 1977 graduate of the City College of New York, Lappas has led his teams to four NCAA Tournament appearances (with Villanova in 1994-1995, 1995-1996, 1996-1997 and 1998-1999) and four trips to the National Invitation Tournament (Manhattan in 1991-1992 and Villanova in 1993-1994, 1999-2000 and 2000-2001). In addition, his 1993-1994 Villanova team claimed the NIT championship. Lappas currently ranks 11th all-time in career coaching victories at UMass, needing only 11 more wins to move into eighth place.
ANDERSON BECOMING AN IRON MAN: Senior guard Anthony Anderson has become a familiar sight on the hard wood, and earlier this season he had a streak of 157 straight minutes on the court. Anderson played all 20 minutes in the second half against Hartford, and then turned in complete game efforts against Vermont (40 minutes), Boston College (45 minutes) and Central Connecticut (40 minutes). His streak ended when he took a brief eight second rest in the first half of the Marshall game. For the season, Anderson has now played 635 out of a possible 665 minutes, good for an average of 37.4 minutes per game. This comes as nothing new to Anderson, who averaged 36.1 minutes per game last season, and 34.0 minutes per contest in 2001-2002.
UMASS TO RETIRE AL SKINNER'S JERSEY: UMass interim athletic director Thorr Bjorn has announced that the school will retire the No. 30 jersey of former star Al Skinner during the Rhode Island game on Feb. 18, 2004. Currently the head coach at Boston College, Skinner was a three-time first team All-Yankee Conference selection at UMass from 1971-1974, while leading the team to a pair of Yankee Conference titles. Following his UMass career, Skinner went on play professionally in both the ABA and NBA, with the New York Nets, Detroit Pistons and Philadelphia 76ers. He began his collegiate coaching career at the University of Rhode Island, before taking over at Boston College in 1997. Skinner will become only the fourth player in UMass men's basketball history to have his jersey number retired. The previous three players to have their jersey retired are George "Trigger" Burke (No. 32, 1954-1956), Julius Erving (No. 32, 1969-1971) and Lou Roe (No. 15, 1991-1995).
MAXWELL MAKING PRESENCE FELT: Freshman Maurice Maxwell (Philadelphia, Pa.) has turned into a key perimeter player for the Minutemen, while seeing action at both shooting guard and small forward. In the Saint Joseph's game, he totaled eight points, six rebounds and three assists. Previously at Duquesne, Maxwell totaled eight points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals. Against Tennessee, he recorded 12 points, four assists and three steals, while hitting three of five attempts from three-point range. Earlier in the season against Marshall, Maxwell scored a career-high 19 points on nine of 14 shooting, and was named Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week and Dinn Brothers UMass Athlete of the Week. He also recorded a career-best five steals against Marshall, with three assists, a rebound and a block. Maxwell had some other big games against Albany (10 points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal), Vermont (14 points on five of seven shooting) and Boston College (10 points, four assists, three rebounds). For the season, he is now averaging 7.2 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Maxwell came to UMass from Philadelphia (Pa.) Lutheran Christian Academy, where he averaged 26 points and 12 assists last year, while leading his team to a 20-5 overall record.
LEE A FORCE IN THE MIDDLE: A solid presence in the lane for the Minutemen, junior center Gabe Lee has not played in the last three games, and is expected to miss the remainder of the 2003-2004 season due to injury. In the George Washington game, Lee totaled 11 points, four rebounds and three blocked shots. Previously against La Salle, he had 10 points on four of six shooting, with team highs of eight rebounds and three blocks. Earlier in the year against Tennessee, Lee scored a career-high 23 points, including a seven of 10 performance at the free throw line. He also had 10 rebounds against the Volunteers, good for his first double-double of the season, and blocked four shots. Lee also turned in some big performances against Albany (nine points, seven rebounds), Central Connecticut (12 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two assists), Boston College (nine points, six rebounds and three blocks, while hitting a three-point field goal in the final minute of play to force overtime), Hartford (16 points, nine rebounds, seven blocked shots, two steals) and Saint Francis (11 rebounds, seven blocked shots, eight points). In the 14 games he played this season, Lee averaged 9.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per contest. As a rookie in 2002-2003, Lee averaged 5.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.6 blocks.
MINUTEMEN ON TELEVISION: UMass will once again make a number of appearances on live television throughout the 2003-2004 regular season. Televised games so far this season have come on ESPN (Jan. 3 against Tennessee), ESPN2 (Nov. 21 at Texas Tech and Jan. 24 against Temple), the Atlantic 10 Television Network (Jan. 18 at Duquesne), New England Sports Network (Dec. 6 at Boston College), CN8 (Jan. 7 against La Salle) and ESPN Regional (Dec. 20 against Marshall). The Minutemen will have three more games carried as part of the Atlantic 10 Television Network package, against Dayton (Feb. 8), Xavier (Feb. 14) and Richmond (Mar. 6). In addition, the Mar. 3 contest at Temple will be shown on CN8, and the Jan. 31 game at Rhode Island will be carried on Cox-3. So far this season, the Minutemen stand 2-5 in games shown on live television.
UMASS ON THE RADIO: All University of Massachusetts basketball games can be heard live on the UMass Basketball Radio Network, with WRNX 100.9 FM (Holyoke) serving as the flagship station. Bob Behler is in his fifth season as the play-by-play announcer, while former UMass head coach Jack Leaman is in his 10th year as color analyst. Here is the list of this week's affiliates on the UMass Basketball Radio Network: WCAP 980 AM (Lowell / Boston) and WATD 95.9 FM (Marshfield / Boston). In addition, WMUA 91.1 FM, the UMass student station, will carry a number of Minuteman basketball games during the 2003-2004 season.
THE UMASS BASKETBALL SHOW: Head coach Steve Lappas' weekly television show, "The UMass Basketball Show with Steve Lappas presented by Coca-Cola," airs on WGGB Channel 40 (ABC, Springfield) on Sundays at 11:30 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, and on WLVI Channel 56 (Boston) on Sundays at 11:55 p.m.
THE COORS LIGHT COACH'S SHOW: Head coach Steve Lappas' weekly radio show, "The Coors Light Coach's Show with Steve Lappas," airs from 7:00-8:00 p.m. on WRNX 100.9 FM (Holyoke). The show, hosted by Bob Behler, runs throughout the season, and will next air on Thursday, Jan. 22. The show is taped at 11:45 a.m. from the Blue Wall Pub in Amherst, and is open to the general public.
DIALING LONG DISTANCE: The three-point shot has become an important part of the UMass offense since Steve Lappas began his tenure as head coach. The 2001-2002 Minutemen set school records for both three-point field goals made (204) and three-point field goals attempted (587) during Lappas' first season. Last year, UMass sank 164 three-pointers (fourth-most in school history), while attempting 544 shots from beyond the arc (second-most in school history). In 17 games so far this season, the Minutemen stand 104 of 313 from three-point range (33.2 percent), including a sizzling 12 of 19 performance (63.2 percent) in the victory over Vermont. Massachusetts has made at least one three-point goal in 168 straight games.
MULLINS MAGIC: UMass is currently in its 12th season of play at the William D. Mullins Memorial Center, posting an all-time record of 98-39 in the building. The Minutemen stand 6-4 at the Mullins Center so far this season, and need only two more wins to post their 100th all-time victory at Mullins. UMass was 8-6 in the Mullins Center last year, and has not had a losing record at home since moving into the new arena in 1992-1993. In fact, UMass has gone 21 straight seasons without having a losing record on its home court. The Minutemen also own a 60-24 all-time record in regular season Atlantic 10 Conference games at the Mullins Center, and a 3-1 mark in Atlantic 10 Tournament contests.
ABOUT THE RAMS: Fordham enters the game with an overall record of 4-12 on the season, including a 1-4 mark against Atlantic 10 Conference foes. The Rams are currently on a three-game losing streak, after posting back-to-back wins over Columbia (61-57 on Jan. 6) and Saint Bonaventure (75-69 on Jan. 10). Fordham also stands 1-8 away from home this season, with the lone victory coming at Fairfield in overtime (72-69 on Dec. 2). Senior forward Michael Haynes leads the team with averages of 15.0 points and 6.8 rebounds per contest, in addition to handing out 37 assists. Senior guard Mark Jarrell-Wright is also enjoying a fine seasons, averaging 13.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
FORDHAM HEAD COACH DERECK WHITTENBERG: In his first season as head coach of the Rams, Dereck Whittenberg has Fordham off to a 4-12 start this season. Prior to this season, Whittenberg spent the last four years as head coach at Wagner College, where he led Seahawks to a 67-50 overall record, including the school's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2002-2003. A 1984 graduate of North Carolina State University, Whittenberg was a starting guard for the Wolfpack's 1983 national championship team. He also won a national championship in high school, as his 1978 DeMatha Catholic High School squad went undefeated. Prior to his years as a head coach, Whittenberg served as an assistant at Georgia Tech (1994-1999), West Virginia (1993-1994), Colorado (1992-1993), North Carolina State (1988-1991), Long Beach State (1987-1988) and George Mason (1986-1987).
MINUTEMATTERS: Former UMass stars Marcus Camby and Lou Roe were both selected to ESPN's Silver Anniversary All-Atlantic 10 Conference team ... Senior guard Marcus Cox (Bridgeport, Conn.) and sophomore forward Alassane Kouyate (Bamako, Mali) are both expected to miss the entire 2003-2004 season due to injury. Kouyate is eligible to redshirt and will have three years of collegiate eligibility remaining, while Cox's college career is now over ... Massachusetts has made at least one three-point field goal in 168 consecutive games and in 543 of 550 games it has played since the arc was added to the college game in 1986-1987 ... UMass has won 28 of its last 30 games when shooting 50.0 percent or better from the field, including this year's 4-0 mark and a 10-2 record in Steve Lappas' tenure in Amherst.
