University of Massachusets Athletics
UMass Set To Face George Washington
January 08, 2004 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 8, 2004
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Game Day Quick Facts
The Teams: Massachusetts (5-7, 0-1 A-10) vs. George Washington (7-6, 1-1 A-10)
Date: January 10, 2004
Time: 2:00 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
Colonials Basketball Network: John Sieber, play-by-play; WAGE 1200 AM, Leesburg, flagship
George Washington Student Radio: WRGW 540 AM, Washington
Series Record: George Washington leads, 31-22
Last Meeting: George Washington 85, Massachusetts 74 (March 10, 2003, Amherst, Mass.)
PROBABLE UMASS STARTERS Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Cl. F 1 Rashaun Freeman 6-9 255 So. F 22 Jeff Viggiano 6-6 215 So. C 2 Gabe Lee 6-9 210 Jr. G 11 Maurice Maxwell 6-5 175 Fr. G 12 Anthony Anderson 5-11 170 Sr.
THE SERIES WITH GEORGE WASHINGTON: This will be the 54th meeting between UMass and George Washington, with the Colonials leading the all-time series 31-22. The Minutemen had won six straight games in the series, until George Washington posted an 85-74 victory at the Mullins Center during last year's Atlantic 10 Tournament. UMass is 12-10 all-time against the Colonials in Amherst, including a 4-4 mark in the Mullins Center. Among visiting schools which have played at least five games at Mullins, George Washington is the only one with a record of .500 or better. The teams first met on Feb. 27, 1971 in Madison Square Garden, with the Minutemen posting a 70-65 victory.
ANDERSON STARTS SEASON STRONG: Senior guard Anthony Anderson (Lynn, Mass.) has been the leader on the court for a young UMass team so far this season. In UMass' last game against La Salle, Anderson scored a team-best 20 points, to go along with three rebounds and three steals. In the previous contest against Tennessee, he totaled 15 points, seven assists, five rebounds and two steals, while hitting four of eight three-point attempts. 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 Connecticut (15 points, four rebounds), Albany (career-high nine assists, six points, two rebounds), Marshall (17 points, six assists, two rebounds, two steals), Central Connecticut (nine points, six rebounds, four assists, three steals) and Saint Francis (21 points, five rebounds, six assists). Through 12 games so far this year, Anderson is averaging 14.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists, while hitting 41.3 percent from three-point range and posting a 1.6:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
MAXWELL MAKING PRESENCE FELT: Freshman guard Maurice Maxwell (Philadelphia, Pa.) has turned into a key perimeter player for the Minutemen, while seeing action both as a starter and off the bench. In UMass' last game against La Salle, Maxwell totaled eight points, four rebounds and a team-best four assists. In the previous contest 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 has also had some 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 8.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.6 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: Junior center Gabe Lee (Camilla, Ga.) has become a solid presence in the lane for the Minutemen. In UMass' last game against La Salle, he had 10 points on four of six shooting, with team highs of eight rebounds and three blocks. In the previous contest 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. Previously against Albany, Lee totaled nine points and seven rebounds, while hitting four of five attempts from the floor. He also turned in some big performances against 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 (totaling 16 points, nine rebounds, seven blocked shots and two steals, while hitting eight of 10 attempts from the floor) and Saint Francis (recording career highs of 11 rebounds and seven blocked shots, in addition to scoring eight points). Through 12 games on the season, Lee is now averaging 9.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.4 blocks per contest. As a rookie in 2002-2003, Lee started 13 times in 28 appearances, averaging 5.6 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. In addition, he led the team in blocked shots with 46, while ranking third in the Atlantic 10 Conference with an average of 1.6 blocks per game. Although he is only in his second season with the Minutemen, Lee already has 87 career blocked shots, needing just three more to move into the all-time UMass top 10.
HEAD COACH Steve Lappas: Now in his third season as the head coach of the Minutemen, Steve Lappas has an overall record of 29-41 while at UMass. He owns a career mark of 259-213 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.
LA SALLE RECAP: Guard Gary Neal scored 26 points on nine of 14 shooting from the field, including five of 10 shots from three-point range, to lead La Salle to a 78-64 victory over UMass at the Mullins Center on Jan. 7, 2004. The game was tied 8-8 after six minutes of play, before the Explorers went on a 10-2 run to take an eight-point lead. The Minutemen were able to cut the lead to three, before La Salle took a six-point advantage into the locker room. The Explorers were up 39-31 early in the second half, before UMass used a 9-0 run to claim its first lead since the opening minutes of the game. The score stayed close for the next several minutes, before Neal hit a three-pointer to break a 44-44 tie with just over 13 minutes left to play. That shot started a 16-4 La Salle run, giving the Explorers a 12-point lead. The Minutemen were able to cut the lead to five points several times in the closing minutes, but La Salle was able to hang on for the victory. Guard Anthony Anderson led the Minutemen with 20 points, while forward Rashaun Freeman totaled 12 points and six rebounds. The Explorers made 56.3 percent of their field goals (27 of 48) and 50.0 percent of their three pointers (12 of 24), while placing four players in double figures.
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 three times this season (on Nov. 23, Nov. 30 and Dec. 28) and Dinn Brothers UMass Athlete of the Week once (Dec. 29). Against La Salle, Freeman scored 12 points on five of eight shooting with six rebounds, while at Connecticut, he scored 15 points and pulled down three boards. Previously against Albany, Freeman scored 22 points on 10 of 13 shooting from the floor, while adding 10 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. Against Maine, he scored a career-high 23 points on nine of 12 shooting from the floor, while also leading the team in rebounds (six) and steals (three). Freeman also had big games against Marshall (18 points, 10 rebounds, three steals), Central Connecticut (15 points, 13 boards), Boston College (11 points, seven rebounds), Hartford (team-high 19 points and nine rebounds, while hitting eight of 11 field goals), Texas Tech (team-high 17 points on eight of 13 shooting) and Saint Francis (11 points and 14 rebounds). Through 12 games this year, Freeman is averaging a team-best 14.4 points and 7.8 rebounds, while hitting 53.1 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.
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 77 blocks though 12 games played, good for an average of 6.4 blocks per contest. The Minutemen are blocking at least two more shots per game than every other school in the Atlantic 10, as Saint Joseph's currently ranks second with an average of 4.3 blocks. In the latest NCAA statistics, through games of January 5, UMass stood eighth in the nation with 6.6 blocks per game. Leading the way for the Minutemen is junior center Gabe Lee, with a league-best average of 3.4 blocks per game, which is better than six Atlantic 10 teams. Freshman forward Stephane Lasme (Libreville, Gabon) has also come up big for UMass, ranking sixth in the Atlantic 10 with 1.4 blocks per game.
THE LAST TIME: In the last meeting between the Minutemen and the Colonials, Chris Monroe scored a game-high 23 points to lead George Washington to an 85-74 victory in the opening round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament at the Mullins Center on Mar. 10, 2003. Both teams started the game hot from the field, but Jackie Rogers scored 11 of UMass' first 14 points to put the Minutemen up 14-7 after four minutes of play. UMass was still up by six with 5:30 left to play before the break, before George Washington went on a 9-1 run to claim its first lead of the game. The Colonials extended their lead to four points, but the Minutemen came back to tie the score at the half, as Michael Lasme hit a three pointer at the buzzer. George Washington started the second half on a 5-0 run, but was unable to extend its lead to double figures for most of the second half. UMass trailed 74-67 at the 2:40 mark, but made only three field goals the rest of the way, as the Colonials held on for the win. George Washington made eight of 12 free throws in the final two minutes to help seal the victory. Anthony Anderson led the Minutemen with 20 points, while Rogers finished the game with 19 points.
BOWERS HAVING A FINE ROOKIE CAMPAIGN: Freshman guard Art Bowers (Wilmington, Del.) has returned to his role as one of the top scorers for the Minutemen, after missing the Central Connecticut and Marshall games due to injury. Against La Salle, Bowers came off the bench to total nine points, four rebounds, three steals and two assists. Previously in the victory over Albany, he recorded 13 points, two rebounds, two assists and three steals. Bowers, who has been in the starting lineup at shooting guard for seven games this season, turned in some other outstanding performances earlier in the year. He had a big night against Vermont, totaling a career-high 16 points and a team-best seven rebounds, while hitting seven of 11 shots from the floor and both of his three-point attempts. Bowers also came up big against Saint Francis (N.Y.), totaling 14 points while hitting five of eight shots from the field, including two of three from three-point range. In 10 games played this season, he is averaging 7.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists. Bowers came to UMass from St. 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.
VIGGIANO BACK IN STARTING LINEUP: Sophomore forward Jeff Viggiano (Suffield, Conn.), who has returned to the starting lineup for the Minutemen this season, had the top game of his career against No. 1-ranked Connecticut. Viggiano scored a career-best 22 points on nine of 12 shooting against the Huskies, while also totaling four rebounds, two assists and two steals. In the Tennessee game, he came back with eight points, five rebounds and two blocks. In 11 games so far this year, including nine starts, Viggiano has averaged 8.1 points, 3.7 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), and drew 21 straight starts to end the year. Viggiano recorded nine double-digit scoring games in 2002-2003, the most for a true UMass freshman since Marcus Camby recorded 14 such performances in 1993-1994.
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).
MULLINS MAGIC: UMass is currently in its 12th season of play at the William D. Mullins Memorial Center, posting an all-time record of 97-38 in the building. The Minutemen stand 5-3 at the Mullins Center so far this season, and recently had four consecutive victories. 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 59-23 all-time record in regular season Atlantic 10 Conference games at the Mullins Center, and a 3-1 mark in Atlantic 10 Tournament contests.
ANDERSON BECOMING AN IRON MAN: Senior guard Anthony Anderson has become a familiar sight on the hard wood, as he recently 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 443 out of a possible 485 minutes, good for an average of 36.9 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.
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 12 games so far this season, the Minutemen stand 73 of 217 from three-point range (33.6 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 163 straight games.
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 (183) and three-point attempts (464), while ranking fifth in three-point percentage (.394). 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) and attempted (910), which were set from 1997-2001. Anderson, who also needs just 210 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.
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 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 Monday, Jan. 12. The show is taped at 11:45 a.m. from the Blue Wall Pub in Amherst, and is open to the general public.
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.
MINUTEMEN ON TELEVISION: UMass will once again make a number of appearances on live television during the 2003-2004 regular season. Televised games so far this season have come at Texas Tech (Nov. 21 on ESPN2), at Boston College (Dec. 6 on New England Sports Network), against Marshall (Dec. 20 on ESPN Regional), against Tennessee (Jan. 3 on ESPN) and against La Salle (Jan. 7 on CN8). The Minutemen will play on ESPN2 one more time, on on Jan. 24 against Temple. UMass will also have four games carried as part of the Atlantic 10 Television Network package, against Duquesne (Jan. 18), Dayton (Feb. 8), Xavier (Feb. 14) and Richmond (Mar. 6). In addition, the Mar. 3 contest at Temple will be shown on CN8. So far this season, the Minutemen stand 1-4 in games shown on live television.
MINUTEMEN BRING IN PRESEASON HONORS: Senior guard Anthony Anderson was named a preseason third team All-Atlantic 10 Conference selection by the league's coaches and media, announced during Atlantic 10 Media Day on Nov. 6. In addition, freshman guards Art Bowers and Maurice Maxwell were both selected to the preseason Atlantic 10 All-Rookie team. Bowers had previously been honored by Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook, which selected him as the preseason Atlantic 10 Newcomer of the Year.
UMASS PICKED FOURTH IN A-10 EAST: In the Atlantic 10 Conference's preseason poll, conducted among the league's coaches and media, the Minutemen were picked to finish in fourth place in the East Division. Saint Joseph's placed first in the poll and collected all 34 first place votes, with Temple coming in second and Rhode Island third. Following the Minutemen, Saint Bonaventure was ranked fifth and Fordham sixth. Xavier was picked to win the West Division with 17 of 34 first place votes, followed by Dayton (second, 17 first place votes), Richmond (third), La Salle (fourth), George Washington (fifth) and Duquesne (sixth).
ABOUT THE COLONIALS: George Washington enters the game with an overall record of 7-6 on the season, including a 1-1 mark against Atlantic 10 Conference foes. Three of the Colonials' losses this season have come against ranked foes (Gonzaga, Saint Joseph's and Temple), while they have posted wins over Charlotte, Temple and West Virginia. Junior guard T.J. Thompson leads the team with an average of 15.5 points per game, while hitting 36 of 94 attempts (38.3 percent) from three-point range and handing out 38 assists. Sophomore forward Pops Mensah-Bonsu is also enjoying a fine season, averaging 11.7 points and a 5.3 rebounds per contest, while sophomore forward Mike Hall has averaged 8.8 points and a team-best 7.6 rebounds per game.
GEORGE WASHINGTON HEAD COACH KARL HOBBS: Now in his third season with the Colonials, Karl Hobbs owns a 31-39 record during his time at George Washington. Prior to his time as a head coach, Hobbs served as an assistant coach for 14 seasons at Boston University (1987-1993) and Connecticut (1993-2001). As an assistant, he helped his teams to eight NCAA tournament appearances, seven league titles and nine 20-win campaigns. A 1985 graduate of the University of Connecticut, Hobbs was a four-year letterwinner for the Huskies, serving as team captain during his senior season. He led Connecticut to a pair of National Invitation Tournament appearances, while totaling 534 career assists.
MINUTEMATTERS: 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 ... With the 80-58 victory over Saint Francis (N.Y.), UMass won its season opener for the ninth time in the last 11 years, while moving its all-time record in season openers to 62-33 ... Massachusetts has made at least one three-point field goal in 163 consecutive games and in 538 of 545 games it has played since the arc was added to the college game in 1986-1987 ... UMass has won 27 of its last 29 games when shooting 50.0 percent or better from the field, including this year's 3-0 mark and a 9-2 record in Steve Lappas' tenure in Amherst ... Former UMass head coach Jack Leaman, who currently provides color commentary for the UMass Radio Network, was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in September. Leaman compiled an overall record of 217-126 in his 13 seasons at UMass, while winning eight Yankee Conference titles.
