University of Massachusets Athletics
UMass Concludes Regular Season At Richmond
March 04, 2004 | Men's Basketball
March 4, 2004
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Game Day Quick Facts
The Teams: Massachusetts (10-17, 4-11 A-10) vs. Richmond (17-11, 9-6 A-10)
Date: March 6, 2004
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Place: Robbins Center (8,881), Richmond, Va.
Atlantic 10 Television Network: Dave Popkin, play-by-play; John Spencer, color; shown locally on New England Sports Network
UMass Radio Network: Bob Behler, play-by-play; Jack Leaman, color; WRNX 100.9 FM, Holyoke, flagship
Spider Radio Network: Bob Black, play-by-play; Greg Beckwith, color; WRNL 910 AM, Richmond, flagship
Series Record: Richmond leads, 2-1
Last Meeting: Massachusetts 54, Richmond 53 (February 12, 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 RICHMOND: This will be only the fourth meeting between UMass and Richmond, with the Spiders leading the all-time series 2-1. The schools first met on Dec. 30, 2000, in the consolation game of the Tournament of Champions, played in Charlotte, N.C. Richmond won that meeting by a score of 63-59. The teams have played twice since the Spiders joined the Atlantic 10 Conference at the start of the 2001-2002 season, with each school winning on its home floor. Richmond posted a 63-54 victory at the Robbins Center on Jan. 16, 2002, while UMass won 54-53 at the Mullins Center on Feb. 12, 2003.
ANDERSON LOOKS FOR 1,000TH CAREER POINT: Heading into the regular season finale at Richmond, senior guard Anthony Anderson (Lynn, Mass.) needs just nine points to become the 36th career 1,000-point scorer in UMass history. Anderson enters the game with 991 points in his first three seasons as a Minuteman, and can become the first UMass player to enter the 1,000-point club since Shannon Crooks (1,074 career points) in 2002. Earlier this season against Fordham (Jan. 28), Anderson hit the 200th three-point shot of his UMass career, becoming only the fourth player in school history to accomplish that feat. He currently stands third on the school's all-time chart for three-pointers made (223), fourth in three-point attempts (570) and fifth in three-point percentage (.391). 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. In addition, he needs only five more assists this year to become the sixth player in school history to records 100 or more assists in three consecutive seasons (joining Charlton Clarke, Joe DiSarcina, Alex Eldridge, Derek Kellogg and Carl Smith).
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 at Temple, he scored a team-high and career-best 23 points and pulled down nine rebounds, while hitting four of eight three-point attempts. In last Saturday's victory over Saint Bonaventure, Viggiano totaled 14 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Previously against Rhode Island, Viggiano totaled 11 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals, while in the Dayton game, he posted his third double-double of the season with 11 points and a career-best 13 rebounds. Some of Viggiano's other big games this season have come at Fordham (11 points, two rebounds, two assists), at Rider (14 points, 10 rebounds), at Rhode Island (12 points, nine rebounds, two assists, two blocks), against Fordham (11 points, three rebounds), against Temple (nine points, nine rebounds), at Saint Joseph's (12 points, 10 rebounds), at Duquesne (13 points, five rebounds, three blocks), at Connecticut (22 points, four rebounds) and against Tennessee (eight points, five rebounds, two blocks). In 26 games played so far this year, including 22 starts, he has averaged 9.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per contest. Last year, Viggiano averaged 7.0 point and 2.9 rebounds per game, while starting 21 out of 29 games.
UMASS GETTING READY FOR DAYTON: The Minutemen will be the fourth seed out of the East Division for the 2004 Atlantic 10 Tournament, which begins Wednesday, Mar. 10, in Dayton, Ohio. UMass will play an opening round game at 7:00 p.m. against either Duquesne or La Salle, one of which will be the fifth seed from the West Division. If Duquesne defeats Dayton or George Washington defeats La Salle on the final day of the regular season, the Minutemen will take on the Dukes. If both Dayton and La Salle are victorious, UMass would face the Explorers. The winner of the opening round game involving UMass will take on the top seed from the West Division (Dayton or George Washington) in the quarterfinals on Thursday, Mar. 11, at 7:00 p.m.
ANDERSON LEADS MINUTEMEN IN BACKCOURT: Senior guard Anthony Anderson has been the leader on the court for a young UMass team this season. In the game at Temple, Anderson had 17 points and five assists, while hitting five of nine three-point attempts. In the home game against Rhode Island, he led the team with 19 points, eight rebounds, four assists, three steals and no turnovers. Previously, at Rider, he recorded 15 points and five assists in the UMass victory. On Dec. 7, Anderson was named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week and Dinn Brothers UMass Athlete of the Week, after a pair of outstanding performances against Boston College (20 points, nine rebounds, four assists, three steals) and Vermont (career-best 29 points). Some of his other big games this season have come at Rhode Island (12 points, five assists, five steals), against Fordham (14 points, five rebounds, four assists), against Temple (12 points, eight rebounds, seven assists), at Saint Bonaventure (26 points, eight rebounds, three steals), against La Salle (20 points, three steals), against Tennessee (15 points, seven assists, five rebounds), at Connecticut (15 points, four rebounds), against Marshall (17 points, six assists) and against Saint Francis (21 points, five rebounds, six assists). Through 27 games this year, Anderson is averaging 13.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists, while hitting 39.4 percent from three-point range and posting a 1.67:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
TEMPLE RECAP: Guard David Hawkins scored 41 points to lead Temple to a 98-92 double overtime victory over UMass at the Liacouras Center on Mar. 3, 2004. Hawkins, who recorded the 2,000th point of his collegiate career in the game, scored 17 of the Owls' 19 points in the second overtime session, hitting four of five field goal attempts and seven of nine free throws. The game was close early on, and the Minutemen held a 16-13 lead at the 12-minute mark of the first half. Temple went on an 8-0 run to take the lead, and was up by seven at the break. The Owls then opened the second half on an 18-9 run, but the Minutemen would not go away. Down by 11 with six minutes remaining, UMass went on a 10-0 run to close the gap. Guard Art Bowers then hit a three-point shot with 19 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the score and force overtime. Temple led for most of the first extra session, before a three pointer by guard Maurice Maxwell put the Minutemen up by two with 54 seconds left to play. Temple guard Mardy Collins hit a pair of free throws to tie the score, but then missed two more foul shots with one second left, which could have ended the game. Hawkins then took over in the second overtime, scoring the Owls final 17 points to secure the victory. Forward Jeff Viggiano led UMass with 23 points and nine rebounds, while guard Anthony Anderson totaled 17 points and five assists. Collins totaled 30 points for Temple. The Minutemen set school records for both three-point field goals made (18) and three-point attempts (40).
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. During the game at Temple, the Minutemen set school single-game records for both three-point field goals made (18) and attempted (40). On the season, UMass stands 176 of 529 from three-point range (33.3 percent), including a sizzling 12 of 19 performance (63.2 percent) in the victory over Vermont, and a nine for 15 night (60.0 percent) in the win over Fordham. With at least two more games to play this year, the 2003-2004 squad already stands fourth on the school single-season chart for three-pointers made, and fourth for three-point attempts. During Lappas' first season at UMass in 2001-2002, the Minutemen set the school records for both three-point field goals made (204) and three-point field goals attempted (587). Last year, UMass sank 164 three-pointers (fifth-most in school history), while attempting 544 shots from beyond the arc (second-most in school history). Massachusetts has made at least one three-point goal in 178 straight games.
FREEMAN HAS RECORD-SETTING GAME AGAINST SAINT BONAVENTURE: Sophomore forward Rashaun Freeman (Schenectady, N.Y.) had the top performance of his young career in last Saturday's victory over Saint Bonaventure. Freeman scored a career-best 31 points on 14 of 19 shooting from the field against the Bonnies, in addition to pulling down a career-high 18 rebounds. His 31 points were the most by a UMass player since Monty Mack scored 32 at Xavier on Feb. 12, 2000. Freeman also had the most points by a first-year UMass player since Marcus Camby scored 32 points against Maryland in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on March 19, 1994. In addition, Freeman's 18 rebounds were the most by a UMass player since Ajmal Basit pulled down 19 at Rhode Island on Jan. 29, 1998. Freeman also set a Mullins Center record for most rebounds (18), while tying the Mullins Center records for field goals made (14) and defensive rebounds (14). The previous Mullins Center record for rebounds was 17 by Carlin Warley of Saint Joseph's on Feb. 1, 1995. Freeman tied Warley's record for defensive rebounds (14 on Feb. 1, 1995), while matching Camby's 14 field goals made (against Princeton on Dec. 14, 1994).
THE LAST TIME: In the last meeting between the Minutemen and the Spiders, guard Anthony Anderson scored 16 points, to lead the Minutemen to a 54-53 victory at the Mullins Center on Feb. 12, 2003. UMass dominated the game in the early going, jumping out to a 13-5 lead in the first seven minutes of play. The Minutemen expanded their lead to as much as 12 points in the opening period, before taking an 11-point advantage into the locker room. UMass stayed hot at the start of the second half, going on an 11-2 run to increase its lead to 20 points. But the Spider offense then came to life, as Richmond went on an 18-2 run over the next five and a half minutes to get back into the game. The score was tied at 43-43 with eight minutes remaining, before the Spiders went cold from the field. Richmond went over seven minutes without scoring, and a 7-0 run put the Minutemen back in front by seven with a minute and a half left. UMass struggled at the free throw line late in the game, hitting only six of 11 attempts in the final four minutes of play, but it was just enough as the Minutemen held on for a one-point victory. Forward Jackie Rogers recorded a double-double, with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Richmond guard Tony Dobbins nearly had a triple double, totaling 15 points, 14 rebounds and eight steals.
FREEMAN SELECTED ALL-DISTRICT: On Feb. 18, it was announced that sophomore forward Rashaun Freeman has been named to the 2003-2004 National Association of Basketball Coaches All-District I second team. Freeman was one of 13 players from the Atlantic 10 Conference to be honored on the teams, which were selected for 15 districts around the nation. The last UMass player to earn NABC All-District honors was Monty Mack, who was selected first team All-District in 1998-1999, 1999-2000 and 2000-2001.
BOWERS HAVING A FINE ROOKIE CAMPAIGN: Freshman guard Art Bowers (Wilmington, Del.) has turned into one of the team's top scorers in his first season with the Minutemen. In the game at Temple, Bowers totaled 18 points, eight assists and five rebounds, while hitting four of nine three-point attempts. In the win over Saint Bonaventure, he totaled 13 points, nine assists and six rebounds, and at Xavier, Bowers scored a team-high 10 points, in addition to pulling down six rebounds. On Feb. 1, he was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week and the Dinn Brothers UMass Athlete of the Week, after a pair of strong performances against Rhode Island (18 points, four assists) and Fordham (18 points, eight assists, seven rebounds). Bowers also had a big game in the win over Temple, hitting the game-winning three-point shot with 32 seconds left. He finished the Temple game with a career-high 19 points and seven rebounds. Bowers turned in some other top performances against Saint Joseph's (10 points, four rebounds, four assists), 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). In the 25 games he has played this season, Bowers is averaging 9.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists.
FREEMAN HAS IMPRESSIVE START TO CAREER: Sophomore forward Rashaun Freeman has had some outstanding games to open his collegiate career, and has already been named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week six times this season (on Nov. 23, Nov. 30, Dec. 28, Jan. 11, Jan. 25 and Feb. 29) and Dinn Brothers UMass Athlete of the Week twice (Dec. 29 and Mar. 2). In the game at Temple, he posted his 11th double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds. He also had a big day in the victory over Saint Bonaventure, totaling career-bests of 31 points and 18 rebounds. Previously, against Saint Joseph's, Freeman led the team with 21 points and six rebounds, while in the Rider game, he recorded team-highs of 17 points and 11 rebounds. Freeman also had big games at Rhode Island (13 points, four rebounds two blocks), against Fordham at home (18 points and 10 rebounds), against Temple (16 points), at Saint Joseph's (17 points, 12 rebounds), at Duquesne (16 points, 13 rebounds), at Saint Bonaventure (19 points, five rebounds), against George Washington (19 points, 10 rebounds), vs. Albany (22 points, 10 rebounds), against Maine (23 points, six rebounds), vs. Marshall (18 points, 10 rebounds), at Central Connecticut (15 points, 13 boards), vs. Hartford (19 points, nine rebounds), at Texas Tech (17 points) and against Saint Francis (11 points, 14 rebounds). Through 27 games this year, Freeman is averaging a team-best 14.9 points and 8.4 rebounds, while hitting 53.8 percent of his shots from the floor.
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 game at Temple, Maxwell totaled 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists. At Fordham, he led the team with 15 points, while also recording three rebounds, three assists and three steals. Previously against Rhode Island, Maxwell totaled 17 points and three assists, while hitting six of 11 shots from the floor. Earlier in the season against Marshall, Maxwell had a career-high 19 points, five steals and three assists, and was named Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week and Dinn Brothers UMass Athlete of the Week. Maxwell had some other big games at Rhode Island (12 points, five rebounds, game-winning three pointer with 25.6 seconds remaining), against Saint Bonaventure (10 points, six rebounds, four assists), at Rider (career-high eight assists), against Tennessee (12 points, four assists, three steals), against Albany (10 points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal), against Vermont (14 points on five of seven shooting) and at Boston College (10 points, four assists, three rebounds). For the season, he is now averaging 7.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game.
THE ROOKIES OF THE WEEK: The Minutemen have had a firm hold on Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week honors this season, with a UMass player taking home the award in eight out of 15 weeks on the year. Forward Rashaun Freeman has led the way by earning the honor six times (Nov. 23, Nov. 30, Dec. 28, Jan. 11, Jan. 25 and Feb. 28), while guard Art Bowers (Feb. 1) and forward Maurice Maxwell (Dec. 21) have taken home the award once each. With three Rookie of the Week recipients this year, UMass has become just the fourth team in Atlantic 10 history to have three different players win the award in the same season. The previous three schools to accomplish the feat were Xavier (1995-1996), La Salle (2002-2003) and George Washington (2003-2004).
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 (from the Hartford game on Nov. 24 to the Marshall contest on Dec. 23). He has gone the distance 10 times this season (including a 45-minute stint in the overtime game at Boston College), while playing the entire 40 minutes in six of UMass' last 11 contests. For the season, Anderson has now played 1,029 out of a possible 1095 minutes, good for an average of 38.1 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.
MINUTEMEN ON TELEVISION: UMass has once again made a number of appearances on live television during 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, Feb. 8 against Dayton and Feb. 14 at Xavier), New England Sports Network (Dec. 6 at Boston College), CN8 (Jan. 7 against La Salle and Mar. 3 at Temple), Cox-3 (Jan. 31 at Rhode Island), ESPN Regional (Dec. 20 against Marshall) and WPSG-TV in Philadelphia (Feb. 25 against Saint Joseph's). The Minutemen will have one more game carried as part of the Atlantic 10 Television Network package, at Richmond on Mar. 6. So far this season, the Minutemen stand 3-9 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 Monday, March 8. The show is taped at 11:45 a.m. from the Blue Wall Pub in Amherst, and is open to the general public.
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 150 blocks though 27 games, good for an average of 5.56 blocks per contest. The Minutemen stand far ahead of every other school in the Atlantic 10, as Richmond currently ranks second with an average of 4.46 blocks. In the latest NCAA statistics, through games of March 1, UMass stood ninth in the nation with 5.7 blocks per game. Leading the way for the Minutemen is freshman forward Stephane Lasme (Libreville, Gabon), who has totaled 49 blocks to rank third in the Atlantic 10 with an average of 1.8 blocks per game. Junior center Gabe Lee (Camilla, Ga.) was also enjoying a fine season with 45 blocked shots for an average of 3.2 blocks per game. He ranked first in the league and ninth in the nation, before suffering a season-ending injury at Saint Bonaventure on January 14.
MINUTEMEN RECORD 100TH MULLINS VICTORY: When UMass defeated Saint Bonaventure on Feb. 28, 2004, the Minutemen recorded their 100th victory since moving into the William D. Mullins Memorial Center. UMass just completed its 12th season of play at the Mullins Center, and has posted an all-time record of 100-42 in the building. The Minutemen went 8-7 at the Mullins Center this year, and have not had a losing record at home since moving into the new arena in 1992-1993. In fact, UMass has now gone 22 straight seasons without having a losing record on its home court. UMass also owns a 62-27 all-time record in regular season Atlantic 10 Conference games at the Mullins Center, and a 3-1 mark in Atlantic 10 Tournament contests.
HEAD COACH Steve Lappas: Now in his third season as the head coach of the Minutemen, Steve Lappas has an overall record of 34-51 while at UMass. He owns a career mark of 264-223 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 six more wins to move into eighth place.
MINUTEMATTERS: Junior center Gabe Lee, who averaged 9.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.2 blocks over the first 14 games of the season, is expected to miss the rest of the year due to injury ... Senior guard Marcus Cox (Bridgeport, Conn.) and sophomore forward Alassane Kouyate (Bamako, Mali) are also 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 ... Former UMass stars Marcus Camby and Lou Roe were both selected to ESPN's Silver Anniversary All-Atlantic 10 Conference team ... During the UMass-Rhode Island game on Feb. 18, three-time first team All-Yankee Conference selection Al Skinner (No. 30, 1971-1974) became the fourth player in school history to have his number retired. The other three players to be honored are George "Trigger" Burke (No. 32, 1954-1956), Julius Erving (No. 32, 1969-1971) and Lou Roe (No. 15, 1991-1995) ... UMass has won 29 of its last 31 games when shooting 50.0 percent or better from the field, including this year's 5-0 mark and an 11-2 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 last September. Leaman compiled an overall record of 217-126 in his 13 seasons at UMass, while winning eight Yankee Conference titles.
