University of Massachusets Athletics
Men's Basketball Travels South To Face UCF In Orlando
December 07, 2015 | Men's Basketball
| University of Massachusetts Basketball Weekly Release | |
| Game Eight | Massachusetts (5-2 overall) at UCF (3-3) |
| Date | Time | Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2015 | 7:00 p.m. ET |
| Location | CFE Arena (10,000) | Orlando, Fla. | Directions |
| Live Statistics | GameTracker |
| Watch | ESPN3 |
| Listen (Radio) | 105.5 FM WEEI (Western Massachusetts), 830 AM WCRN (Worcester) 95.9 FM WATD (South Shore), 1200 AM WXKS (Boston, Manchester, Providence) |
| Listen (Online) | WEEI Streaming Player | TuneIn App (mobile devices) |
| Series History | Central Florida leads, 2-1. Last meeting: UCF 64, UMass 59; Dec 22, 2010 |
| Game Notes | Massachusetts  | UCF | Atlantic 10 | American |
| Team Information | Massachusetts | UCF |
| @UMassAthletics | @UMassBasketball | #GoUMass | |
| UMass Athletics | |
| Buy Tickets | Available on TicketMaster.com through UCF Athletics |
UMass-UCF Scouting Report
The University of Central Florida sports a 3-3 overall record with two wins in three contests at home ahead of its Tuesday, Dec. 8 meeting with the University of Massachusetts men's basketball program at CFE Arena in Orlando, Florida. UCF defeated Illinois-Chicago, 88-58 in its last game out and also holds victories over UNC Greensboro, 65-54 and Stetson, 94-85. The Knights dropped a 90-85 decision to Massachusetts' Atlantic 10 compatriot, Davidson and also fell by slim margins to UC Irvine, 61-60 and Miami (Ohio), 64-63.
Despite the 3-3 record, UCF outscores its foes on average, 75.8-to-68.7 on the year and holds a 45.2-to-37.7 margin in rebounds. Adonys Henriquez leads the way with 11.5 points per appearance, followed by 7-foot-6 center Tacko Fall's 10.5 on average. A.J. Davis (10.2) and Shaheed Davis (10.0) also score in double-figures while Shaheed Davis paces the squad on the boards (7.0), followed by Fall's 6.3 per game.
UCF, then the No. 24 nationally ranked team in the country, came away victorious the last time these squads met with a 64-59 decision in the Mullins Center on Dec. 22, 2010. Anthony Gurley provided 17 points for the Minutemen as Massachusetts traded the lead with UCF 10 times before the Knights went in front for good midway through the second half. The visitors' lead never grew to more than seven points in the final stanza, and a Gurley 3-pointer with 16 seconds left had UMass back within three of tying, 60-57, but UCF made its final four foul shots to seal it.
Follow UMass Athletics And UMass Basketball On Twitter
Instant information on the basketball program, including an inside look at key points and statistics in each game as well as updates from practice and other team events are available via the Twitter handle @UMassBasketball. Follow the Minutemen there and catch information about each University of Massachusetts Athletic Department program through @UMassAthletics.
The Difference A Year Makes
Seven games into his first year competing for the Minutemen in 2014-15, Jabarie Hinds averaged 9.4 points and 2.0 assists per contest. Seven games into his second season, the West Virginia transfer puts in 17.3 points and dishes out 5.3 assists per appearance. That equates to a +7.9 margin in scoring average and +3.3 increase in assists dished out.
Hinds is one of three Minutemen averaging more than 17.0 points per game and the redshirt senior point guard is shooting 51.2 percent overall (42-of-82), including 18-for-40 on 3-pointers (45.0 percent). He has also hit 19-of-25 free throws (76.0 percent). Hinds is the ninth-highest scoring player across the Atlantic 10 and also dishes out the most assists across all league competitors.
Clark Picks Up Where He Left Off
Donte Clark scored in double figures during each of the final five games of his true freshman season in 2014-15 and averaged 14.4 points per game in the span. He started the 2015-16 campaign on a similar note as Clark finished 8-of-12 on field goal attempts for 16 points during the comeback win over Howard (11/14).
Through seven games, Clark averages 17.9 points per game, the most among Minutemen and seventh-highest total in the A-10. He is shooting 43.0 percent overall (40-of-92), including 42.2 percent from beyond the arc (19-of-45), and has hit 24 of his 33 free throws (72.7 percent).
Davis' Lucky No. 7 In Vegas
Trey Davis scored 25 points against Clemson on Nov. 23, with 21 of those coming on seven 3-pointers. It marked a single-game best for the senior guard and topped his previous mark of five earned against Iona Dec. 30, 2014. His seven made triples rank tied for eighth all-time in the UMass record book for conversions in one game while his performance was one shy of tying the top mark.
Hinds Fastest To 100 Points In A Season Since 2010-11
Jabarie Hinds needed five games to reach exactly 100 points on the 2015-16 season (20.0 per game), the fastest Minuteman to hit triple-digits for scoring in a single season since Anthony Gurley had 106 over the opening five games of the 2010-11 season. Gurley averaged 21.2 points per game in that span and finished the year at 18.7 points per game over 30 appearances.
Davis' Late-Game Heroics Versus Howard
Trey Davis scored 19 points over 34 minutes played against Howard in the season-opener, 12 of which came during the final three minutes, 30 seconds of the contest. These 12 points spurred the Minutemen on to their 14-point comeback as Davis went 7-of-8 at the foul line and 2-of-3 from the floor in that span. One of his two made baskets late in the game was a long-range 3-pointer Davis swished from just outside the edge of UMass center court logo.
Playing Clean Leads To Wins
UMass only turned the ball over six times during the 69-63 win at Harvard on Nov. 17, 2015, its fewest giveaway since the squad had five in an 80-62 win over Saint Joseph's on Feb. 9, 2013. It was a span of 77 contests between the two outings. Over the previous five seasons, the Minutemen have committed less than 10 turnovers on 11 occasions and are 8-3 in those contests.
Cady Lalanne Chosen In 2015 NBA Draft
UMass men's basketball senior center Cady Lalanne was selected by the San Antonio Spurs in the second round with the 55th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. Lalanne became the first Minuteman since Stephane Lasme (2007) to be chosen in the NBA Draft and 16th all-time from UMass. He was the only player picked from an Atlantic 10 Conference school.
14-Point Comeback Vs. Howard Among Best In Kellogg's Era
UMass men's basketball erased a 14-point second half deficit against Howard in the 2015-16 season-opener, the largest comeback by the program since Massachusetts turned a 17-point disadvantage at Drexel into a 72-70 victory on March 20, 2012.
It was 99 games between Minuteman comebacks of at least 14 points. During Derek Kellogg's tenure as head coach, the Minutemen own five victories after they trailed by 14 or more points. It is also the second-largest second half deficit overcome by a Kellogg-led team behind only the triumph over Drexel.
Basketball Moves In To Champions Center
The University of Massachusetts men's and women's basketball program moved into their first dedicated team facility during the Summer 2015 with the introduction of the John Francis Kennedy Champions Center for UMass Basketball. The 53,000-square foot building offers a state-of-the-art facility for the Minutemen and Minutewomen that will benefit generations of basketball student-athletes to come.
The structure is named in honor of longtime athletics support John Francis Kennedy, who donated the lead gift of $11 million toward the project. The 53,000-square foot facility houses the daily operations for the UMass men's and women's basketball programs. The $22-million facility features dedicated practice courts for each team, office space for the coaching staffs, locker rooms and areas for strength and conditioning along with athletic training services. It also contains Legacy Hall, which will display the rich history of UMass basketball along the building's Eastern corridor.
The creation of the facility has several additional benefits for the University, the community and other programs within the athletics department. Current space utilized in the Mullins Center for basketball will be converted to additional support areas for athletics. The dedicated practice space for the basketball program will allow more open dates for the Mullins Center to schedule entertainment groups such as concerts, theatrical productions and other performers. The teams will no longer need to schedule practices in the Curry Hicks Cage as well, which will allow more time for other athletics programs and University-related organizations to use the space.
John F. Kennedy holds multiple degrees from a pair of University of Massachusetts campuses, including a bachelor's in mathematics UMass Lowell (then known as Lowell Technological Institute) in 1970 and a master's in accounting from the flagship campus in Amherst in 1976. The Naples, Fla., resident is the retired President and CFO of Nova Ventures Corp., of Woburn, Mass. Kennedy founded the Kennedy Foundation, which supports academic efforts at the University of Massachusetts and UMass Lowell. In the Spring 2014, he was awarded the UMass Amherst Distinguished Achievement Award. Additionally, he is the Past President of the UMass Amherst Foundation.