Men’s Basketball Rallies For 62-57 Victory Over Saint Joseph’s

AMHERST, Mass. – University of Massachusetts men's basketball fought back from a 12-point first half deficit and downed Saint Joseph's, 62-57 in the Mullins Center on the strength of a game-high 23 points from reserve guard Zach Lewis. The win improved UMass to 12-7 overall and 2-4 in the Atlantic 10 while Saint Joseph's dropped to 8-9 and 2-3.

Lewis shot 8-for-19 overall (42.1 percent), including 4-of-10 on 3-point field goals, and was 3-of-3 at the foul line. He added a game-best threes steals and dished out two assists without a turnover in 31 minutes. C.J. Anderson contributed 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting with four assists. Seth Berger and Rashaan Holloway tied for the team lead in rebounds with seven while Luwane Pipkins equaled his career high with six assists.

James Demery had 19 points and 11 rebounds for Saint Joseph's. Charlie Brown and Markell Lodge scored 11 apiece while Lodge fell one board shy of earning a double-double.

"I'm ecstatic we came away with a win," head coach Derek Kellogg said. "After being down, 24-12, I didn't know if we would ever score again. I thought Tyrn Flowers made a nice baseline jumper and Zach Lewis and C.J. Anderson made a couple plays. I was really happy that some of the guys that have worked hard in practice, such as Seth, got an opportunity tonight. C.J. has been playing a bit, getting some more minutes, and helped solidify this win. Zach was fantastic tonight and put some points on the board. A good team effort from some guys, like Zach Lewis and Seth Berger, who haven't had an opportunity lately.

"It's a good lesson for the young guys," Kellogg continued. "You have to come every day prepared for a fight. This is a tough basketball league where every time you play it's a dog fight, and I think they are going to have to mature quickly and get back at it."

A sluggish start hampered the Minutemen and helped the Hawks move in front by as many as 12 points in the first half. However, Lewis pulled the Maroon and White out of their slump with four made 3-pointers – his most in a single game this season.

"Shots just weren't falling, we were taking some really good shots," Anderson said. "They were just going over the rim, bouncing in and out."

Guided by Lewis, Massachusetts hit five of its final six 3-point attempts after the team started 1-for-12 in the category.

"It feels good to see some shots go in and once that happens you feel more comfortable on both ends of the floor," Lewis said.

His last two 3-point attempts pulled UMass within 28-26 with 46 seconds to play before Anderson nailed the final shot of the half and brought the game back to even at 29-29 entering the break.

"Tonight was an opportunity for me to say whoever is ready to play is playing," Kellogg said. "We even started a different lineup in the second half – maybe we start looking at minutes as something that should be cherished and not taken for-granted."

Saint Joseph's went ahead again with seven of the opening nine points in the second half, but the Minutemen answered the Hawks with a 12-0 run that put UMass in front for the first time on the night.

Midway through the run, Donte Clark gave the Maroon and White their first advantage of the night, 43-42, with 11:05 to play. Lewis then sank back-to-back layups, including an and-1 play, and Holloway fought to the rim for two points as Massachusetts built its lead to 50-42 with 8:01 to go.

The Hawks briefly knotted the game in the final three minutes before Massachusetts scored nine of the final 13 points for the win.

With Massachusetts ahead, 53-49 and 3:59 left on the clock, Saint Joseph's Charlie Brown knocked down a 3-pointer and Demery hit the front end of two foul shots to make it 53-all with 2:30 to go. The Minutemen battled back as Holloway fought through a triple-team under the basket for a layup before Clark padded the lead back to four points with a conversion at the rim. Anderson capped a six-point run and put the game out of reach for the Hawks with a thunderous one-handed jam for the 59-53 advantage with 26 seconds left.

Follow the team throughout the season on Twitter and Instagram (@UMassBasketball).

Massachusetts plays its next contest at home in the Mullins Center with a Sat., Jan. 21 tilt against Fordham at 12:30 p.m. on NBCSN. The game is the first half of a UMass doubleheader as the Minutewomen host George Washington on the same day at 3 p.m.

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