Minutewomen Tip Off Atlantic 10 Schedule New Year’s Eve at Duquesne

University of Massachusetts Women's Basketball Game Notes
Game 14	Massachusetts (8-5 overall, 0-0 Atlantic 10) at Duquesne (10-3 overall, 0-0 Atlantic 10)
Date \| Time	Sunday, Dec. 31 \| 1 p.m.
Location	Palumbo Center; Pittsburgh, Pa.
Series History	Duquesne leads, 28-22. Last meeting: Massachusetts 75, Duquesne 67; Jan. 15, 2017
Game Notes	Massachusetts \| Duquesne
Live Statistics	GameTracker
Listen	91.1 FM WMUA \| WMUA Online
Tickets	(412) 232-3853 \| Duquesne Athletic Ticket Office
Watch	Atlantic 10 Digital Network
Twitter	@UMassWBB \| @UMassAthletics \| @CoachVerdiUMass
Instagram	UMass Women's Basketball \| UMass Athletics

Setting The Scene
The 2017 calendar year wraps up on Sunday, Dec. 31, however its conclusion also marks the beginning of Atlantic 10 play for University of Massachusetts women's basketball. The Minutewomen will spend the weekend in Pittsburgh and square off with Duquesne in a 1 p.m. matchup from the Palumbo Center.

Sunday's game will be streamed live on the Atlantic 10 Digital Network as well as on the radio at 91.1 FM WMUA and WMUA.org. Alex Levitt and Joey Ice will man the microphone for the radio call.

Recap In A Minute
UMass was handed a 88-60 setback by Marist just before the holiday break on Thurs., Dec. 21 at the Mullins Center. Despite 13-point efforts by Jessica George and Genesis Rivera, plus 12 boards from Maggie Mulligan, the Minutewomen were unable to counter a 19-0 run to open the third quarter. That sequence swung momentum in favor of Marist and gave the Red Foxes a lead they would not relinquish.

Mulligan narrowly missed her third consecutive double-double, putting in eight points on the day.

UMass in Atlantic 10 Openers
Sunday's tilt will begin Massachusetts' 35th season of Atlantic 10 basketball, with a victory giving the Maroon and White their 15th victory in a conference lid-lifter and first since the 2012-13 season. UMass has faced Duquesne only once prior to begin the league slate, falling to the Dukes by a 75-65 score in Pittsburgh on Jan. 2, 1998.

Verdi Approaching 100 Career Wins
Massachusetts head coach Tory Verdi logged his 92nd career victory as a head coach in the win over UMass Lowell on Dec. 13. Prior to arriving at Massachusetts ahead of the 2016-17 campaign, Verdi earned 72 triumphs at the helm of Eastern Michigan (2012-16) and three as interim head coach at Columbia (2004-05).

Nine Would Be Fine
A win on Sunday would put the Minutewomen at 9-5 on the season and match the squad's win total from 2016-17 before even hitting the heart of the Atlantic 10 schedule. In addition, it would be the third road triumph for the group this year after capturing just one true road victory last season.

Record-Breaking Effort
A number of single-game UMass records were broken on Thurs., Dec. 7 against Fisher, notably Hailey Leidel's 10-of-10 performance from three-point land, surpassing the previous top figure of seven triples made. That clip also tied the NCAA Division I single-game record for consecutive makes from beyond the arc.

In addition, the Minutewomen set new team highs in three-pointers made (17), points in a quarter (39, 1st), points in a half (70, 1st), total points (121), assists (34), and largest margin of victory (83).

Hi, How May We Assist You?
UMass has dished out a total of 200 assists this season, which is third across the Atlantic 10 Conference and No. 52 among the Division I ranks. Breaking that down to a game-by-game figure, the Minutewomen are averaging 15.4 dimes, an additional figure that sits third in the conference.

Money! ¡Dinero!
Genesis Rivera went a perfect 6-of-6 from downtown in the first quarter on Sat., Dec. 2 against Mississippi Valley State, a feat not previously accomplished at UMass. Of all players across the Atlantic 10, none prior to Rivera have hit six in a single quarter this season. The previous top conference mark in 2017-18 was held by La Salle's Amy Griffin, who went 5-of-5 in the third period against Lafayette on Fri., Nov. 10.

Take It Away!
Massachusetts now has logged 126 steals on the season, averaging just short of 10 per game. Both figures lead the Atlantic 10, while the season total sits 43rd in the country. Individually, Bre Hampton-Bey boasts a conference-best 33 steals (2.75 per game).

Nah, Nah, Nah...Not In My House
After posting one block against Marist on Dec. 21, Maggie Mulligan has now registered a total of 25 on the season, averaging 1.9 swats per game. Both figures rank second in the Atlantic 10 behind Duquesne's Kadri-Ann Lass and are among the top 60 across Division I. Dating back to last season, the senior and Boston native has rejected at least one shot in 14 of her last 16 games.

Over The Century Mark
UMass has surpassed 100-points twice this season, eclipsing that figure against Maine-Fort Kent on Nov. 10 (111-45) and Fisher on Dec. 7 (121-38). In recording that triumph over UMFK, the Minutewomen crossed the century mark for the first time since Dec. 13, 1980 when the squad defeated Vermont, 105-74.

UMass Adds Five During Early Signing Period
University of Massachusetts women's basketball and head coach Tory Verdi welcomed five new members to the program on Mon., Nov. 13, as Alexa Kellner (Stamford, Connecticut), Madison Lowery (Virginia Beach, Virginia), Asia McCoy (Lawrenceville, Georgia), Jessica Nelson (Buford, Georgia) and Destiny Philoxy (Queens, New York) signed their respective National Letters of Intent. Regarded as one of the highest-caliber classes in program history, the group was ranked No. 57 nationally by Blue Star Basketball as well as No. 62 in the country by PASS.

Leidel, Mulligan Collect A-10 Preseason Recognition
Hailey Leidel and Maggie Mulligan received Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference Team as announced by the league office on Oct. 23. Leidel was placed on the All-Conference Second Team, while Mulligan earned herself a spot on the All-Conference Third Team.

Welcome To The Show!
UMass welcomes seven newcomers in 2017-18 in Alexia Allesch (Basking Ridge, New Jersey), Autumn Giles (Fort Myers, Florida), Bre Hampton-Bey (Toledo, Ohio), Paige McCormick (Ogdensburg, New York), Vashnie Perry (Nashville, Tennessee), Genesis Rivera (Caracas, Venezuela) and Anil Soysal (Istanbul, Turkey).

Candice Finley Joins UMass As Assistant Coach
University of Massachusetts women's basketball head coach Tory Verdi announced in May the addition of Candice Finley as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. The addition of Finley reunited the duo after they worked together for four years at Eastern Michigan. The native of Detroit earned a bachelor's degree from Eastern Kentucky in 2002, then played professionally in Luxembourg for a season.

Next Up
Massachusetts returns to the confines of the Mullins Center for a Wed., Jan. 3, 2018 contest against Fordham which begins at 5 p.m. That game is part of a doubleheader as the UMass men's basketball team will face George Mason for a 7 p.m. tipoff. Both games will be aired on Eleven Sports and be covered on NESN. Eleven Sports can be viewed on DIRECTV channel 623, Verizon Fios channel 597, AT&T U-verse channel 1665 and on Fubo.tv and PlayStation Vue.

UMass Women's Basketball On Social Media
Follow UMass women's basketball on Twitter (@UMassWBB), Instagram (UMassWBB) and Facebook (UMass Women's Basketball) for the latest news and updates around the team.

Scoreboard

Minutewomen Tip Off Atlantic 10 Schedule New Year’s Eve at Duquesne

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Players Mentioned

Alexia Allesch

Jessica George

Autumn Giles

Bre Hampton-Bey

Hailey Leidel

Paige McCormick

Maggie Mulligan

Vashnie Perry

Genesis Rivera

Anil Soysal

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics