University of Massachusets Athletics
Monday, December 30
Akron, Ohio
7:00 PM
University of Massachusetts
6-7,0-0Atlantic
79
at
85
Akron
10-3,0-0MAC
1
2
F
Massachusetts
33
46
79
Akron
40
45
85
Akron Holds On To Edge Massachusetts, 85-79
December 30, 2019 | Men's Basketball
Pierre and East II combine for 49 the Minutemen's 79 points
AKRON, Ohio – Trailing by as many as 17 with less than seven minutes to play in the first half, the UMass men's basketball team (6-7) stormed all the way back to erase the deficit and take a four-point advantage in the second half, but Akron (10-3) was able to regain the lead with 6:19 to go to narrowly knock off the Minutemen on Monday night at Rhodes Arena, 85-79.
A game with six ties and 12 lead changes in the second half alone also saw Minutemen Sean East II (26 points) and Carl Pierre (23 points) combine for 49 of UMass' 79 points on the night. Pierre added a team-high 10 rebounds for his first career double-double, while East II had six assists to lead all players.
After the Minutemen found themselves in an early hole due to the hot shooting of Akron's Loren Cristian Jackson, who had 15 of his 26 points in the opening 20 minutes on 5-of-6 shooting from deep, UMass turned it on late with a 14-2 to close the half and make it 40-33 at the break. Keon Clergeot had eight of his nine points in the opening half behind only East II's 14.
That set the stage for a wild second half as the Minutemen came out flying with an 8-0 run early, highlighted by a three from Tre Mitchell (11 points) before Mitchell stole the ball at the other end of the floor to setup a Pierre three from the corner, one of five on the night for the Massachusetts captain.
Pierre and East II came up big yet again with less than six minutes to go, bookending a Djery Baptiste steal on the defensive end with a pair of lay-ins to give UMass a 59-57 edge. After Akron went ahead by four after a pair of three throws from Jackson, it was East II yet again, getting a three to go to make it 65-64 with 5:41 to play.
Massachusetts continued to fight down the stretch, not allowing the Zips to lead by more than six in the final minutes, and got it to a two-point game with 15 seconds to play with a three from Dibaji Walker in his first game as a Minuteman, but Akron was able to seal it with free throws late.
Overall, UMass shot 39% from the floor (28-of-71) and 33% from three (10-30), while the Zips were 27-of-60 (45%) as a team and 9-of-24 from deep as Channel Banks (21 points) and Tyler Cheese (14 points) also reached double-figures.
UMass will open Atlantic 10 play on Sunday afternoon when the Minutemen travel to Saint Louis for a 4 p.m. tip on NBCSN
A game with six ties and 12 lead changes in the second half alone also saw Minutemen Sean East II (26 points) and Carl Pierre (23 points) combine for 49 of UMass' 79 points on the night. Pierre added a team-high 10 rebounds for his first career double-double, while East II had six assists to lead all players.
After the Minutemen found themselves in an early hole due to the hot shooting of Akron's Loren Cristian Jackson, who had 15 of his 26 points in the opening 20 minutes on 5-of-6 shooting from deep, UMass turned it on late with a 14-2 to close the half and make it 40-33 at the break. Keon Clergeot had eight of his nine points in the opening half behind only East II's 14.
That set the stage for a wild second half as the Minutemen came out flying with an 8-0 run early, highlighted by a three from Tre Mitchell (11 points) before Mitchell stole the ball at the other end of the floor to setup a Pierre three from the corner, one of five on the night for the Massachusetts captain.
Pierre and East II came up big yet again with less than six minutes to go, bookending a Djery Baptiste steal on the defensive end with a pair of lay-ins to give UMass a 59-57 edge. After Akron went ahead by four after a pair of three throws from Jackson, it was East II yet again, getting a three to go to make it 65-64 with 5:41 to play.
Massachusetts continued to fight down the stretch, not allowing the Zips to lead by more than six in the final minutes, and got it to a two-point game with 15 seconds to play with a three from Dibaji Walker in his first game as a Minuteman, but Akron was able to seal it with free throws late.
Overall, UMass shot 39% from the floor (28-of-71) and 33% from three (10-30), while the Zips were 27-of-60 (45%) as a team and 9-of-24 from deep as Channel Banks (21 points) and Tyler Cheese (14 points) also reached double-figures.
UMass will open Atlantic 10 play on Sunday afternoon when the Minutemen travel to Saint Louis for a 4 p.m. tip on NBCSN
Team Stats
UMASS
UA
FG%
.394
.450
3FG%
.333
.375
FT%
.684
.759
RB
39
45
TO
12
16
STL
8
3
Game Leaders
Pts
26
FGM
11
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
23
FGM
8
3FGM
5
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Players Mentioned
C
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
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F
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