University of Massachusets Athletics
Tuesday, March 5
Fairfax, Va.
Noon
University of Massachusetts
16-15
86
at
80
George Mason
16-14
1
2
3
4
OT 1
OT 2
F
Massachusetts
12
19
16
11
7
21
86
George Mason
5
22
21
10
7
15
80
Photo by: George Kubas
Massachusetts Claims 86-80 Double Overtime Thriller at George Mason
March 05, 2019 | Women's Basketball
Minutewomen move on to Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals Friday vs. Fordham
FAIRFAX, Va. – Tenth-seeded University of Massachusetts women's basketball needed double overtime, but the Minutewomen came away with an 86-80 win over No. 7 seed George Mason in the Atlantic 10 First Round on Tuesday afternoon at Mason's EagleBank Arena.
UMass (16-15), picking up its first victory in the A-10 Tournament since 2015-16, now advances to the Quarterfinal Round and will match up with No. 2 seed Fordham on Fri., March 8. That game will be played in Pittsburgh at the Palumbo Center on the campus of Duquesne University. George Mason exits the A-10 Tournament with a record of 16-14.
"That was an unbelievable game," said head coach Tory Verdi. "I thought our players did an unbelievable job fighting adversity down the stretch. We made a lot of big shots and it was a great team win. I'm very happy for our players and program to win this game and move on in the Atlantic 10 Tournament."
Junior Hailey Leidel exploded for a season-high 31 points on 5-of-10 from the field plus an 18-of-18 clip at the free throw line–setting a Massachusetts single-game record and tying an Atlantic 10 Tournament best for free throws made. Leidel also is the first UMass player to produce 31 points in an A-10 Tournament game in recorded program history. Freshman Destiney Philoxy dropped 19 points and senior Genesis Rivera rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Maroon and White with a season-high 15. Rivera was just short of her second career double-double, finishing with nine rebounds.
Massachusetts took advantage of a difficult shooting first quarter for Mason, using a stout defensive effort to hold the Patriots to just 1-of-12 from the field in the opening 10 minutes. Leidel spearheaded a 9-0 run during that time and sophomore Bre Hampton-Bey grabbed three steals before Sarah Kaminski drew a late foul with mere tenths of a second remaining and draining all three free throws to close the quarter with a 12-5 UMass lead.
Rivera dropped back-to-back threes from the right corner as the second stanza hit the home stretch, helping the Minutewomen carry a 31-27 lead at halftime.
Out of halftime the Patriots claimed their first lead of the day as a result of a 10-5 run, marking the first of three lead changes in the second half as the Minutewomen eliminated deficits of as much as seven.
Leidel nearly sealed the game at the end of regulation with a three-pointer from the left corner before the attempt rattled out ahead of the first overtime period. Philoxy nearly pulled off her own heroics at the end of the first extra period before her layup would not fall.
The Patriots took a four-point lead early in the second overtime with buckets by Jacy Bolton and Nicole Cardaño-Hillary before a 10-0 Massachusetts run turned the tables for the balance of the game. Success at the free throw line was crucial for the Minutewomen in the second overtime as the squad went 10-of-11 at the charity stripe with Leidel (8-of-8) and Philoxy (2-of-3) leading the charge.
For the day, Massachusetts shot 35.1 percent (27-of-77) in comparison to 38.2 percent (26-of-68) by the Patriots. Even in stretching to double overtime, the Maroon and White finished the afternoon with nine turnovers, one short of a season-low.
Bolton was remarkable for Mason over all 50 minutes, going off for 35 points and 16 rebounds. Cardaño-Hillary added 21 points and nine boards in the losing effort.
Follow UMass women's basketball on Twitter (@UMassWBB), Instagram (UMassWBB) and Facebook (UMass Women's Basketball) for the latest news and updates around the program.
UMass (16-15), picking up its first victory in the A-10 Tournament since 2015-16, now advances to the Quarterfinal Round and will match up with No. 2 seed Fordham on Fri., March 8. That game will be played in Pittsburgh at the Palumbo Center on the campus of Duquesne University. George Mason exits the A-10 Tournament with a record of 16-14.
"That was an unbelievable game," said head coach Tory Verdi. "I thought our players did an unbelievable job fighting adversity down the stretch. We made a lot of big shots and it was a great team win. I'm very happy for our players and program to win this game and move on in the Atlantic 10 Tournament."
Junior Hailey Leidel exploded for a season-high 31 points on 5-of-10 from the field plus an 18-of-18 clip at the free throw line–setting a Massachusetts single-game record and tying an Atlantic 10 Tournament best for free throws made. Leidel also is the first UMass player to produce 31 points in an A-10 Tournament game in recorded program history. Freshman Destiney Philoxy dropped 19 points and senior Genesis Rivera rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Maroon and White with a season-high 15. Rivera was just short of her second career double-double, finishing with nine rebounds.
Massachusetts took advantage of a difficult shooting first quarter for Mason, using a stout defensive effort to hold the Patriots to just 1-of-12 from the field in the opening 10 minutes. Leidel spearheaded a 9-0 run during that time and sophomore Bre Hampton-Bey grabbed three steals before Sarah Kaminski drew a late foul with mere tenths of a second remaining and draining all three free throws to close the quarter with a 12-5 UMass lead.
Rivera dropped back-to-back threes from the right corner as the second stanza hit the home stretch, helping the Minutewomen carry a 31-27 lead at halftime.
Out of halftime the Patriots claimed their first lead of the day as a result of a 10-5 run, marking the first of three lead changes in the second half as the Minutewomen eliminated deficits of as much as seven.
Leidel nearly sealed the game at the end of regulation with a three-pointer from the left corner before the attempt rattled out ahead of the first overtime period. Philoxy nearly pulled off her own heroics at the end of the first extra period before her layup would not fall.
The Patriots took a four-point lead early in the second overtime with buckets by Jacy Bolton and Nicole Cardaño-Hillary before a 10-0 Massachusetts run turned the tables for the balance of the game. Success at the free throw line was crucial for the Minutewomen in the second overtime as the squad went 10-of-11 at the charity stripe with Leidel (8-of-8) and Philoxy (2-of-3) leading the charge.
For the day, Massachusetts shot 35.1 percent (27-of-77) in comparison to 38.2 percent (26-of-68) by the Patriots. Even in stretching to double overtime, the Maroon and White finished the afternoon with nine turnovers, one short of a season-low.
Bolton was remarkable for Mason over all 50 minutes, going off for 35 points and 16 rebounds. Cardaño-Hillary added 21 points and nine boards in the losing effort.
Follow UMass women's basketball on Twitter (@UMassWBB), Instagram (UMassWBB) and Facebook (UMass Women's Basketball) for the latest news and updates around the program.
Team Stats
UMASS
MASON
FG%
.351
.382
3FG%
.250
.158
FT%
.862
.806
RB
45
51
TO
9
13
STL
5
6
Game Leaders
Pts
31
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
18
Pts
19
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's BasketballCoach Leflar on HUGE jump from year 1 to 2.
Monday, September 29
Plant the Flag with UMass WBB Coach Mike Leflar
Monday, September 29
Plant the Flag with UMass WBB Coach Mike Leflar
Monday, September 29
UMass WBB | Highlights vs Stonehill | 03.20.25
Thursday, March 20