Massachusetts Set For Season Opener Vs. Northeastern On Friday

University of Massachusetts Men's Basketball Game Notes & Information
Game 1	Massachusetts (0-0, 0-0 Atlantic 10) vs. Northeastern (0-0, 0-0 CAA)
Date \| Time	Friday, December 11, 2020 \| 1:30 p.m.
Location	Amherst, Mass. \| Mullins Center
Watch	NESN \| ESPN+ (Outside New England)
Listen	WEEI (105.5 FM) \| WCRN (830 AM) \| Tune-In App
Live Statistics	SIDEARM Live Stats
Game Notes	Massachusetts Notes \| 2020-21 Prospectus
Twitter	@UMassAthletics \| @UMassBasketball
Instagram	UMass Basketball
Facebook	UMass Basketball

AMHERST, Mass. -- The 112th season of Massachusetts basketball kicks off on Friday when the Minutemen host Northeastern on NESN and ESPN+. This is the latest UMass will start a season since the 1947-48 season.

The new normal
On November 17, the Massachusetts men's basketball team has paused all team activities following a positive COVID-19 test result among the program's Tier 1 personnel, which consists of coaches, student-athletes, team managers and support staff. Results were detected during COVID-19 surveillance testing, which is conducted three times a week in accordance with NCAA guidelines.

Due to a pause in team activities, UMass did not participate in the Multiple Team Event at Mohegan Sun previously scheduled for Thanksgiving weekend. UMass returned to practice on December 5.

Minutemen in season openers
UMass has found success in season openers of late, going 12-1 in the opening game of the year dating back to 2003, including 10 straight wins. Overall, Massachusetts is 77-34 in season openers in the 111-year history of the program.

History in home openers
The Minutemen enter Friday's game with wins in each of their last 11 home openers at the Mullins Center. UMass hasn't lost its first game at home since 2008, and is 84-26 in its home openers on campus.

The series with Northeastern
Massachusetts and Northeastern will be meeting for the 56th time in program history on Friday, with UMass leading the series, 38-17, with the Minutemen winning each of the last five matchups.

The series will shift to Boston on Sunday for a 12 p.m. tip-off at Cabot Center. It marks the 10th time in team history that UMass will play the same opponent in consecutive games during the regular season, and first time since 1982-83.

Mitchell named to Malone Award Watch List
Tre Mitchell, who took the Atlantic 10 by storm en route to conference Rookie of the Year honors last season, is back for more in 2020-21. On Nov. 5, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced that the sophomore is one of 20 players named to the watch list for the 2021 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award.

Mitchell, who burst onto the scene in Amherst with one of the top freshman seasons in program history in 2019-20. Mitchell, who was also named to the A-10 Second Team and to the league's rookie team, finished the year averaging 22.9 points per game and 9.4 rebounds per game over his final nine games. The Pittsburgh, Pa. native became the first rookie since Marcus Camby in 1994 to be named to the Atlantic 10's First, Second or Third team.

He gets buckets
Redshirt-freshman T.J. Weeks Jr. will be back in the lineup for the Minutemen after missing the final 21 games of last season due to injury. At the time of his injury, Weeks Jr. was 15th in the NCAA with 32 made three-point field goals, and finished the year shooting 48.5% from beyond the arc.

Weeks Jr. is the son of former UMass great Tyrone Weeks Sr., who scored over 1,000 points for UMass from 1994-98 and played in four consecutive NCAA Tournaments.

Fernandes receives NCAA waiver
The NCAA announced Wednesday that the legislative relief waiver for UMass men's basketball transfer Noah Fernandes has been approved. Fernandes, a Mattapoisett, Mass. native, is immediately eligible for competition for the 2020-21 season.

Fernandes transferred to the Minutemen from Wichita State following his freshman season in 2019-20. There he appeared in 21 games, including three starts, averaging 1.4 points in 9.9 minutes of action per game. He posted season highs of seven points on 3-of-8 shooting from the floor in 25 minutes at UCF on Feb. 13 and had a season-high six assists against UT Martin on Nov. 16.

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Massachusetts Set For Season Opener Vs. Northeastern On Friday

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Players Mentioned

Noah Fernandes

Tre Mitchell

T.J. Weeks Jr.

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University of Massachusets Athletics