UMass Heads To Richmond Saturday Night

University of Massachusetts Men's Basketball Game Notes & Information
Game 29	Massachusetts (13-15, 7-8 Atlantic 10) at Richmond (21-7, 11-4 Atlantic 10)
Date \| Time	Saturday, February 29, 2020 \| 6:00 p.m.
Location	Richmond, Va. \| Robins Center
Watch	ESPN+
Listen	WEEI (105.5 FM) \| WCRN (830 AM) \| Tune-In App
Live Statistics	Live Stats
Game Notes	Massachusetts Notes \| 2019-20 Prospectus
Twitter	@UMassAthletics \| @UMassBasketball
Instagram	UMass Basketball
Facebook	UMass Basketball
UMass Home Tickets	Get Your 2019-20 Tickets Now! \| 2019-20 Promotional Calendar

AMHERST, Mass. – Riding a three-game winning streak and victories in four of its last five games, the UMass men's basketball team heads back on the road this weekend when the Minutemen travel to Richmond for a 6 p.m. tipoff at the Robins Center.

Tre ball
• On Feb. 24, Tre Mitchell became the first Minuteman since Rashaun Freeman in 2003-04 to earn A-10 Rookie of the Week honors four times in a season, and the first player to win three straight since Rhode Island's E.C. Matthews in 2013-14.

• Mitchell had a career-high 30 points on Feb. 4 at Rhode Island, and is fifth in the Atlantic 10 and first among rookies averaging 16.9 points per game this season.

• Mitchell's 30-point night against the Rams were the most for a UMass freshman since Rashaun Freeman scored 31 on Feb. 28, 2004. Mitchell's averaging 21.7 points and 9.5 rebounds in his last six games.

• Mitchell is 69th in the NCAA, and fifth among rookies, with 180 field goals. He's 13 away from tying the UMass freshman record for made field goals in a season, held by Jim McCoy (193, 1988-89).

• Mitchell's 472 points are seventh in the nation among NCAA freshmen, and 83 away from tying the UMass rookie record for points in a season, held by Jim McCoy (555, 1988-98).

• He is one of 17 players in the Atlantic 10 to have a 30-point game this season, and the only freshman to do so.

• Mitchell is one of nine players in the A-10 with a 30-point game in conference play.

• He has four 25+ point nights this season. UMass had six as a team last season.

• Mitchell has nine 20+ point nights this season.

• Mitchell's second half double-double (15 points, 11 rebounds) marked the first double-double for a Minuteman in a half since Terrell Vinson had 11 points and 11 rebounds in the second half against Fordham on Jan. 5, 2012.

• He pulled down a season-high 19 rebounds at Fordham on Feb. 22, tied for the fourth-most in the Atlantic 10 this season and the most in a game for a Minuteman since Antwan Space had 17 on Feb. 14, 2016 at Duquesne (OT).

Keep rollin'
The Minutemen have won three straight conference games for the first time since the 2017-18 season, and four out of their last five A-10 games for the first time since 2014-15. UMass' seven league wins are the second most for the program since the Atlantic 10 moved to an 18-game conference schedule in 2014-15.

The series with Richmond
Richmond leads the all-time series against UMass 13-7, including wins in five of the last six meetings. Last season, the Minutemen picked up their first win vs. the Spiders since 2013 as Rashaan Holloway poured in a career-high 28 points to go along with 12 rebounds in his final home game at the Mullins Center.

Stiff competition
UMass has gone up against some of the nation's top teams, including 12 currently ranked in the top-100 of the NCAA NET Rankings: Dayton (4), Rutgers (34), URI (40), Virginia (51), VCU (60), Yale (61), South Carolina (64), Saint Louis (68), Davidson (71), St. John's (73), Akron (79), Duquesne (92).

Two of UMass' final three games are also against top-100 teams: at Richmond (52) and vs. Rhode Island (40).

In games against top-100 teams, Tre Mitchell is averaging 18.3 points, 7.2 rebounds per game, and is shooting 48% (96-of-199).

Getting defensive
UMass held Fordham to a 31% shooting performance from the field on Feb. 22, the lowest for a Minuteman opponent this season. The Rams' 49 points marked the second time this season that the Minutemen have held an opponent to less than 50 points in a game (CCSU on Nov. 16), which hasn't happened since the 2006-07 season.

We'll be taking that
The Minutemen are averaging 7.0 steals per game, including tying a season-high 13 on Feb. 9 vs. George Mason, the fifth time this season and sixth time in the Matt McCall era that a UMass team had at least 10 steals in a game.

The Minutemen are also 85th in the country and fourth in the conference in forced turnovers (14.46), and have forced their opponents into 20+ turnovers four times (CCSU, Maine, Saint Louis, vs. George Mason).

On the flip side, the Minutemen have turned the ball over 12 times or less in 10 of their last 12 games.

Dishin'
UMass had a season-high 26 assists on 38 made field goals on Jan. 29 against Saint Joseph's, the most assists in a game since Jan. 26, 2014 against Fordham. The 38 made field goals were also the most in a game since Nov. 19, 2017 vs. Niagara.

Sean East II and Carl Pierre had seven dimes each, a new career-high for Pierre. East II is fourth in the nation among freshmen, and t-73rd overall, with 4.7 assists per game, and is also 72nd in the NCAA with 132 assists in 28 games.

Scoreboard

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Players Mentioned

Sean East II

Rashaan Holloway

Tre Mitchell

Carl Pierre

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics