University of Massachusets Athletics
Friday, January 15
Richmond, Va.
6 p.m.
University of Massachusetts
9-2,5-1Atlantic 10
55
at
49
VCU
6-6,4-1Atlantic 10
1
2
3
4
F
Massachusetts
21
9
13
12
55
VCU
7
21
2
19
49
Photo by: Amber Searls - VCU Athletics
Massachusetts Downs VCU on the Road, 55-49
January 15, 2021 | Women's Basketball
Minutewomen off to first 5-1 start in league play since the 1999-2000 season
RICHMOND, Va. – University of Massachusetts women's basketball staved off multiple comeback efforts by VCU and came away with a 55-49 win over the Rams Friday night at the Siegel Center. UMass (9-2, 5-1 Atlantic 10), now in second place in the A-10 standings, has matched its best start overall since 2006-07, and is 5-1 in league play for the first time since 1999-2000.
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Sam Breen led the way with her sixth double-double in the last seven games, finishing the night with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Sydney Taylor (15) was close behind in the scoring column, and both Ber'Nyah Mayo and Maddie Sims had eight points. Sims had a key presence on the glass as well with eight rebounds, and Destiney Philoxy was crucial at the point with six assists.
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The Maroon and White came out firing on all cylinders and built a commanding 21-5 lead late in the first quarter. It came thanks to a 17-0 Minutewomen run, spearheaded by seven points from Breen and six more off the hand of Taylor. Breen was 4-of-5 from the field early to lead a Massachusetts squad that posted a 56.3% clip (9-of-16) in the first quarter and forced two timeouts by the Rams.
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But the opening half proved to be a tale of two quarters as VCU came storming back in the second period. It was an 11-0 Rams run that cut the UMass lead down to just five–before the sides traded buckets the remainder of the frame, which ended with a 30-28 Minutewomen lead.
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A lockdown defensive effort by UMass kept VCU off the board for nearly the entire third period–during which the Minutewomen returned the favor with their own 11-0 spurt. It was an 0-of-14 line for the Rams before Chloe Bloom ended the run with a layup and 1:01 on the clock.
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VCU brought the score within two possessions in the last four minutes, setting up an edge-of-your-seat finish. Ahead by five in the final 40 seconds, Mayo confidently sank a pair of free throws to extend the advantage to 51-44. The Rams came right back, though, using a Tera Reed trey, a defensive stop and quick layup from Sydnei Archie to pull within two with 16 seconds left.
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Mayo, fouled again, returned to the charity stripe and converted both attempts. On the ensuing trip up the floor, Reed's three-pointer would not go and Breen came up with the board, drawing a foul and sealing the win with two more free throws.
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UMass concludes the weekend with a 2 p.m. game at Richmond on Sun., Jan. 17. The contest will be nationally-televised on CBS Sports Network.
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Follow UMass women's basketball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@UMassWBB).
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Sam Breen led the way with her sixth double-double in the last seven games, finishing the night with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Sydney Taylor (15) was close behind in the scoring column, and both Ber'Nyah Mayo and Maddie Sims had eight points. Sims had a key presence on the glass as well with eight rebounds, and Destiney Philoxy was crucial at the point with six assists.
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The Maroon and White came out firing on all cylinders and built a commanding 21-5 lead late in the first quarter. It came thanks to a 17-0 Minutewomen run, spearheaded by seven points from Breen and six more off the hand of Taylor. Breen was 4-of-5 from the field early to lead a Massachusetts squad that posted a 56.3% clip (9-of-16) in the first quarter and forced two timeouts by the Rams.
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But the opening half proved to be a tale of two quarters as VCU came storming back in the second period. It was an 11-0 Rams run that cut the UMass lead down to just five–before the sides traded buckets the remainder of the frame, which ended with a 30-28 Minutewomen lead.
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A lockdown defensive effort by UMass kept VCU off the board for nearly the entire third period–during which the Minutewomen returned the favor with their own 11-0 spurt. It was an 0-of-14 line for the Rams before Chloe Bloom ended the run with a layup and 1:01 on the clock.
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VCU brought the score within two possessions in the last four minutes, setting up an edge-of-your-seat finish. Ahead by five in the final 40 seconds, Mayo confidently sank a pair of free throws to extend the advantage to 51-44. The Rams came right back, though, using a Tera Reed trey, a defensive stop and quick layup from Sydnei Archie to pull within two with 16 seconds left.
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Mayo, fouled again, returned to the charity stripe and converted both attempts. On the ensuing trip up the floor, Reed's three-pointer would not go and Breen came up with the board, drawing a foul and sealing the win with two more free throws.
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UMass concludes the weekend with a 2 p.m. game at Richmond on Sun., Jan. 17. The contest will be nationally-televised on CBS Sports Network.
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Follow UMass women's basketball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@UMassWBB).
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.@CoachVerdiUMass on how we closed it out in the last minute with everyone on the edge of their seats#Flagship?? pic.twitter.com/N6z7GErogJ
— UMass Women's Basketball (@UMassWBB) January 16, 2021
Tough to pick just one Minutewoman to Plant the Flag after that one, right? TOTAL team effort for 40 minutes
— UMass Women's Basketball (@UMassWBB) January 16, 2021
But we gotta pick someone, and tonight it's @32_samb!#Flagship?? pic.twitter.com/t3r1Lxdo4I
Team Stats
UMass
VCU
FG%
.388
.297
3FG%
.133
.143
FT%
.789
.800
RB
33
42
TO
18
18
STL
12
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG
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