Minutemen Bounce Back With 93-90 Overtime Win Over UNC Greensboro

SAINT PETERSBURG, Fla. – The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team rallied back from a slow start to defeat UNC Greensboro in overtime on Friday at the Jersey Mike's Classic, 93-90. The Minutemen (3-2 Overall) shot 26-of-28 from the line, including 12-of-12 during the overtime period.

Noah Fernandes put in 11 of his 12 attempts from the line on his way to setting a new career-high for the second straight night. The junior poured in a game-high 25 points and came away with four steals.

UMass fell behind 13-0 to start the game before a Dibaji Walker 3-pointer just under five minutes in broke the drought for the Minutemen. Walker connected on 4-of-5 from range on the night to finish with 12 points to lead a Minuteman bench that scored 18 of the first 24 UMass points.

T.J. Weeks came off the bench and gave UMass its first lead at the 8:59 mark of the first half with a triple as the Minutemen converted on 7-of-15 from range to start on their way to finishing 17-of-42 (41-percent) from behind the arc. Weeks finished with eight points and a team-leading seven boards.

The Minutemen outscored the Spartans 15-5 through the first four-plus minutes of the second half and made five of their first seven shots to build a 50-40 lead. The lead grew to as much as 13 points at 66-53 with 8:02 left on a Trent Buttrick dunk before UNC Greensboro began to chip away at the UMass advantage. Buttrrick finished with 18 points and went a perfect 6-of-6 at the line.

The Spartans tied it up for the first time since Fernandes' buzzer-beating three at the end of the first half at 71-71 with just under two minutes remaining prior to the teams exchanging 3-pointers on consecutive possessions. UNC Greensboro's Kobe Langley converted from range with four seconds remaining to send it to overtime at 78-78.

UMass jumped out to a quick 5-0 run in overtime after a Walker three and pair of Buttrick free throws, but the Spartans answered back with a 5-0 run of their own to tie. Rich Kelly made four straight free throws to help extend the lead to three before Buttrick and Weeks iced the game at the line with under 12 seconds remaining.

Rich Kelly finished with 14 points to go along with a game-high seven assists with just one turnover.

The Minutemen wrap up the Jersey Mike's Classic on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. against Ball State on CBS Sports Network.

For complete coverage of the UMass men's basketball team, follow the Minutemen on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @UMassBasketball and online at www.UMassAthletics.com.

Scoreboard

Minutemen Bounce Back With 93-90 Overtime Win Over UNC Greensboro

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Team Stats

Noah Fernandes

Trent Buttrick

Rich Kelly

Dibaji Walker

Players Mentioned

Trent Buttrick

Noah Fernandes

Rich Kelly

Dibaji Walker

Players Mentioned

Trent Buttrick

Noah Fernandes

Rich Kelly

Dibaji Walker

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics