Men’s Hoops Opens 2021-22 Season Against UMBC Tomorrow In The Mullins Center

University of Massachusetts Men's Basketball Game Notes & Information
Game 1	Massachusetts (Atlantic 10) vs. UMBC (America East)
Date \| Time	Tuesday, November 9, 2021 \| 7:30 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
Twitter	@UMassAthletics \| @UMassBasketball
Instagram	UMass Basketball
Facebook	UMass Basketball

AMHERST, Mass. - The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team opens the 2021-22 season tomorrow evening against UMBC in the Mullins Center. The season opener tips off at 7:30 p.m. on NESN+ and ESPN+ for those outside of New England. The Minutemen return both starting guards from a squad that finished fourth in the Atlantic 10 a season ago with a 7-4 mark in league play.

New Faces
The Minutemen welcome in six transfer student-athletes, including five upperclassmen, to the roster for the 2021-22 season. UMass has two transfers from Power 5 schools in Trent Buttrick (Penn State) and Rich Kelly (Boston College). Fellow upperclassman Greg Jones (Southern Connecticut State/James Madison), C.J. Kelly (Albany/Norfolk State) and Michael Steadman (Montana/San Jose State) in addition to underclassmen John Kelly (Fairfield) also join the team for 2021-22.

Opening Games In The McCall Era
UMass holds a 4-0 record in season openers under head coach Matt McCall beginning with his first season in 2017-18. The Minutemen have played three games against America East teams in the openers and most recently picked up a 94-79 win over Northeastern (CAA) in the 2020-21 season opener.

2020-21 Season In Review
The Minutemen finished the 2020-21 season with a 8-7 overall record with a 7-4 mark in Atlantic 10 play on their way to a fourth-place finish in the conference. UMass was the top offense in the A-10 with 76.7 points per game. The Minutemen rattled off three straight wins after starting the season with a 2-3 record, picking up wins at home over La Salle and Rhode Island before a road victory at Fordham.

High Powered Offense
The Minutemen finished the 2020-21 season averaging 76.7 points per contest to lead all Atlantic 10 teams. UMass ranked 51st nationally in scoring and and 55th in assist to turnover ratio. The Minutemen reached the 100-point mark for the 45th time in team history and the first against an A-10 opponent since 2016 in an A-10 Tournament win over Saint Joseph's.

The Journeyman
Graduate student Rich Kelly joins the Minutemen after three seasons at Quinnipiac and one at Boston College. Kelly has scored 1,386 points during his four-year collegiate career and has racked up 445 assists. The guard is a 42-percent career shooter from the field and a 37-percent shooter from behind the arc.

Scoreboard

Men’s Hoops Opens 2021-22 Season Against UMBC Tomorrow In The Mullins Center

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Players Mentioned

Trent Buttrick

Greg Jones

C.J. Kelly

John Kelly

Rich Kelly

Michael Steadman

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics