Massachusetts Battles with VCU in Atlantic 10 Championship Game

RICHMOND, Va. – No. 7 seed University of Massachusetts women's basketball (14-7) came up just short in pursuit of the Atlantic 10's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, as the Minutewomen fell to No. 5 and host VCU, 81-69, in the league title game on Sunday afternoon at the Siegel Center.

Following the game, senior Sam Breen, junior Destiney Philoxy and sophomore Sydney Taylor were named to the Atlantic 10 All-Championship Team.

"I am super proud of the group of women I get to coach every single day," said head coach Tory Verdi. 'I think the country had the opportunity to see how special a group they are. Today didn't go our way, but they have so much to be proud of. I am so fortunate because I get to interact and work with them every single day. They made a lot of people in our community proud. Our players need to walk out of here with their heads held high. We had some unbelievable performances from the players on this team."

Sophomore Angelique Ngalakulondi was among several Minutewomen with performances that UMass fans will remember for a long, long time. Ngalakulondi finished with a career-high 19 points and nine rebounds off the bench, eclipsing her previous career-high scoring (11) before halftime. She was absolutely dominant on the offensive glass, securing seven of her nine boards there and directly leading to 10 Massachusetts points.

Taylor turned in a game-high 23 points, Philoxy tallied six assists and Ngalakulondi tied a career-high with three blocks.

VCU found itself ahead much of the first half on the strength of a 7-of-11 clip from three-point range. But the Minutewomen trailed by just five at the break, 42-37, in part helped by the rebounding prowess of Ngalakulondi and a spectacular all-around effort by Philoxy. The junior co-captain finished the afternoon drawing four charges, three in the opening 20 minutes.

Not deterred by the Rams' early success downtown, Massachusetts made adjustments out of the halftime break and clawed back with a 10-4 third quarter run. After a quiet stretch on both sides, freshman Ber'Nyah Mayo beat the buzzer with a corner trey in front of the UMass bench, Mayo's second straight third-quarter buzzer beater and the third in a row for the Minutewomen.

UMass briefly led multiple times in the fourth period, pulling in front 56-55 with a Breen free throw and again 59-58 on a Taylor triple, but from there VCU heated up with an 11-4 run keyed by Tera Reed. The Minutewomen continued to battle but were unable to get closer than three the rest of the way.

VCU's Taya Robinson was named the Atlantic 10 Championship Most Outstanding Player.

Follow UMass women's basketball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@UMassWBB).

"I think the country had the opportunity to see how special a group they are. They made a lot of people in our community proud. Our players need to walk out of here with their heads held high." -@CoachVerdiUMass #Flagship?? pic.twitter.com/fD3JyFrfJ6
— UMass Women's Basketball (@UMassWBB) March 14, 2021

OH. MY. GOODNESS.

17 and 7 for Angelique...and two blocks!!

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?? https://t.co/kgJWX27fVm #Flagship?? pic.twitter.com/HwBbo6zeBZ
— UMass Women's Basketball (@UMassWBB) March 14, 2021

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