Fernandes’ Buzzer-Beater Sends UMass To Myrtle Beach Invitational Final

Team	1	2	F
Massachusetts	33	38	71
Murray St.	36	33	69

Massachusetts

Murray St.

CONWAY, S.C. – Noah Fernandes knocked down the game-winning 3-pointer with less than a second left as the Massachusetts Minutemen advanced to Sunday's Myrtle Beach Invitational championship with a 71-69 win over Murray State. The Minutemen (3-1 Overall) trailed by as many as 10 with six minutes remaining before storming back for another one possession win at the HTC Center.

UMass used a 7-0 run to tie it up at 46-46 with 14:23 remaining before Murray State took its largest lead of the night at 59-49 with 7:30 remaining. The Minutemen went nearly five minutes without a point before an offensive rebound led to a Rahsool Diggins 3-pointer to end the drought. UMass hauled in 17 offensive rebounds on the day, including 11 in the first half to stay within three at the break.

The Minutemen took their first lead since the 5:35 mark of the first half with the help of a 14-2 scoring run to go up two with just over two minutes remaining. T.J. Weeks Jr. knocked down a 3-pointer with 1:31 left to break the tie before four straight points for the Racers gave them a two-point lead with seven seconds remaining. Weeks Jr. shot 4-of-5 from beyond the arc and ended the game with 13 points.

Fernandes took the inbound pass and went nearly end to end, splitting the double team at half court to help him find space for the game-winner. Murray State had an opportunity at a half court heave with 0.7 seconds left that fell short.

Matt Cross recorded his first double-double at UMass as he posted team-leading marks in points with 15 and rebounds with 14. Fernandes finished with 14 points and five assists while Brandon Martin added seven boards for a team that finished the day with a 45-42 advantage on the glass.

The Minutemen play for the Myrtle Beach Invitational championship on Sunday at 1 p.m. against either Tulsa or Charlotte.

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

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