#12 Women's Basketball Begins NCAA Quest Saturday Against #5 Notre Dame

University of Massachusetts Women's Basketball Game Notes & Information
NCAA Tournament First Round
Game 33	No. 12 Massachusetts (26-6) vs. No. 5 Notre Dame (22-8)
Date // Time	Saturday, March 19 // 7:30 p.m./ 6:30 p.m. CT
Location	Norman, Okla. // Lloyd Noble Center
Watch	ESPN2
Stream	ESPN2
Live Statistics	LiveStats
Tickets	Purchase Here
Game Notes	Massachusetts // Notre Dame
Social Media	Facebook: UMass Women's Basketball Twitter: @UMassWBB // @CoachVerdiUMass Instagram: @UMassWBB

The Need to Knows
Follow the Minutewomen on Social Media
Follow UMass women's basketball on Twitter (@UMassWBB), Instagram (UMassWBB) and Facebook (UMass Women's Basketball) for the latest news and updates around the program. In addition, fans can follow head coach Tory Verdi on Twitter @CoachVerdiUMass.

Opening Tip: Massachusetts - Notre Dame Preview

Massachusetts locked in the No. 12-seed in the NCAA Tournamnet First Round after winning the program's first Atlantic 10 Championship Title. The Minutewomen defeated Dayton, 62-56, in the A-10 Finals to earn the automatic berth into the Big Dance, and will look for their first victory in history in the First Round.

UMass heads to the NCAA Tournament for only the third time in program history, and the first time since 1998. Massachusetts was the No. 8-seed in its first appearance on March 16, 1996, falling to No. 9 Michigan, 60-57 (OT) in the first round. The team's second appearance in the tournament was on March 13, 1998, when No. 4 Iowa won, 77-59, over No. 13 UMass.

For the Minutewomen, Breen leads UMass in points this season with a total of 540, averaging 16.9 points per game and sits in first in rebounds (328; 10.3 rpg). Destiney Philoxy leads the team with 181 assists, while Ber'Nyah Mayo ranks first in steals with 74. Massachusetts has averaged 71.5 ppg this season, while averaging 40.5 rpg. UMass has outscored its opponents 2,289-1,945 this year.

Notre Dame earned the At-Large bid as the No. 5-seed in the NCAA Tournament and will make its 27th appearance on the Big Stage. In the tournament, the Fighting Irish hold a 67-24 all-time record.

Olivia Miles leads the Fighting Irish in points with 410, averaging 13.7 per game. Maya Dodson sits in first on the team in rebounds with 7.6 per game, totaling 229 boards. Miles also ranks first in assists and in steals with 215 and 56, respectively, while Dodson also has the msot blocks this season for Notre Dame with 83. Notre Dame has averaged 73.0 points per game and 40.5 rebounds per game this season, outscoring their opponents 2,191-1,880.

The Minutewomen and Fighting Irish will meet for only the third time, as Notre Dame holds the all-time series record at 0-2. The first meeting between the two teams occurred on March 25, 1995, in the Consolation Bracket of the WNIT. The Fighting Irish came out on top, 90-72, on the day. Massachusetts and Notre Dame last met on Nov. 18, 2012, on the road, where the Minutewomen fell, 94-50.

Shaking Up the Record Book
Along with becoming the first team in program history to have the best start to a season since the enactment of Title IX and the recognition of women's sports by the NCAA, UMass has one of the best starting records to a season in all of program history at 26-6, surpassing the most wins in program history with the 1995-96 and 2019-20 seasons, which saw 20. The Minutewomen tied the 1968-69 season (only a 15 game season) for one of the best starting records to season (13-2) with their win over VCU on Jan. 12, 2022.

Massachusetts was on a nine-game winning streak that dated back to last season (Mar. 20, 2021 - Nov. 27, 2021), before that came to an end when the team fell to No. 13 Iowa State. The nine consecutive wins for the Minutewomen matched the second most victories in a row achieved three times in program history - the 1968-69 inaugural season (9-0 to begin the year), in 1976-77 (Jan. 21, 1977-Feb. 8, 1977) and in 1997-98 (Feb. 4-March 1, 1998).

UMass also earned the program's first Atlantic 10 Title after upsetting the No. 1-seeded Dayton, 62-56, in the A-10 Finals. In addition, Sam Breen etched her name as the first Minutewomen to tab A-10 Player of the Year.

Statistically Speaking
The Minutewomen are first in the Atlantic 10 conference in scoring offensively, averaging 71.5 points per game (2,289 pts), with Richmond following close behind, averaging 70.5 ppg (2,115 total). The team also is second in the scoring margin with 10.8 per game.

With a 43.8 field goal percentage (873-of-1,991), UMass sits in second, while ranking second in combined team rebounds (40.5 rpg), tallying 13.9 offensive rebounds per game (1st; 444 total). They are also first in rebounding margin with 8.4. The team is tied for 19th in the nation in total rebounds and 16th in rebound margin, being one of two A-10 teams in the top-25 of the category (URI - 20th).

Sam Breen ranks fourth in the conference in scoring with a 16.9 ppg (540 pts), and is second in rebounds with 10.3 per game, placing first in total boards with 328, first in defensive rebounds (224) and tied for second in offensive rebounds (104). In the nation, she is tied for 18th in rebounds and tied for 16th with 17 double-doubles this season, being the only A-10 player with 10-plus double-doubles this season. Breen is also ranked in field goal attempts (12th; 522), field goals made (T-18th; 224) and rebounds per game (31st; 10.3).

Sydney Taylor sits in seventh in scoring (15.8 ppg, 505 pts) in the A-10 and is second with 2.5 three-point FGs per game. In the nation, Taylor is tied for 14th in 3FGs attempted (232) and tied for 20th in 3FGs made (79).

Angelique Ngalakulondi is 117-for-191 from the field, placing first in the A-10 with a 61.3 percentage. She is also fourth in total offensive rebounds (101), behind Breen, and fifth in offensive rebounds per game with a 3.2 average. Destiney Philoxy has aided her teammates, averaging 5.7 assists per game (181 total), to sit in first in the league, while placing 12th in the nation with her total dimes and 17th in assists per game. Ber'Nyah Mayo is second in the league with 76 steals (2.3 per game) and was tied for 28th in the nation with her total swipes.

Walking the [Mile]Stone Path
Sam Breen and Destiney Philoxy each eclipsed their 1,000th career point on Dec. 8, 2021. They became the 21st and 22nd Minutewomen to achieve the feat, while becoming the third pair in program history to earn it in the same season, and first since 2006-07. The duo may also be the first to reach the milestone in the same game in NCAA history. Breen is now 11th in career points (1,354), passing Jasmine Watson (1,291; 2009-13), while Philoxy is now 13th in career points (1,230) in program history, passing Tamara Tatham on the list (1,186; 2003-07).

In addition to reaching the career milestone, Breen reached 1,000 points in the Massachusetts uniform on Dec. 22, 2021 at Hartford. With just her UMass career, Breen would be in 11th on the career points scored list (1,310). The graduate student has also collected 805 career rebounds, so far, to place seventh in all-time career records, passing Tamara Tatham (755; 2003-07) on the list. Philoxy hit 400-plus career assists on Dec. 11, 2021 and 500-plus career assists on Feb. 26, 2022. She is now etched in third in the career records all-time with 522, so far, surpassing Kathy Coyner (515 - 1997-01). She is only the fourth Minutewomen to achieve 500-plus dimes and is 11 assists away from passing Christel Zullo's 533 total (1985-89). Philoxy also played in her 100th career game on Jan. 22 at George Washington, while Breen reached her 100th career game played in the A-10 Quarterfinals vs. Fordham (March 4).

Philoxy has also put her name on the career steals list, ranking 11th with 156 total, so far, in her career. Fellow teammate Ber'Nyah Mayo is etched on the career steals list in the record book, as she ranks 16th , passing Katie Nelson (2001-06) with 123 total.

Head Coach Tory Verdi achieved his 100th victory at the helm of Massachusetts in the 76-58 win over Saint Joseph's in the A-10 Semifinals on March 5. His current record with the Minutewomen stands at 101-78.

Breen, the Double-Double Machine
Sam Breen has collected 17 double-doubles on the season for UMass, moving her career total to 40. She tallied double-doubles against Harvard, Iona, Holy Cross, versus Kent State, against No. 13 Iowa State, Fairfield, UMass Lowell, Vermont, at Richmond, at Rhode Island, vs. Dayton, at George Washington, at Saint Joseph's, at St. Bonaventure, vs. George Mason, against Fordham and vs. VCU, so far this season. Her 17 double-doubles in 32 games have helped the graduate student tie for 16th in the nation. The graduate student recorded four consecutive double-doubles from Nov. 27 through Dec. 5, and again from Jan. 15 through Jan. 22. She is currently the only A-10 player to have as many double-doubles and be in the top-50 in the nation, while also being the only one to have 10-plus double-doubles.

Breen owned a league-leading 15 double-doubles last season and 23 in her career, including 14 such performances in the last 19 games of the 2020-21 season, and narrowly missed the feat in the final game of the season vs. Ohio (3/22/21)–finishing with 27 points and nine rebounds. She was one of just three players in the A-10 to average both double-figure scoring and rebounding. She finished last year second in scoring (18.0 ppg) and fourth in the league rebounding (10.0 rpg).

Breen was one of just 12 players nationally to own as many double-double performances last season. The last time an Atlantic 10 player had 15 such games was during the 2017-18 season, when three players did so.

"Swish" Taylor
Junior Sydney Taylor has been one of the most improved Minutewomen since the 2019-20 season, and entered the WNIT ranking second on the team and No. 5 in the Atlantic 10 in scoring (15.2 ppg) last season. Taylor was outstanding during the 2020-21 A-10 Tournament, averaging a team-high 20 points and being named to the A-10 All-Championship Team alongside Sam Breen and Destiney Philoxy, while adding a then career-high-tying 27 points on 8-of-14 shooting, that came in the Quarterfinal win over Fordham.

Taylor kept the momentum going into this season, logging double figures in 25 of 32 games played. She has had 16 games with 10-plus points and eight contests with 20-plus points. The junior finished with a new career-high 32 points that led the way for the Minutewomen at VCU.

The Huntington Station, N.Y., native, is seventh in the Atlantic 10 in scoring, tallying 505 points (15.8 ppg). She also sits in second in three-point field goals per game, averaging 2.5, with 79 recorded (2nd in the league). In the nation, Taylor is tied for 14th in 3FGs attempted (232) and tied for 20th in 3FGs made (79).

Queen[s] of the Assist (well, almost)
Senior Destiney Philoxy has established herself among the top ball distributors in the country, as she averaged 6.5 assists per game last year. That ranked tied for fifth in the country, with Syracuse's Tiana Mangakahia (7.5 apg) in the national lead and Philoxy. In terms of total assists (156), Philoxy was No. 8 in Division I last season.

The Queens, N.Y. native set up a career-high 11 buckets in the Davidson win on Jan. 8, 2021, and became the first UMass player since Megan Zullo (2010-11) to have multiple games in the same season with 10-plus assists–the other being on Jan. 3 at La Salle (10). She recorded eight-plus dimes in eight games last season.

Philoxy continued to add her to her total, contributing a team-leading 10 assists in the 2021-22 season-opener on Nov. 9, and tying her career high of 11 on Dec. 22 at Hartford. She sits in first in the league currently with 181 assists (5.7 assists/game), and is 12th in the nation. The senior has had three contests, so far this season, with 10-plus assists.

Scoreboard