University of Massachusets Athletics
Friday, March 4
Wilmington, Del.
7:30 PM
University of Massachusetts
24-6,11-4Atlantic 10
66
vs
63
Fordham
18-10,8-6Atlantic 10
1
2
3
4
F
Fordham
15
15
20
13
63
Massachusetts
10
13
23
20
66
Photo by: Greg Fiume
Fourth Quarter Surge Allows Women’s Basketball To Hold Off Fordham, 66-63, To Advance To The A-10 Semifinals
March 04, 2022 | Women's Basketball
Four Minutewomen finished in double figures on the night.
WILMINGTON, Del. – University of Massachusetts basketball found a rhythm in the fourth quarter to push past Fordham University, 66-63, in the Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals at the CHASE Fieldhouse on Friday night to move on to the Semifinals Round.
UMass improved to 24-6 overall on the season, while Fordham finishes with an 18-10 record on the year. Massachusetts will play in its second consecutive A-10 Semifinals game, and seventh in program history.
Sam Breen led the Minutewomen in points with 18, while Sydney Taylor followed with 15 of her own. Destiney Philoxy and Ber'Nyah Mayo also reached double figures, tallying 13 and 12, respectively. Breen shot 63.6 percent (7-for-11) from the field, and Taylor went 5-for-9 (.556) from the field, including 3-for-7 (.428) from beyond the arc. Philoxy made all four of her attempts from the charity stripe. On the boards, Philoxy sat atop the leaderboard with seven, while Breen and Taylor grabbed six apiece. Philoxy also led in assists with five and Mayo had two steals. Angelique Ngalakulondi ended her night with eight bounds and five rebounds.
Massachusetts outscored Fordham in the paint, 30-20, in points off turnovers, 16-6, and in fast break points, 12-3. UMass earned an 82.4 free throw percentage after making 14 of its 17 attempts from the line.
The Minutewomen got off to a quick 6-0 start, making back-to-back three-pointers, thanks to Taylor and Philoxy. Fordham scored five points to close the gap to one, before two made free throws from Taylor pulled UMass ahead, 8-5. The Rams knocked down a triple to knot the game up at eight apiece but took the lead with a 4-0 run. Ngalakulondi made a layup to make it a 12-10 game, in favor of Fordham, but a three-point shot from the Rams ended the first quarter, 15-10.
UMass and Fordham traded a pair of points, but a 7-2 run allowed the Minutewomen to take a 23-21 lead. The Rams regained the lead with a 6-0 run, to bring the contest to 30-23, ending the first half. In the third, Fordham continued its run to extend its lead. With Fordham having the lead, 42-31, at the 7:02 mark, Massachusetts went on a 12-5 run to get back within two-points at 47-45. The Rams hit another three-point shot to make it a five-point contest, before Breen was sent to the charity stripe, sinking her shot to bring the Minutewomen back within four.
Taylor started the fourth quarter with a shot from behind the arc, before Breen made a jumper to give UMass a 51-50 lead. Fordham pushed ahead, 52-51, with a good layup, but Mayo answered back with a layup of her own to take back the lead. The Minutewomen maintained their lead with the score kept close. With UMass in the lead, the team notched four more points to Fordham's three to make it 61-57 with only thirty-two seconds left on the clock. The Minutewomen and Rams traded three free throws each in an 11 second time frame, with UMass leading 64-60. Fordham drained another three with eight seconds remaining to get back within one, but Mayo got sent to the line as she hit both of her free throw attempts, allowing Massachusetts to hold off the Rams, 66-63.
UMass prepares to face Saint Joseph's in the A-10 Semifinals on Saturday, March 5, at the CHASE Fieldhouse. The game will be aired on CBS Sports Network at 1:30 p.m.
UMass improved to 24-6 overall on the season, while Fordham finishes with an 18-10 record on the year. Massachusetts will play in its second consecutive A-10 Semifinals game, and seventh in program history.
Sam Breen led the Minutewomen in points with 18, while Sydney Taylor followed with 15 of her own. Destiney Philoxy and Ber'Nyah Mayo also reached double figures, tallying 13 and 12, respectively. Breen shot 63.6 percent (7-for-11) from the field, and Taylor went 5-for-9 (.556) from the field, including 3-for-7 (.428) from beyond the arc. Philoxy made all four of her attempts from the charity stripe. On the boards, Philoxy sat atop the leaderboard with seven, while Breen and Taylor grabbed six apiece. Philoxy also led in assists with five and Mayo had two steals. Angelique Ngalakulondi ended her night with eight bounds and five rebounds.
Massachusetts outscored Fordham in the paint, 30-20, in points off turnovers, 16-6, and in fast break points, 12-3. UMass earned an 82.4 free throw percentage after making 14 of its 17 attempts from the line.
The Minutewomen got off to a quick 6-0 start, making back-to-back three-pointers, thanks to Taylor and Philoxy. Fordham scored five points to close the gap to one, before two made free throws from Taylor pulled UMass ahead, 8-5. The Rams knocked down a triple to knot the game up at eight apiece but took the lead with a 4-0 run. Ngalakulondi made a layup to make it a 12-10 game, in favor of Fordham, but a three-point shot from the Rams ended the first quarter, 15-10.
UMass and Fordham traded a pair of points, but a 7-2 run allowed the Minutewomen to take a 23-21 lead. The Rams regained the lead with a 6-0 run, to bring the contest to 30-23, ending the first half. In the third, Fordham continued its run to extend its lead. With Fordham having the lead, 42-31, at the 7:02 mark, Massachusetts went on a 12-5 run to get back within two-points at 47-45. The Rams hit another three-point shot to make it a five-point contest, before Breen was sent to the charity stripe, sinking her shot to bring the Minutewomen back within four.
Taylor started the fourth quarter with a shot from behind the arc, before Breen made a jumper to give UMass a 51-50 lead. Fordham pushed ahead, 52-51, with a good layup, but Mayo answered back with a layup of her own to take back the lead. The Minutewomen maintained their lead with the score kept close. With UMass in the lead, the team notched four more points to Fordham's three to make it 61-57 with only thirty-two seconds left on the clock. The Minutewomen and Rams traded three free throws each in an 11 second time frame, with UMass leading 64-60. Fordham drained another three with eight seconds remaining to get back within one, but Mayo got sent to the line as she hit both of her free throw attempts, allowing Massachusetts to hold off the Rams, 66-63.
UMass prepares to face Saint Joseph's in the A-10 Semifinals on Saturday, March 5, at the CHASE Fieldhouse. The game will be aired on CBS Sports Network at 1:30 p.m.
Team Stats
FU
UMass
FG%
.397
.480
3FG%
.375
.308
FT%
.571
.824
RB
35
28
TO
14
13
STL
4
3
Game Leaders
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
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