University of Massachusets Athletics
Saturday, February 11
Philadelphia, Pa.
2 PM
University of Massachusetts
13-12,4-9Atlantic 10
72
at
86
La Salle
12-13,6-6Atlantic 10
1
2
F
Massachusetts
35
37
72
La Salle
33
53
86
UMass Falls At La Salle, 86-72
February 11, 2023 | Men's Basketball
T.J. Weeks Jr. led four Minutemen in double figures with a team-high 16 points.
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team fell to La Salle 86-72 on Saturday afternoon at Tom Gola Arena. The Minutemen (13-12 Overall, 4-9 Atlantic 10) shot 54-percent from the field in the second half while the Explorers (12-13 Overall, 6-6 Atlantic 10) shot 68-percent from the field in the final 20 minutes.
Â
UMass jumped out to a 7-0 lead while holding La Salle without a field goal until the 17:04 mark. The Minutemen built a 15-6 lead less than five minutes in on a Matt Cross triple for their largest advantage of the half. UMass started the afternoon 5-of-8 from 3-point range, led by a pair from T.J. Weeks Jr. Weeks finished with a team-leading 16 points.
Â
La Salle held UMass without a made field goal for over three minutes of game time as the Explorers used a 10-2 run over 2:34 to take their first lead of the day with less than four minutes to go on a Josh Nickelberry 3-pointer. Nickelberry finished with a game-high 21 points on 7-of-11 from 3-point range while Khalil Brantley added 17 for the Explorers.
Â
UMass kept La Salle off the board in the final 2:25 of the half and took a 35-33 lead into the halftime break. The Minutemen posted a 27-17 advantage on the glass in the first half and pulled down 11 offensive rebounds leading to 11 second chance points. UMass finished the afternoon with a nine-rebound advantage.
Â
The Explorers used an 11-2 run over 2:45 to take a 50-47 lead with 13:12 to go before consecutive buckets from RJ Luis. Luis finished with 10 points on 4-of-7 from the field in his return.
Â
La Salle stretched its lead to seven at 66-59 after making six of its last seven shots during the span to build its then-largest lead. The Explorers opened the second half 17-of-26 from the field for 65-percent to help them go ahead 76-65 with 4:08 to go. La Salle led by as many as 16 down the stretch in the 86-72 final.
Â
Cross finished with 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds while Brandon Martin added 10 points on 4-of-7 from the field. UMass shot 17-of-19 from the line for nearly 90-percent on the game.
Â
The Minutemen return home to the Mullins Center for a Tuesday night matchup against Loyola Chicago at 7 p.m.
Â
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.
Â
Â
UMass jumped out to a 7-0 lead while holding La Salle without a field goal until the 17:04 mark. The Minutemen built a 15-6 lead less than five minutes in on a Matt Cross triple for their largest advantage of the half. UMass started the afternoon 5-of-8 from 3-point range, led by a pair from T.J. Weeks Jr. Weeks finished with a team-leading 16 points.
Â
La Salle held UMass without a made field goal for over three minutes of game time as the Explorers used a 10-2 run over 2:34 to take their first lead of the day with less than four minutes to go on a Josh Nickelberry 3-pointer. Nickelberry finished with a game-high 21 points on 7-of-11 from 3-point range while Khalil Brantley added 17 for the Explorers.
Â
UMass kept La Salle off the board in the final 2:25 of the half and took a 35-33 lead into the halftime break. The Minutemen posted a 27-17 advantage on the glass in the first half and pulled down 11 offensive rebounds leading to 11 second chance points. UMass finished the afternoon with a nine-rebound advantage.
Â
The Explorers used an 11-2 run over 2:45 to take a 50-47 lead with 13:12 to go before consecutive buckets from RJ Luis. Luis finished with 10 points on 4-of-7 from the field in his return.
Â
La Salle stretched its lead to seven at 66-59 after making six of its last seven shots during the span to build its then-largest lead. The Explorers opened the second half 17-of-26 from the field for 65-percent to help them go ahead 76-65 with 4:08 to go. La Salle led by as many as 16 down the stretch in the 86-72 final.
Â
Cross finished with 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds while Brandon Martin added 10 points on 4-of-7 from the field. UMass shot 17-of-19 from the line for nearly 90-percent on the game.
Â
The Minutemen return home to the Mullins Center for a Tuesday night matchup against Loyola Chicago at 7 p.m.
Â
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.
Â
Team Stats
UMass
LaS
FG%
.410
.533
3FG%
.278
.458
FT%
.895
.733
RB
38
29
TO
14
10
STL
4
8
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
15
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
6
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballJust Being Frank Season 3; Episode 6
Friday, September 05
Just Being Frank Season 3; Episode 5
Monday, July 28
Just Being Frank Season 3; Episode 4
Thursday, June 19
Just Being Frank Season 3; Episode 3
Tuesday, June 10