Women's Basketball Begins A-10 Championships With Quarterfinals Round on Friday

University of Massachusetts Women's Basketball Game Notes & Information
Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals • Championship Central • Printable Bracket
Game 30	No. 1 Massachusetts (24-5, 14-2 Atlantic 10) vs. TBA
Date // Time	Friday, March 3 // 11 a.m.
Location	Wilmington, Del. // CHASE Fieldhouse
Watch	ESPN+
Stream	ESPN+
Live Statistics	LiveStats
Game Notes	Massachusetts
Social Media	Facebook: UMass Women's Basketball Twitter: @UMassWBB // @CoachVerdiUMass Instagram: @UMassWBB

The Need to Knows
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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.

On the Docket
University of Massachusetts women's basketball team awaits to know its opponent for the Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals Round on Friday, March 3, at the CHASE Fieldhouse in Wilmington, Delaware, at 11 a.m. The Minutewomen could face No. 8 La Salle or No. 9 George Mason, who will match up for the A-10 Second Round on Thursday, March 2, at 11 a.m. La Salle holds a 17-13 overall record and an 8-7 record in the conference, and received a bye into the Second Round of the A-10 Championships. George Mason has an overall record of 15-14, including an 8-8 A-10 mark. The Patriots also received a bye straight to the Second Round of the tournament.

UMass and La Salle have met three times in the championships with the Minutewomen having a 2-1 advantage in the all-time series. The first meeting was in the First Round in 2002, where UMass won 58-46. The two teams last met in 2016 the First Round in, with UMass coming out on top, 81-65.

Massachusetts and George Mason are at a 1-1 draw in their tournament history. In 2014, the Patriots won the Play-In Game, 85-75 in overtime, before the Minutewomen had an 86-80 double overtime victory in the First Round in 2019.

Seeding Secured
Massachusetts locked in the No. 1-seed and a share of the Atlantic 10 Regular Season Title with an 84-61 victory over George Washington last Saturday evening to cap off the regular season with a 24-5 overall record, including an 14-2 record in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

The Minutewomen secured the one seed for only the second time in program history, locking in the No. 1-seed in the 1998 A-10 Championships, to receive the double-bye into the Quarterfinals. In the Quarterfinals, Massachusetts holds an 8-15 record all-time. Last season, UMass was seeded No. 3 in the tournament and reached the A-10 Finals, earning the program's first A-10 Championship Title, knocking off then No. 1 seeded Dayton, 62-56.

Scouting the A-10 Field
In the A-10 Tournament, UMass has faced Dayton twice, with the most recent meeting being in last year's Championship with the Minutewomen winning 62-56. Against Duquesne, the Minutewomen and Dukes have met seven times, with Duquesne leading, 4-3. The first meeeting occurred on March 11, 1992 in the first round (L, 44-35), while the last meeting was on March 6, 2009 (L, 72-51). UMass and Fordham have met four times in the championships with the two teams tied at 2-2 in the all-time series. The first meeting was in the Second Round in 2016, where Fordham won 73-62 in overtime. The two teams met in the Quarterfinals last season, with UMass coming out on top, 66-63. UMass is 0-4 in the series against George Washington, as the two programs met first in the Seminfinals in 1994 and last met in the Semifinals in 2000. UMass and Richmond have met three times, as the Spiders hold the record at 2-1. The Minutewomen topped Richmond in the teams' first meeting in the 2002 Quarterfinals, while the Spiders took the last meeting in 2015 in the Second Round. UMass defeated Rhode Island in the programs' only meeting in 2001 in the First Round, while holding an advantage in its series with Saint Joseph's, 3-2, with the first meeting in the 1988 Quarterfinals going to the Hawks and the last meeting being last season in the Semifinals going to the Minutewomen. Against Saint Louis, the Billikens lead 3-1 in the series. The first meeting was in the First Round of the 2017 tournament and the last meeting last year, when UMass earned a 90-81 victory to move on to the Championship Title Game. The Minutewomen lead St. Bonaventure, 5-2, in the tournament series, as the teams' met first in the 1988 First Round and last in the First Round of 2020, where UMass picked up wins in both. In the only meeting between VCU and UMass, in the Finals of last season, the Rams took an early 1-0 lead in the all-time tournament series. Loyola-Chicago will compete in its first A-10 Tournament, as the newest addition to the league this season.

A-10 Postseason Accolades
Sam Breen headlined a total of six Atlantic 10 postseason awards for Massachusetts, as she garnered A-10 Player of the Year for the second straight year. Breen became the first Minutewomen to not only win the award, but achieve the honor in back-to-back seasons. She is also the first A-10 player to collect the award in two consecutive seasons, since Jackie Kemph (Saint Louis), who won Co-Player of the Year in 2015-16 and Player of the Year in 2016-17, and is the last solo winner of the accolade since back-to-back champion, Amber Harris (Xavier) won it in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

In addition, Breen was also tabbed to the league's All-Conference First Team for the third straight year and third time in her career. Sydney Taylor joined Breen on the All-conference First Team, picking up the honor for the first time in her collegiate career, while Ber'Nyah Mayo garnered her first career A-10 postseason accolade, landing on the All-Conference Second Team. Destiney Philoxy earned a spot on the All-Defensive Team for the second consecutive season. Philoxy is only the third Minutewomen to garner the All-Defensive Team award, joining Jennifer Butler (2001-02; 2002-03) and Brooke Campbell (2004-05), while becoming the second Minutewomen, along with Butler to be named to the team in back-to-back years.

Team Leaders
Graduate student Sam Breen leads UMass in points this season with a total of 518, averaging 17.9 points per game and sits in first in rebounds (291; 10.0 rpg). Graduate student Destiney Philoxy leads the team with 149 assists, while sophomore Ber'Nyah Mayo ranks first in steals with 73. Massachusetts has averaged 76.0 ppg this season, while averaging 40.4 rpg. The Minutewomen have outscored their opponents 2,204-1,815 this year.

Shaking Up the Record Book
After a 26 win season last year, UMass is currently holding 24 wins, marking the first time the program has had 20-plus wins in back-to-back seasons. The team earned the most A-10 Conference wins in program history with its 14 after an 84-61 win over George Washington (2/25/23). This season, the Minutewomen are tied for second with the least amount of overall losses (five), behind the inaugural year of 1968-69, which had two in its 15-game season. The team also holds the least amount of losses in the A-10 Conference in program history with only two , followed by three in the 1994-95 season and four last year.

Massachusetts went on a 12-game win streak, the longest in program history, from Jan. 7-Feb. 22. The 12 straight wins also marked the first time the team has had as many consecutive wins in A-10 Conference play alone. In the 2021-22 season, UMass was on a nine-game winning streak that dated back to the previous 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),i n 1976-77 (Jan. 21, 1977-Feb. 8, 1977) and in 1997-98 (Feb. 4-March 1, 1998).

Statistically Speaking
The Minutewomen currently sit in first the Atlantic 10 conference in scoring offensively, averaging 76.0 points per game (2,204 pts). The team is first with a 13.4 scoring margin. The team ranks 32nd in the nation with its scoring offense.

UMass is tied for third in combined team rebounds (40.4 rpg), tallying 13.8 offensive rebounds per game (T-2nd; 400 total). The Minutewomen are second with a 5.6 rebounding margin.

Sam Breen is third in the conference in scoring with 17.9 ppg (518 pts), and is first in rebounds with 10.0 per game (291 total). In the nation, she is tied for 15th in rebounds, 24th in rebounds per game and tied for 12th with 16 double-doubles this season. She is also tied for third with one triple-double.

Sydney Taylor sits seventh in scoring (16.2 ppg, 453 pts) in the A-10 and is first with 3.1 3FGs per game. Taylor is eighth in the nation with her 3FGs per game and ninth with her three-pointers made (87 total).

Angelique Ngalakulondi averaged 3.1 offensive rebounds per game (87 total), so far, this season, to sit fifth in the A-10. Ber'Nyah Mayo sits in third in the league with 2.5 steals per game (73 total). Mayo is 33rd in the nation with her swipes per game and 23rd in total steals.

Destiney Philoxy continues to aid her teammates, dishing out 149 dimes, averaging 5.1 assists per game, placing second, currently, in the league. Philoxy is tied for 22nd in the nation with her total assists, while sitting 27th with her average.

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 the all-time leader in career points (1,903), passing Sue Peters (1,858; 1976-80), while Philoxy is now sixth in career points (1,541) in program history, passing Kate Mills on the list (1,525; 2004-08). Sydney Taylor became the 23rd Minutewomen to join the 1,000-point club after garnering her 1,000th career point on Nov. 22, 2022. She currently sits 13th on the list with 1,386 points, passing Jasmine Watson (1,291; 2009-13).

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 first on the career points scored list (1,859). The graduate student has also collected 1,100 total career rebounds, so far, to place second in all-time career records, passing Rashida Timbilla (1020; 2012-16) on the list. She collected her 1,000th career board at Dayton (1/22/23). With the Minutewomen, Breen has totaled 1,047 boards, good enough for second on the list. Philoxy hit 400-plus career assists on Dec. 11, 2021 and 500-plus career assists on Feb. 26, 2022. She is in the career records all-time with 677, claiming the top spot in the category, passing Sabriya Mitchell (578; 1994-98). She is only the fourth Minutewomen to achieve 500-plus dimes, along with Mitchell, Christel Zullo (1985-89) and Kathy Coyner (1997-01), and the only player in program history to reach 600-plus dimes. Philoxy also played in her 100th career game on Jan. 22, 2022 at George Washington, while Breen reached her 100th career game played in the A-10 Quarterfinals vs. Fordham (March 4, 2022). Sydney Taylor competed in her 100th career game vs. Davidson (Feb. 19, 2023).

Philoxy has also put her name on the career games played list, playing 143 contests, so far, passing Hailey Leidel (123; 2016-20) and on the career steals list, ranking third with 206, passing Rashida Timbilla (198; 2012-16), so far, in her career, while fellow teammate Ber'Nyah Mayo is fourth in career steals with 201, passing Timbilla. Sam Breen etched her name on the career steals list in the record book, ranking ninth with 184.

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. Verdi registered his 200th career victory as a collegiate head coach, with an 84-61 win over George Washington on Feb. 25. At Massachusetts, Verdi coached his 200th game vs. VCU (Feb. 26, 20223). His current record with the Minutewomen stands at 125-84, while his career record sits at 200-152.

Seeing Double (And Triple) Double

Sam Breen - 56 Double-Doubles* | 1 Triple-Double (* total includes at Penn State)
2022-23: 16 | 1 (Triple-Double)
2021-22: 17
2020-21: 15
2019-20: 8

Angelique Ngalakulondi - 8
2022-23: 3
2021-22: 5

Destiney Philoxy - 4
2022-23: 1
2021-22: 2
2020-21: 1

Makennah White - 4
2022-23: 2
2021-22: 1
2020-21: 1

Ber'Nyah Mayo - 2
2021-22: 2

Sydney Taylor - 2
2022-23: 2

Laila Fair - 1
2021-22: 1* (* at Saint Joseph's)

MinuteWWWWWWWWWWWWomen
UMass made program history on Feb. 19, 2023 as the squad defeated Davidson for its 12th consecutive victory, continuing past the previous record of 11-straight, which was tied this season with the 2019-20 season. The streak came to an end on Feb. 22, 2023 to a close 77-75 loss at Saint Louis.

The 12-game winning streak, dating back from Jan. 7, 2023, is the longest by any team led by head coach Tory Verdi and second-longest by a team with Verdi on staff. Back in 2009-10, Verdi was an assistant on the Nebraska squad that started the season 30-0 and reached the NCAA Sweet 16.

All 12 straight victories this season have come in Atlantic 10 Conference play, being the first time the team has had as many straight wins in league competition.

The previous 11-game winning streak from Jan. 7, 2023 to Feb. 16, 2023, as well as the Nov. 29, 2019-Jan. 19, 2020 streak was the longest by any team with Verdi as head coach until recently.

Scoreboard