Women's Basketball Edged 48-45 by New Hampshire

AMHERST, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts women's basketball program, (0-2, 0-0 A-10) fell 48-45 to the University of New Hampshire Wildcats on Thursday evening at the Mullins Center.

Despite holding the advantage for the first 28 minutes and a tie game five times, the Wildcats' late possession and free throws lent them the final nudge to victory.

For a second consecutive game the Massachusetts defense displayed another solid performance, holding the Wildcats to 35% from the field and 23% from deep– as well as forcing 20 turnovers. On the offensive side of the ball, the Minutewomen outshot the Wildcats from the free-throw line 83% to New Hampshire's 78%.

Allie Palmieri continued her strong debut in Maroon and White, leading the Minutewomen in scoring with a career-high 20 points on 7-of-16 shooting from behind the arc. The red-shirt senior also went a perfect 4-of-4 from the free-throw line and tallied two rebounds, assists and steals, respectively.

Stefanie Kulesza added seven points of her own while Chinenye Odenigbo and Megan Olbrys lended five apiece and combined for 19 rebounds. Olbrys garnered a team-high 12 rebounds individually.

Breaking Down The Action

Off the winning tipoff, Kulesza hit a triple to put the Minutewomen on the board first at 9:21.
The teams traded baskets before Palmieri completed a fast-break layup to lend UMass a 5-2 lead with 7:32 left in the first quarter.
Massachusetts then went on to a 7-0 run, holding the Wildcats scoreless across 4:39 and forcing four turnovers.
UMass held a 13-9 advantage heading into the second quarter.
After New Hampshire struck first, Palmieri completed a jumper in transition to lend Massachusetts a three-point lead with 6:51 remaining in the second quarter.
The Wildcat's Sydney Lushner snapped their 2:39 minute scoring drought to make it a tie (15-15) game at 5:25.
The teams went back-and-forth for much of the remaining second quarter, while UMass held New Hampshire to 0-of-6 from the field.
Massachusetts entered halftime with a 21-19 advantage after a near four-minute scoring drought from both teams.
After New Hampshire got on the board first, the Minutewomen answered back with a layup from Chinenye Odenigbo to make it a 23-21 game at 7:53.
The teams traded baskets before the Wildcats mounted a 7-0 run to garner their first lead of the game (30-29) at the 4:16 media timeout.
Megan Olbrys brought UMass back to a tie game (30-30) with a second-chance free throw at 3:07.
UMass continued off this momentum with a pair of three-pointers from Yahmani McKayle and Palmieri to grant Massachusetts a 36-35 edge heading into the final quarter.
New Hampshire hit two consecutive baskets to open the fourth quarter, turning the game back their way with a 39-36 advantage.
Palmieri's jumper at 8:11 brought UMass back within one (38-39).
After the Wildcats picked up the lead, Palmieri began to mount another UMass comeback with a fast-break layup at 5:34 to make it a 40-42 score.
Odenigbo notched a free-throw to put Massachusetts within one with 3:49 remaining in the game
UMass went back to the line at 3:27, while Palmieri went two-for-two to lend the Minutewomen a 43-42 lead.
In this stretch, Massachusetts forced New Hampshire scoreless across over six minutes.
Odenigbo went back to the line and hit both baskets; adding to a 7-0 run and strengthening UMass's lead (45-42) with 1:25 left in the game.
The Wildcats added their own free throws, resulting in a 45-44 game at the 00:41 timeout.
UMass pinched a consequential New Hampshire turnover to lend possession with 00:19 remaining.
The Wildcats quickly regained the ball and hit a layup with 00:12 on the clock to give them the 46-45 edge.
After a Massachusetts personal foul, New Hampshire's Maggie Cavanaugh hit both free throws with 0:03 left to make the final score 48-45 Wildcats.

By The Numbers

6: Six Minutewomen found the scoresheet tonight, five of which tallying 5+ points
10: points were scored on the fast-break
12: Olbrys scored a team-high 12 rebounds for the second consecutive game
20: Palmieri scored a career-high 20 points on the night in addition to two steals, assists, and steals, respectively
28: Massachusetts held the lead for the first 28 minutes of the game
35: The Minutewomen held the Wildcats to just 35% from the field

UP NEXT

The Minutewomen host Central Connecticut on Sunday, November 10th. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
The game will be broadcasted on ESPN+ with links and live updates available at umassathletics.com or @UMassWBB on X (Twitter).

Scoreboard

Next Event

Team Stats

Allie Palmieri

Stefanie Kulesza

Yahmani McKayle

Chinenye Odenigbo

Players Mentioned

Stefanie Kulesza

Yahmani McKayle

Chinenye Odenigbo

Megan Olbrys

Allie Palmieri

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics