Massachusetts Secures 20th Win In Regular Season Finale

AMHERST, MASS. -- Massachusetts (20-10, 11-7 Atlantic 10) claimed it's 20th regular season victory, 66-64, over Fordham (12-18, 6-11 A-10) in the Mullins Center on Wednesday night. The victory marks the first 20-win season for the Minutemen since 2013-14 and the first season with 11 or more conference victories since 2006-07.

A fitting end to the always grueling conference season, the Minutemen gutted out a highly contested game in which they consistently fought to take or hold the advantage. Holding a one-point lead with 2:28 on the clock, Matt Cross swung the momentum to the Minutemen with five consecutive points, capped by a three-pointer with 1:09 remaining in regulation. The late game basket lifted UMass to a six-point advantage they did not relinquish.

The duo of Josh Cohen and Matt Cross led the way for Massachusetts, combining for over half (34), of the team's total 66 points. Cohen's 19-point performance came off a 6-for-12 performance from the field and 6-of-8 from the charity stripe. Cross contributed 15 points, shooting 4-of-9 and 2-of-3 from three-point range. The two veterans also collected a team-high nine rebounds, respectively.

Junior Rahsool Diggins continued his offensive success, adding 16 points while shooting 6-of-12 from the field and 4-of-9 from three-point range. The game marks his 23rd of the season in double figures.

The Rams were led by Kyle Rose, who scored 15 points. The senior guard went 5-for-16 from the field goal, and 4-of-11 at three-point range.

Breaking Down The Action

Josh Cohen got UMass on the board first, sinking a jumper to grant Massachusetts an early lead with 19:43 remaining in the first half.
Fordham soon after mounted a 7-1 run for an 11-3 advantage at the 15:40 mark.
Daniel Hankins-Sanford snapped the run, landing a turnaround jumper to put the Minutemen back within six.
After Rahsool Diggins notched a triple at 13:37, Hankins-Sanford sunk two free-throws to make it a 12-9 game.
The Rams posted a 6-0 run, before Hankins-Sanford scored once again; making a layup to bring UMass wo within six with 11:41 remaining in the first half.
The duo of Matt Cross and Jaylen Curry combined on a four-point run, adding a pair of layups for a tight 20-16 score at the 10:27 marker.
Cohen quickly created a five-point run of his own, adding a layup and three free-throws in just 33 seconds to make it a one-point game heading into the 7:50 media timeout.
Diggins splashed his second three-pointer of the night at 5:47, the score reading 26-24.
The junior guard added yet another triple to tie it, 28-28 game with 3:45 remaining in the first half.
Marqui Worthy added to the scoresheet at 2:18, completing a layup to put UMass within one once again.
Cross answered the Rams' three-pointer with one of his own, granting Massachusetts the lead with 51 seconds left in the first half.
The Rams added two buckets to cap the first twenty minutes of play, with Fordham in front 34-33 at halftime.
After a closely contested start to the second half, Cohen scored first for the Minutemen; adding a jumper and free throw to lend UMass a 36-34 advantage at 17:51.
The two teams alternated baskets, before Cohen dashed to the basket to give UMass another two-point lead with 14:43 remaining in the second half.
Cohen increased his stat line to a team-high 19 points, notching a three-pointer to bring Massachusetts ahead 45-43 at the 12:18 marker.
The two teams traded leads once again, before Jayden Ndjigue added two free throws to build a three-point edge with 8:36 remaining in the game.
Diggins' jumper at 7:21 furthered UMass' lead to a 53-49 score.
Cross capitalized on both shots at the free-throw line to make it a 55-50 game with 6:29 left to play.
Diggins completed a corner three-pointer at 5:41; his fourth of the night.
Massachusetts held Fordham without a field goal for 3:32, before the Rams added a dunk to make it a tight 59-58 score.
Cross promptly answered back, adding five points off a jumper and triple to bring UMass to a six-point upper hand at the 1:07 UMass timeout.
The Rams tightened the score, garnering a dunk with 0:08 remaining to make it a 64-63 game.
Cross added two more free-throws, the score reading 66-63 with 0:07 remaining.
The Minutemen's defensive efforts proved too much for the Rams, the final buzzer sounding to a 66-64 UMass victory.

New Kids On The Block

Cohen led the squad with 19 points, going 6-of-12 from the field and 6-of-8 from the free-throw line. The forward added a team-high nine rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in 24 minutes to stamp the all-round performance.
Ndjigue posted a team-high three assists and three rebounds during the game; going 2-for-4 from the free-throw line.
Hankins-Sanford added six points of his own, posting a perfect 2-for-2 from the free-throw line. The sophomore completed a hard-fought game, tallying six rebounds additionally in just 16 minutes on the court.

Numbers To Know

3: Three Minutemen reached double figures on the night: Cohen, (19 points) Diggins, (16 points) Cross, (15 points).
8: The two teams traded leads eight times, a testament to the tightly contested matchup.
9: Cohen and Cross led the team in rebounds; nabbing nine apiece.
9: On nine different occasions, Fordham and UMass were knotted.
11: Massachusetts secured its 11th conference victory of the season, marking the first time since the 2006-07 season that the Minutemen won at least 11 games in A-10 play.
19: Cohen led the Minutemen with 19 points; marking his 23rd game of the season in double figures.
20: For the first time since the 2013-14 season, UMass captured 20 wins on the season.
28: of UMass' 37 total rebounds were defensive.
37: Cross led the team on the floor, playing for a team-high 37 minutes.

Year Two Under Coach Martin

Massachusetts Head Coach, Frank Martin now holds a 35-26 record leading the Minutemen.
Martin now sits with a 323-227 collegiate career record.

Series History

The Minutemen now hold a 34-19 record against the Rams claiming the 53rd matchup between the two programs.

Up Next

The Minutemen move on to the 2024 Atlantic 10 Championship at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY from March 12-17. Seeding and matchup information will be available at umassathletics.com or @UMassMBB on X (Twitter).

Scoreboard

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Team Stats

Josh Cohen

Rahsool Diggins

Matt Cross

Hankins-Sanford Daniel

Players Mentioned

Josh Cohen

Matt Cross

Jaylen Curry

Rahsool Diggins

Daniel Hankins-Sanford

Jayden Ndjigue

Marqui Worthy

Players Mentioned

Josh Cohen

Matt Cross

Jaylen Curry

Rahsool Diggins

Daniel Hankins-Sanford

Jayden Ndjigue

Marqui Worthy

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics