Massachusetts Drops 77-68 Decision To Davidson

AMHERST, MASS. -- Massachusetts basketball (11-14, 6-6 A-10) dropped a 77-68 game to Davidson (15-9, 5-6) at the Mullins Center on Wednesday night.

Jaylen Curry led the Minutemen with 14 points, marking his 18th game in doubles figures this season. The sophomore guard added two rebounds and three assists in his 37 minutes on the court.

Rahsool Diggins also recorded his 18th game in double figures, tallying 11 points and five assists on the evening.

Jayden Ndjigue once again impacted the game on multiple fronts recording 10 points, six rebounds, five assists and a pair of steals. Ndjigue shot 4-of-8 from the field, playing 34 minutes in the matchup.
The Wildcats were led by Reed Bailey who scored a game-high 21 points going 10-16 from the field while nabbing 10 rebounds.

Breaking Down The Action

Ndjigue opened up scoring for the Minutemen, splashing a three-pointer at 19:05.
Davidson answered back, mounting a 5-0 run to lend them an early 7-5 lead with 16:05 remaining in the first half.
Ndjigue got one back to make it a 7-7 game at the 15:01 marker.
The teams traded baskets before Shahid Muhammad's dunk gave Massachusetts the lead, 11-9.
The Wildcats created a slight advantage, before Curry's triple at 10:25 made it yet another one-point game in UMass' favor.
UMass and Davidson continued to go back and forth for much of the first half, before the Wildcats added two consecutive baskets to grant them a 29-25 lead with 4:00 left in the first half.
After a layup from Diggins at 3:28, Davidson went on an 8-2 run to send the two teams into the half with the score 37-29 in favor of the Wildcats.
Ndjigue's triple keyed a 7-0 run out of the locker room to cut the Massachusetts deficit to two, 38-26 with 18:06 left to play.
Davidson pulled away with a 10-2 run highlighted by a three-pointer from Hunter Adam, creating a 60-50 lead with 9:27 on the clock.
Diggins cut into the deficit with a jumper, making it 60-52 Wildcats with 9:04 remaining.
The Wildcats answered immediately outscoring the Minutemen 13-6 with less than four minutes in the game.
Daniel Rivera's dunk at 3:32 keyed a 10-0 run to bring UMass back within seven points heading into the final minute of the game.
Two shots from the charity-stripe by Zach Laput cemented a 77-68 Wildcats victory.

Newcomer Notifications

Five newcomers saw action on the evening, with Rivera entering as a starter.
Rivera scored 12 points, shooting 5-of-9 from the field.
Shahid Muhammad saw eight minutes of action recording four points, two rebounds, and a block.
Malek Abdelgowad claimed a team-high seven rebounds across 13 minutes of play.
Akil Watson sank his eighth three-pointer as a Minuteman.

Numbers To Know

4: Four Minutemen reached double digits: Curry (14), Rivera (12), Diggins (11). Ndjigue (10).
5: Diggins and Ndjigue each recorded five assists on the night.
7: Malek Abdelgowad put away a team-high seven rebounds in 13 minutes.
9: The teams traded leads nine times over the course of the 40 minutes.
10: 10-0 marked the Minutemen's largest uncontested run of the game.
15: Rivera's double-digit performance marked his 15th as a Minuteman.
18: Curry notched his 18th game in double figures this season.
21: Massachusetts has now recorded 30 or more points in the paint in 21 games this season.
38: of UMass' 68 points were scored in the paint.

Series History

With the result, Massachusetts now holds a 6-13 record against the Wildcats all-time.
Massachusetts is now 23-25 in A-10 play and 28-15 at home with Coach Martin at the helm.

Up Next

The Minutemen close their two-game homestand against St. Bonaventure on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 12 p.m. at the Mullins Center. The game will be broadcast on NESN network with live updates and links available at umassathletics.com or @UMassMBB on X (Twitter).

Scoreboard

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Team Stats

Jaylen Curry

Daniel Rivera

Rahsool Diggins

Jayden Ndjigue

Players Mentioned

Malek Abdelgowad

Jaylen Curry

Rahsool Diggins

Shahid Muhammad

Jayden Ndjigue

Daniel Rivera

Akil Watson

Players Mentioned

Malek Abdelgowad

Jaylen Curry

Rahsool Diggins

Shahid Muhammad

Jayden Ndjigue

Daniel Rivera

Akil Watson

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics