Massachusetts Basketball’s Second Half Comeback Falls Short At Ohio

ATHENS, Ohio -- The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team put together a second half comeback that included an 11-0 run but could not outlast Ohio down the stretch as the Bobcats came away with an 86-83 win on Tuesday evening at the Convocation Center (2,699).

Senior forward Daniel Hankins-Sanford led the team with 16 points and nine rebounds. Marcus Banks Jr., followed with 14 points, while Danny Carbuccia put up 13. Carbuccia added a team-high eight assists on the evening, while Isaiah Placide was 2-for-4 from three with his makes coming during the 11-0 run in the second half but his deep three to tie it as time expired rimmed out.

Ohio had five players reach double figures, with Javan Simmons scoring a game-high 20 points. JJ Kelly (14), Ajay Sheldon (13), Jesse Burris (13) and Jackson Paveletzke (10) all had doubel digits, with Paveletzke also adding 10 assists for a double-double. Aidan Hadaway grabbed six rebounds to lead the Bobcats.

How It Happened

Danny Carbuccia, Leonardo Bettiol, Marcus Banks Jr., Daniel Hankins-Sanford and Jayden Ndjigue started for the Minutemen.
Ndjigue and Bettiol staked UMass to a 4-0 lead to start on a jumper and a pair of free throws, respectively.
Ohio hit a three-pointer at 15:29 for its first lead of the night, 10-9.
Hankins-Sanford and Bettiol each added jumpers but the Bobcats had the 17-13 lead at the first media timeout (13:23).
Dimitri Clerc fed Hankins-Sanford down low for a layup, cutting it to 17-15 at 11:58.
A Wimbley Jr. three then cut it to a 25-20 Ohio lead at 8:36.
Hankins-Sanford had a three-point play after he was fouled on a jumper to move the score to 35-28 at 5:09.
Ndjigue made a tough shot down low and was fouled and completed the three-point play at 2:34 to make it a nine-point game at 43-34.
Bettiol hit a layup and a free throw as time expired in the half to move the deficit to seven, 48-41.
Banks Jr. hit a three to move it to a four-point game, 52-48, at 18:07.
Hankins-Sanford made a three to stifle an Ohio run at 59-53, but the Bobcats answered right back with a three of their own for a 62-53 lead at 16:07.
A Parker jumper at 13:26 capped a 6-0 run to cut it to 62-59.
Placide nailed a three at 12:13 to keep it a four-point game, 66-62.
A Parker three on an inbound play cut it to a one-point lead, 66-65, at 11:42.
Placide hit a pair of threes as part of an 11-0 run and a 70-66 lead at 10:01, the first UMass lead since early in the first half.
Ohio retook the lead 73-72 with just over five minutes to play in the half and then added three free throws for a 76-72 lead at the five-minute mark
Banks Jr., drove to the basket with a second-chance layup as the shot clock expired to make it 76-74.
Carbuccia's layup tied it at 78-78 at the 3:22 mark, before he hit a pair of free throws to make it 80-80 at 2:51.
Luka Damjanac gave UMass an 82-80 lead with a layup, but the Bobcats responded with a jumper to knot it up at 82 apiece.
Trailing 84-82, Banks Jr., missed a tough shot with the shot clock winding down and UMass was forced to foul at the other end, as the Bobcats hit them for an 86-82 lead.
Hankins-Sanford rebounded a missed free throw that he kicked out to Parker for the tie but his three wouldn't fall and the Bobcats went back to the free throw line leading 86-83 with 6.4 seconds left.
Ohio missed both but Placide's deep three did not fall as time expired.

Numbers To Know

76.5: Massachusetts shot 76.5 percent (13-of-17) from the charity stripe.
37: The Minutemen outrebounded the Bobcats, 37-32.
11: UMass tallied 11 offensive boards.
5: The game featured five lead changes, including four ties.
3: Three Minutemen reached doubles figures: Daniel Hankins-Sanford (16), Marcus Banks Jr. (14), and Danny Carbuccia (13).

Up Next

The Minutemen return home to play host to Ball State at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 10 at the Mullins Center (tickets).
The game will be streamed on ESPN+ with live updates and links available at umassathletics.com or @UMassMBB on X (Twitter).
There will be a post-game Leaman Legacy Clinic as well, with the first 200 registered participants receiving a free t-shirt.
The clinic will conclude with an autograph session (click here to register).

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