Michael Phillis/Collegian

With the Massachusetts men’s basketball team’s rout of La Salle nearly complete, UMass coach Travis Ford took senior forward Gary Forbes out of the game for a standing ovation in his last game at the Mullins Center.

Forbes capped his UMass career at home with a 26-point, 11-rebound performance. He also scored his 1,000th point as a member of the Maroon and White in the first half.

For the final two minutes, UMass’s younger players finished a 37-point domination of the Explorers on Senior Night for a 100-63 victory.

“I didn’t see that coming,” Ford admitted after the game. “We played hard and made plays for ourselves from steals, rebounds and loose balls – we didn’t sit back. We received great play from all of our seniors.”

But it was junior point guard Chris Lowe who overshadowed each of his senior teammates. The junior registered the sixth triple-double in UMass history with 14 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds. Lowe became the third player in school history to achieve the accomplishment after Stephane Lasme and Al Skinner.

“Chris Lowe’s play is contagious,” Ford said. “When you’re passing the basketball and creating open shots, everyone else wants to be a part of it. He played phenomenal basketball tonight.”

The seniors responded for the second consecutive year with spectacular performances in their final home game. Seniors Dante Milligan and Etienne Brower each scored in double figures, while Milligan registered a career-high six blocks.

Though the 37-point win was a two-point regression from last season’s 39-point senior night blowout of the same team, the win has important postseason implications. With a victory against George Washington this weekend, UMass (20-9, 9-6 Atlantic10) can earn the third seed in next week’s Atlantic 10 tournament.

The smashing of La Salle (14-15, 8-7 A-10) also bolsters the Maroon and White’s chances of an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament.

Despite the 100-point offensive outburst from the Minutemen, the outcome was by no means defined early in the second half. After entering halftime with a 20-point lead, the Minutemen allowed La Salle to make a charge. At the 17:29 mark, the Explorers cut the deficit to nine.

After trading baskets on several possessions, Forbes made a 3-pointer from the top of the key that ignited a UMass offensive binge from which the Explorers would not recover.

Five minutes later, the Minutemen completed a 14-3 run to retake control of the game and establish a 24-point lead. That lead peaked at 42 points with 28 second remaining.

UMass continued its scoring prowess while LaSalle struggled to create offense. With the Explorers inability to develop a reliable half-court game evident in the second half, Ford said he told his players to focus on their transition offense instead of pressuring heavily on defense.

UMass limited La Salle’s effectiveness by preventing second-chance opportunities. The Minutemen dominated the frontcourt with a 22-rebound advantage and 44 points in the paint. The guards also combined for 18 rebounds.

“La Salle is one of the best rebounding teams in our league. For us to outrebound them by 22 is definitely not something I expected,” Ford said.

Offensively the Minutemen strove to create shots for their teammates; something that Ford has preached since November.

“We’re just playing our style of basketball; practice hard and practice the way we play,” Forbes said. “To have 27 [team] assists gets back to one of the things we wanted to accomplish at the beginning of the year.”

Before the game, the Minutemen honored its five seniors, including walk-ons Matt Pennie and Nana Ampin who each saw two minutes of playing time. However, Ford was concerned before the game that the emotion of the occasion would get the best of his players, especially his seniors.

“I hate senior night,” Ford said. “It’s such an emotional night, especially when you’re honoring eight people whom I’ve gotten to know pretty well over the past few years.”

But La Salle coach John Giannini had a different perspective.

“It was deja vu from last year and by far our worst loss of the season,” Giannini said. “I just hope the A-10 doesn’t send us to UMass on Senior Night again next year.”

Michael King can be reached at [email protected]