Breaking down the fundamentals of their game, Destiney Philoxy and Sam Breen differ quite a bit. Philoxy, a natural defender and assist-getter often feeds double-double machine Breen. Despite their contrasting playstyles, in Wednesday night’s loss against state rival Boston College (7-2), the duo mirrored success and each secured their 1000th points.
“It’s crazy,” Philoxy said of the fact her and Breen scored their 1000th on the same night. “[Breen] told me to wait to score more so we could be there together … I mean we are both captains, the team looks up to us and we are here to literally the end so why not.”
Breen, who came into the contest against the Eagles (7-2) only three points shy of 1000 was on track to succeed early in the game. With laser focus solely on the game and outcome itself, the celebrations that ensued following the milestone remained in the crowds, with a standing ovation and applause from those in the Mullins Center.
“The graphic went up quick, they wasted no time,” Breen said. “It was cool, my parents were [sitting on the] sideline so I heard them right away, so it was cool. The girl on [BC] that was guarding me said congrats right away, which was super nice … it was cool, I was like ‘dang.’ Like I told [people] last time I didn’t really expect to reach that mark at any point so to reach it and have another year left is beyond me.”
Michelle Pruitt was blocked from behind but secured her own miss, only to have been met at the basket by a lengthy Eagles defender. Breen scooped the offensive board, turned, elevated and softly dropped the ball in the net. In true Breen fashion, her milestone came in one of her most dominate categories. She wins the offensive board battle continuously and won an important one to kick off the first quarter.
The Penn State transfer’s impact in a Minutewomen (9-2) uniform has yet to be shortcoming since the moment she stepped on the Mullins Center court. Wednesday night’s achievement makes her the 21st Massachusetts’s women’s basketball player in history to snag the 1000th point personal accomplishment.
And Philoxy quickly became the 22nd.
With only eight points left to knock down coming into the game, Philoxy still didn’t keep tabs on her totals as the matchup began. With no knowledge of how close she was to 1000, Philoxy hunted down the Boston College player dribbling up the court, stripped the ball from behind and dribbled through traffic converting a scoop layup in the paint for two.
It wasn’t until a UMass timeout when Philoxy was told those two points sealed the deal, so naturally they came in true Philoxy fashion by way of a steal and a layup coast to coast.
“I was confused why [the crowd] was getting loud,” Philoxy said. “I thought they were cheering us on to play some defense.”
At the time of the play, the Minutewomen trailed 59-45 and had minimal offensive success. With two BC defenders guarding Breen at all times, the pressure spread to UMass’ other four players to knock down shots but midway through the third quarter, it looked like someone put a cover on the Minutewomen’s basket.
Philoxy’s performance was creeping up to mirror the last time she faced Boston College, when five fouls sent her to the bench before the buzzer sounded the game. Philoxy’s mindset never changed when her baskets started dropping, the focus was still on overcoming the deficit.
“It felt good, it still feels good,” Philoxy said. “… 1000 points is 1000 points let’s go for something else. I’m not really worried about 1000 points because I want to win the [championship.] That is my main goal this year.”
Five fouls this time around sent Philoxy to the bench, but she managed to score the amount she needed to before sitting for the night.
Midway through the second quarter, Breen drove then kicked it to Philoxy at the 3-point line, who faked a shot and drove herself. Philoxy dished it to Breen on the go for a layup. Neither of these points marked the 1000th, but instead represented the textbook chemistry from the two captains and veteran leaders.
Breen finished the night with 14 points, eight rebounds and two steals. Philoxy chipped in 13 points, six rebounds and two assists.
“That is just so cool,” Breen said of the duo’s twin accomplishments. “Obviously we didn’t plan that but as it got closer and they said it, we were like ‘oh my gosh if we got it the same day that would be so cool.’ I just feel that doesn’t happen often … I just think it’s awesome to get it with her on the same night.”
Lulu Kesin can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @Lulukesin.
