The Massachusetts men’s basketball team suffered its second consecutive loss, falling 96-83 to UMass Lowell on Saturday. After being down just two points at halftime and even gaining a small lead within the first five minutes of the second half, the Minutemen (3-7) allowed 22 River Hawk (6-4) points over the final six minutes, leading to their defeat.
“When teams play with no discipline, it’s not on them, it’s on me,” head coach Frank Martin said. “Right now, I’m not doing a good job coaching our team.”
UMass lost the game in that late-game stretch, as a 22-13 run by UMass Lowell built a four-point lead into 13. The visiting team made its final six baskets and six of seven free throws.
“We don’t have anybody on our team that has the willingness to be disciplined, to play through the difficulty to win,” Martin said. “We don’t have that right now.”
To open up the second half, River Hawks guard Max Brooks drained two free throws which preceded Rahsool Diggins’ first points of the game. Shortly after, Jayden Ndjigue jump started an 8-0 run for the Minutemen with the team’s first made three-pointer. Jaylen Curry followed up Ndjigue’s basket with an and-one layup, converting on the free throw. The UMass defense later forced two turnovers to help create a four point lead, its largest of the second half.
Efficient offense gave UMass Lowell a five point lead with five minutes left in the in-state matchup. Quinton Mincey finished off some great ball movement to beat the Minutemen’s zone defense with a three pointer, which Yuri Covington followed up on with a fastbreak euro-step layup. After a UMass timeout, Mincey finished an and-one to cap off an 8-0 run that gave the River Hawks a 13-point lead, the largest of the game at the time.
Mincey led the game in scoring, tying his season high with four made threes. The senior guard picked up 27 points on 8-of-10 shooting.
“We [didn’t] have the will to match their guy, [Mincey],” Martin said. “With the game in the balance, [he] made every play.”
“[Mincey]’s become a great player, he’s gotten better every year,” River Hawks head coach Pat Duquette said. “He’s such a huge part of what we do.”
The Minutemen’s press defense was a bright spot in their performance, helping force UMass Lowell to commit 21 turnovers. Daniel Rivera had a game-high three steals with Curry, Ndjigue and Shahid Muhammad all grabbing two steals each. Despite committing eight less turnovers, the River Hawks still outscored UMass in points off turnovers.
The game’s flow was often disrupted by an abundance of whistles as the teams combined for 67 free throws. The Minutemen gave away crucial points by missing a season-high 12 free throws on 33 attempts.
“We had a chance to build the lead and all we did was clunk free throws, clunk free throws, clunk free throws,” Martin explained. “It was deflating [to] our spirit because we don’t have that collective energy right now, we have a lot of phony energy, so everytime we missed one or two free throws… we stopped defending.”
Ndjigue and Curry co-led UMass with 17 points, marking Ndjigue’s career high in the stat. Guard Marqui Worthy also picked up a career high with 15 points. Despite his teammates’ performances, Diggins continued his shooting slump as the senior shot 0-of-8 from deep. The guard has now made five of his last 48 three point attempts.
“[Diggins] is going to be alright. We know his flow is going to come back so [we’re] not really worried about it,” Curry said. “All [we’re] telling him right now is to keep shooting.”
Next up on the schedule for the Minutemen is another in-state foe in UMass Boston. The noon tipoff will be on Saturday, Dec. 14 on ESPN+. UMass will look to bounce back against the Division III opponent after losing its past two games.
Maxwell Solomon can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @Maxwell697909.
