Three days after notching its biggest win of the season, the Massachusetts men’s basketball team fell 77-70 to George Mason on Saturday. To understand how UMass (6-11, 1-3 Atlantic 10) lost this game, one need not look further than two stretches of seven-plus minutes where the Minutemen failed to make a field goal.
“One of the things that we’ve dealt with all year is when we play a team that’s big and physical, offensively, we struggle to score,” head coach Frank Martin said. “We [also] really struggle to rebound the basketball on the front line and that was the case again today.”
There were positive signs for UMass’ offense throughout the first six minutes and change of the game. The team’s first points were scored in transition, as Rahsool Diggins caught the ball in rhythm and drained a left-wing three. After a couple two-pointers and a Daniel Hankins-Sanford make from deep, the Minutemen had an early 10-5 lead.
Lulls have plagued Martin’s team to date though, and the team had a big one midway through the opening frame. No made field goals in nearly eight minutes allowed the Patriots (12-5, 3-1 A-10) to build up an 11-point lead, one that they almost took to halftime if not for a late flurry of UMass baskets.
In the second half, the Minutemen continued to battle for their second conference win. A Marqui Worthy layup brought the team’s deficit down to just five, but from there, a near-nine minute field goal drought followed. George Mason wasn’t stellar on offense in that stretch either, but coach Tony Skinn’s team did enough to seal the game.
With big man Jalen Haynes out in the second half, the Patriots turned to free throws to grow their lead. Officials that aren’t afraid to blow their whistles aren’t ideal for Martin’s aggressive defense, and it took just eight minutes for George Mason to enter the bonus. Ultimately, 18 fouls were called on UMass after halftime, which led to the Patriots getting nearly half of their second-half points from the line.
The whistles weren’t just directed towards the Minutemen, even though George Mason’s second-half stats may say otherwise. Neither team’s offense flowed due to the stop-and-start nature of play as there were 34 fouls and 47 attempted free throws in the final 20 minutes of game time.
“We had a couple guys [who] got frustrated [with the fouls] and then started trying to do a little too much offensively,” Martin said. “At certain times of the game, we got a little quick with our willingness to go attack too soon…but I’d rather have guys that attack than don’t attack.”
The Patriots’ length led to a major advantage on the glass in both halves. UMass was out-rebounded 43-26 and allowed four more offensive rebounds to its opponent, giving George Mason crucial extra possessions. Bigs and guards alike snagged boards for the Patriots, from 6-foot-8 Haynes to 6-foot-4 Jared Billups (six rebounds).
George Mason’s offense had success at the rim in the first half thanks to Haynes and Giovanni Emejuru. At a combined 525 pounds, the pair often had size mismatches over 215-pound Daniel Rivera and 205-pound Shahid Muhammad, which led to deep paint touches and easy baskets down low. Haynes left the game with concussion-like symptoms at halftime, but not before putting up nine points, eight rebounds and one devastating dunk.
The Minutemen were led on offense by Diggins, who continues to be a top option for this team after an early-season slump. The senior scored 21 points on 6-of-14 shooting, including four made threes. While his performance wasn’t enough for a win on this day, the senior has shot 35 percent from the floor over his last six games, a major improvement from his 27 percent mark in the six games prior.
Elsewhere, Worthy was a top contributor for the second game in a row after scoring a career-high 18 points on Wednesday. The sophomore guard continued to make good decisions with the ball in his hands and attacked the basket for 13 points.
The Patriots had four players score in double figures, led by an 18-point performance from guard Darius Maddox. Elsewhere, Billups and Auburn transfer K.D. Johnson had 10 points apiece while UMass Lowell transfer Brayden O’Connor finished with 11 points on 3-of-8 shooting.
UMass heads to the Bronx for its next game to take on a Fordham team that currently ranks dead last in the A-10. That game is on Jan. 15 at 7 p.m., and it will be streamed on ESPN+.
Dean Wendel can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @DeanWende1.
