Game 23: At UMass (3-7), Sunday, Feb. 9., at 2:30PM.

[Patriotsince81]

UMass has wins over LaSalle, Duquesne, and St. Joe’s.
Losses are against St. Louis, Dayton, St. Bonaventure, GW, GMU, Davidson, and Rhode Island.


The game is on NBCSN.

Three UMass players average double figures led by Tre Mitchell with 15.5 ppg, TJ Weeks averages 14.7, and Carl Pierre chips in 13.6.

We won the first match-up of the year 73 - 63 in Fairfax. Carl Pierre led UMass with 23 points and Tre Mitchell chipped in 14. Javon led us with 32 points. We out-rebounded them 45-28. Both teams shot 38% from the floor.

Stats from the first game: https://gomason.com/sports/mens-basketball/stats/2019-20/massachusetts/boxscore/10544

DP is 8 - 1 against UMass as a member of the A10 including tournament play. We can only wish that he had a similar record against other A10 opponents.

Schedule - https://umassathletics.com/sports/mens-basketball/schedule
Roster - https://umassathletics.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster
Stats - https://umassathletics.com/documents/2019/11/6/Combined.pdf

My prediction: UMass is young and not very good. This is one of the few games remaining on our schedule that we actually have a chance to win. That being said, my confidence in winning the game is pretty low. We lose 64 - 59 which will drop us to 2 - 8 in A10 play. We cement our position in the PIG.

Discuss.

 

[hoops10]

Nothing to discuss. This team stinks.

 

[KAOriginal]

As stated above....this is one of few teams we can beat. If we get hot..if we get lucky.

Otherwise its just another step to getting this season over with.

UMASS by 9+

 

[mason lawyer]

Close game. Mason loses by 5. Paulsen seat gets even hotter.

 

[phoenix-arizona]

Have to win some games at some point, so why not here?

 

[Mason2005]

Whatever it takes for us to play Fordham in the PIG is the results I want lol

 

[GMU_DCU]

It took Javon scoring 32 in Fairfax to beat them last time. My guess is Pierre gets hot from 3 and we forget to mark him like always. This game is on the road, I say we lose by 7.
UMass - 73
GMU - 66

 

[JimP]

Will likely actually watch this one as they at least have a chance at a W. I am in the give Paulsen one more year to have a big season camp, but it sure seems that a lot of things have to go right for that to actually happen.

 

[psyclone]

Kenpom: UMass is a 2 pt favorite....up from 1 pt after a respectable performance in a loss at URI. Tre Mitchell had 30 with Langevine guarding him as well occasional double-teams.

 

[GMUgemini]

Kenpom: UMass is a 2 pt favorite....up from 1 pt after a respectable performance in a loss at URI. Tre Mitchell had 30 with Langevine guarding him as well occasional double-teams.

He only played 26 minutes against us...looks like we got him into some foul trouble, and turned him over 4 times. He still went for 14 and 12 against us.

On the flip side, Javon Greene scored 32, and XJ and Oduro both chipped in 11. Hartwell didn't play. AJ had a bad shooting night, but finished with 7 and 12.

Other than Carl Pierre (Pierre scored 23 against us)and Tre Mitchell, there is literally no one on the roster who should scare anybody right now. It's a matter of not crapping the bed on offense and keeping those two enough in check to win.

 

[gmujim92]

He only played 26 minutes against us...looks like we got him into some foul trouble, and turned him over 4 times. He still went for 14 and 12 against us.

On the flip side, Javon Greene scored 32, and XJ and Oduro both chipped in 11. Hartwell didn't play. AJ had a bad shooting night, but finished with 7 and 12.

Other than Carl Pierre (Pierre scored 23 against us)and Tre Mitchell, there is literally no one on the roster who should scare anybody right now. It's a matter of not crapping the bed on offense and keeping those two enough in check to win.

Rhody used an interesting strategy against UMass, in that they single-covered Mitchell all night and kept everyone else locked down.

He went for 32 and kept UMass in it all the way to the end. That kid is crazy good...

 

[Five Two]

He only played 26 minutes against us...looks like we got him into some foul trouble, and turned him over 4 times. He still went for 14 and 12 against us.

He definitely was in foul trouble and with about 6 minutes left in the game he picked up a cheap 4th foul. The game turned there and we covered the 6.5 spread.

 

[psyclone]

Kenpom: UMass is a 2 pt favorite....up from 1 pt after a respectable performance in a loss at URI. Tre Mitchell had 30 with Langevine guarding him as well occasional double-teams.

Kenpom: back to UMass being a 1 pt favorite.

 

[PoorManProfit]

No reason to think Patriot can win 2 games against anyone.

G Mas 69
Massachusetts 71

 

[JPgmuswim]

One positive to this game on Sunday is we will have had 8 days since our last game to have had great practices preparing.

Another positive to it being on Sunday is it won’t interfere with everyone trying to watch the Defenders play their first game in the XFL.

 

[smccart5]

The last game i was into was the Davidson game. Felt like we had a chance to prove we were not at the bottom, and at least a high middle of the pack A10 team.

 

[Pablo]

https://umassathletics.com/news/202...ome-to-host-george-mason-sunday-on-nbcsn.aspx:

"The series with George Mason
Sunday is the 13th all-time meeting between the two teams with the Patriots holding a 9-3 lead in the series. George Mason has won the last eight meetings, including one in Fairfax earlier this season. UMass' last win came on Feb. 21, 2016.

On Jan. 22, Carl Pierre had a team-high 23 points and freshman Tre Mitchell recorded his second double-double of the season (14 points, 12 rebounds), but George Mason used a pair of 12-2 second half runs and got 32 points from Javon Greene to pull away from the Minutemen at EagleBank Arena, 73-63.

Home sweet home
The Minutemen are back at the Mullins Center for the next three games, where they are 8-3 this season. UMass is shooting 47.5% from the floor and 39% from three (100-of-257) at home. Tre Mitchell (16.2) and Carl Pierre (15.1) are both averaging better than 15 points per game at home, while the defense is forcing opponents into an average of 15.8 turnovers per game.

Stiff competition
UMass has gone up against some of the nation's top teams, including 10 currently ranked in the top-100 of the NCAA NET Rankings: Dayton (5), Rutgers (26 ), Yale (50), Virginia (57), Saint Louis (76), South Carolina (80), St. John's (72), Akron (85), Duquesne (70), Davidson (95).

Dayton (5) and Saint Louis (76) are next up on the schedule for the Minutemen.

Tre ball
Tre Mitchell had a career-high 30 points on Tuesday at Rhode Island, and is fourth in the Atlantic 10 and first among rookies averaging 16.2 points per game this season.

Mitchell's 30-point night against the Rams were the most for a UMass freshman since Rashaun Freeman scored 31 on Feb. 28, 2004. Mitchell's averaging 19.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in his last seven games.

New look lineup
Freshmen Kolton Mitchell and Preston Santos have started each of the last four games, including their first collegiate starts on Jan. 25 against Duquesne. Them, along with Tre Mitchell, marked the first time the Minutemen had three freshmen start since Jan. 28, 2017 against George Mason."

 

[psyclone]

Kenpom: back to being a 2 pt underdog
Vegasinsider: opened as a 1 pt underdog; now at 1.5

 

[KAOriginal]

UMass by 8.....

 

[JPgmuswim]

If it gets bad there are XFL games to flip to....