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MHERST - The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team finally will be close to full strength against Maine at 7 tonight in the Mullins Center.
UMass will welcome back freshman guard Art Bowers, who has missed the last 2 1/2 games with a sprained ankle that he suffered early in the overtime loss to Boston College Dec. 6.
Bowers, who had been starting, will come off the bench - but he's glad to be back.
''I'm definitely going to play. It was real tough watching, not being able to play,'' said Bowers, who was averaging 8.8 points and 3.2 assists prior to his injury. ''You sit there analyzing, thinking what you would have done in a situation.
''It was even tougher when we lost by one point, thinking I could have done well in both those games, and we could have won those games.''
Coach Steve Lappas said that he'd be careful with Bowers early on.
''I'd like to get him out there and see how he's responded to treatment,'' Lappas said. ''He really hasn't practiced. He did a lot of individual stuff and came back today OK. He's probably not going to pick up where he left off. His conditioning is what he's going to struggle with, playing multiple minutes in a row. As long as his leg is OK, everything else will come.''
Lappas hopes the Minutemen can pick up where they left off after Saturday's strong effort in their 83-65 win over Marshall.
''We want to be consistent. We want to play a similar type game to what we played the other day,'' Lappas said. ''Not necessarily with the scoring, but that kind of defense, the intensity, the energy. We want to keep that going.''
The final pre-Christmas game usually scares coaches, who fear their players will get excited about the prospect of a trip home and a few days off.
''It's a tough game because we have a lot of kids going home the next day,'' said Lappas, who is actually 2-0 on Dec. 23 at UMass. ''We need everyone to be focused in on what they need to be focused in on so they can enjoy their vacation that much more.''
The Black Bears will try to give the Minutemen a blue Christmas. They come in at 5-2 fresh off Saturday's win over Morgan State.
Kevin Reed, who led Maine in that game with 22 points and 11 rebounds, has been a top player for the Black Bears all season. He's a 6-foot-2 guard averaging 18.3 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. His willingness to tangle with bigger foes has made some observers compare him to a poor man's version of former Boston College guard Ryan Sidney.
Reed is joined in the backcourt by point guard Eric Dobson who is averaging 11.7 points and 6.4 assists per game.
The Black Bears' two losses have come against two schools that are about as far apart philosophically as they are geographically. Maine dropped its opener 69-49 to Florida State and won four straight before falling to Dartmouth 68-65 in overtime.
Maine could be an upper tier Ivy League team with wins over Brown and Harvard to counteract the Big Green loss. The Black Bears' other wins have come against the University of New England (Division III) and Bethune-Cookman.
NOTES: This will be the 57th all-time meeting between the former Yankee Conference rivals. The Minutemen hold a comfortable 40-16 lead.
Maine is the only school UMass plays in football, ice hockey and men's basketball. The Minutemen won the football matchup. The schools will play three times in ice hockey.
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com.
MHERST - UMass measured its collective progress in the unimpressive numbers produced by point guard Anthony Anderson during last night's 67-60 victory over Maine before 2,205 fans at the Mullins Center.
UMass improved to 4-4, including a 2-1 mark against America East opponents with Albany coming to town on Saturday. Maine fell to 5-3.
Maine held Anderson, who averages 16.1 points per game, to eight points, six of which came from the free throw line. Anderson, a Lynn native, was 1-for-11 from the floor and 0-for-5 from behind the arc. Anderson salvaged the night by hitting a pair of key free throws with 37 seconds remaining to give UMass a 65-60 lead.
UMass coach Steve Lappas confirmed that if Anderson had that kind of night earlier in the month, Maine would have waltzed to an easy victory.
``There is no doubt in my mind that if this was two weeks ago and Anthony Anderson plays a game like that, we lose,'' said Lappas.
``When Anthony plays like this, we take it and run. It was a big sign of progress because this team could not, no way, beat anybody two weeks ago if Anthony Anderson plays 1-for-11. Tonight we won by seven points, not at the buzzer, so that's definitely progress.
``We are still dependent on him no doubt. But this is a good lesson for the team.''
While Anderson's shots refused to fall, if didn't dissuade him from making up for it on the defensive end. Anderson stuck like glue to Maine guard Kevin Reed, who was 3-for-10 and finished with eight points in 36 minutes. Reed entered the game averaging 18.1 points per game.
``Anthony didn't play great on the offensive end but he played great defense,'' Lappas said. ``It's a credit to him that he doesn't let what happens on one end affect the other because he played unbelievably on defense the whole game.''
Sophomore forward Rashaun Freeman made up for Anderson's lack of firepower. The 6-foot-9, 225-pound Freeman hit 9-of-12 shots from the floor and netted a career-high 23 points. Freeman scored 14 in the second half and there were times early in the frame when he was the Minutemen's only option.
``I felt for some reason I wasn't as fluid and (normal) and I got tired real quick,'' Freeman said. ``I stuck in there and the times when coach took me out, I got myself together.
``In the second half I started hitting shots being double-teamed. I just felt good the second half.''
UMass junior center Gabe Lee struggled from the floor (3-for-13) despite getting a number of easy shots. Lee's troubles allowed Maine coach Jon Giannini to reconfigure his low-post defense to try and stop Freeman. Despite the extra attention, Freeman battled for position on the blocks and his turnaround, high-rise jump shot was unstoppable.
``We were trying to trap him and he certainly was the difference tonight,'' Giannini said. ``He has an off night and we probably win.''
Maine trailed 49-43 with 10 minutes to play when sixth man Freddy Petkus got hot from outside. The junior guard drained consecutive treys to tie the game at 49 with 9:13 to play. Eric Dobson hit a free throw and Reed followed with a drive to give Maine its first lead, 52-49, since the opening basket.
UMass notes
Freshman Maurice Maxwell finished the night with six points and four rebounds, far below the numbers he produced in the Minutemen's 83-64 win over Marshall last Saturday. Maxwell went 9-of-14 from the floor for a career-high 19 points against the Thundering Herd. He was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week for his efforts.
MHERST, Mass. — University of Maine Coach John Giannini said he was OK with how his team played against the University of Massachusetts Tuesday night.
But Giannini was quick to add that in order to beat a team like UMass, the Black Bears are going to have to be more efficient.
"I felt that we played hard," Giannini said Maine lost 67-60 against the Minutemen before 2,205 at the Mullins Center. "We're struggling offensively; that's pretty obvious if you look at our shooting percentage. But we're playing hard.
"The games we lose come down to a few plays. We just have to come back after Christmas and just see if we could get a few plays better, come up with a few key rebounds and stops, and get into more of a flow offensively."
The Black Bears (5-3) got key contributions off the bench from Freddy Petkus and Mark Flavin, with 15 and 14 points, respectively. But the only starter in double figures was Chris Markwood, with 12.
Kevin Reed, who came into the game averaging 18.3 points to lead the Black Bears, was held to eight points, but he added 10 rebounds.
Maine guard Ludmil Hadjisotirov injured his shoulder going for a loose ball with 1:11 left in the first half. He did not return and was on the bench in the second half wearing a sling. Giannini said he didn't know the extent of the injury.
Massachusetts (4-4) was led by sophomore forward Rashaun Freeman, who had 14 of his 23 points in the second half.
After trailing by as many as 10 in the first half, the Black Bears closed to within 36-30 at halftime. Petkus made a pair of 3-pointers to cut the deficit to one, 44-43, with 14:28 left.
UMass then scored five consecutive points before Flavin hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key that started a 9-0 run capped by Reed's drive that forced UMass Coach Steve Lappas to call a timeout with 8:13 left.
"Our guys started playing together in that sequence; we really started playing our game, offensively and defensively," said Petkus. "Everybody was getting shots off."
"We just got some open 3s and made them," Giannini said.
UMass committed a turnover after the timeout, but Joe Campbell missed a 3-pointer and Anderson followed with a three-point play to tie the game at 52 with 7:11 to go.
After a Markwood miss, Chris Chadwick hit two free throws for a 54-52 lead and UMass never trailed again.
The Black Bears trailed 36-30 at halftime, and it could have been worse. Maine committed 10 turnovers in the half and Reed was held to four points on 1-for-5 shooting, held in check by Anderson's strong defense.
But Giannini got solid contributions off the bench from Petkus (nine points) and Flavin (six points) to stay close.
"They're more than a solid team," Giannini said of the Minutemen. "We were on their home court and we put ourselves in a position to win. We just came up a few plays short."
MHERST - The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team finally won a close game, getting away with an ugly second half Tuesday to escape with a 67-60 win over Maine in front of 2,205 at the Mullins Center.
 Gabe Lee keeps an eye on Joe Campbell. |
The ball dropped in and so did the free throw tying the game at 52-52 as momentum returned to the home team.
''My role is to be that guy,'' Anderson said. ''We're going to try to get it in my hands at the end of the game.''
After Chris Markwood missed a rushed shot for the Black Bears, Chris Chadwick made two free throws to put the Minutemen back ahead 54-52 with 6:36 left.
Maine tried to answer, but Kevin Reed released the ball at an awkward angle and missed from close to the hoop as he tried to avoid getting his shot blocked by Gabe Lee. The Minutemen got the ball to Rashaun Freeman, who scored from the baseline to build the lead to four points.
From there UMass was able to hold the Black Bears off, answering every basket and making enough free throws down the stretch to escape.
The Minutemen (4-4) won despite Anderson's worst offensive game of the season as the senior point guard made just 1-of-11 shots. Anderson compensated for his shooting woes with five rebounds and four assists, but his biggest contribution was holding Reed to just eight points.
''I just told the guys that two weeks ago if Anthony Anderson has a game like that, we lose,'' Lappas said. ''This game was so similar to Hartford (a 72-66 UMass loss). We took good shots and we didn't make them. We were in a dogfight... We win the game by seven. Anthony plays like this. We'll take it and run.''
Freeman led the Minutemen with a career-high 23 points and six rebounds, making 9-of-12 shots. He was the lone Minuteman in double figures as Jeff Viggiano scored nine points and Anderson and Lee had eight each.
Freddy Petkus led Maine (5-3) with 15 points, while Mark Flavin added 14 and Markwood had 12.
With 16:24 left in the game, the Minutemen looked to be en route to an easy victory, leading 40-32 after a three-point play by Freeman. But a pair of 3-pointers by Petkus fueled an 11-4 Maine run that tightened the game in a hurry at 44-43.
UMass scored the next five points, but the Black Bears still wouldn't go away. Center Mark Flavin hit two treys to tie the game at 49-49. Lee missed a drive and Jermaine Jackson hit 1-of-2 free throws at the other end to give Maine its first lead of the game at 50-49.
Reed split a UMass double team and hit a driving shot to put Maine ahead 52-49, setting up Anderson's heroics.
The UMass players departed for Christmas after the game and will return Friday night in preparation for Sunday's 2 p.m. game against Albany at the Mullins Center, before facing No. 1 Connecticut Tuesday in Hartford.
Anderson said getting back to .500 is significant.
''It's important,'' Anderson said. ''Now we're going to try to get Albany and go play Connecticut at 5-4.''
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com.
MHERST - Scoring is nothing new for Rashaun Freeman. Since he first pulled on a University of Massachusetts uniform, Freeman has put the ball in the basket with regularity.
 Rashaun Freeman tracks down the loose ball in front of Eric Dobson. |
Freeman was the only Minuteman in double figures with a career-high 23. With Anderson struggling, Maine threw a variety of different defensive looks at Freeman, but he produced against all of them.
At one point in the second half, after Freeman scored through a triple-team, Maine coach John Giannini just shook his head.
''He was certainly the difference tonight,'' Giannini said afterward. ''If he has an off night, we probably win.''
Early on Freeman thought he was headed for that.
''I felt at the beginning of the game like I wasn't going to have a good one because I got tired real quick,'' Freeman said. ''But I stuck in there and got myself back together and I tried to produce as much as possible. In the second half I felt pretty good turning around and hitting that shot.''
Lappas said Freeman is the most advanced rookie big man skillwise he's coached in 16 years.
''His footwork is really unbelievable,'' Lappas said. ''He's the best at this stage that I've had. Even the big kids I had at Villanova.''
BOWERS RETURNS - Freshman forward Artie Bowers returned to the Minuteman lineup after missing the last two games with a sprained ankle that he suffered in a loss to Boston College Dec. 6. Bowers had two points and four rebounds in 16 minutes.
''I'm not a hundred percent, but I just wanted to come back in and help my teammates win this game,'' Bowers said. ''I did what I could do and helped out for the most part.''
Lappas was pleased.
''I thought he did great. His problems tonight came because his conditioning was bad, because he hadn't practiced, and his timing was off,'' Lappas said. ''As far as his leg, I thought he looked pretty good.''
ANDERSON DEFENSE - For the second straight game, Anderson held the opponent's top scorer below double figures. Marshall's Ronny Dawn scored just seven points Saturday and Maine's top gun Kevin Reed had eight Tuesday night.
ATLANTIC 10 LEADERS - Freeman entered the game leading the Atlantic 10 in offensive rebounding with 4.14 per game, but had just two on the offensive glass last night. His eight rebounds were just under his 8.4 average that has him second in the league.
Anderson was first in the league in 3-point percentage, hitting 25 of his 51 attempts (49 percent) and 3-pointers made at 3.57 per game coming in. Those numbers fell off after he missed all five he took from long range.
Gabe Lee is by far the leader in blocked shots in the conference. He has 32 and is on pace to become the first UMass player to get 100 in a season since Marcus Camby.
NEXT UP - The Minutemen will host Albany at 2 p.m. Sunday. The Great Danes are 2-5, but are coming off a 63-55 overtime win over Lehigh, ending a two-game losing streak.
That game will mark the fourth America East team UMass has played this season. It is 2-1 in the previous games against foes from that league with wins over Vermont and Maine and a loss to Hartford.
MISCELLANEOUS - The Minutemen are now 3-0 on Dec. 23 under Lappas including two wins over Maine. ... The 11 turnovers were the fewest UMass has committed all season. ... UMass senior walk-on Paco Kotaridis' mother was in attendance at the game. She's visiting for Christmas from Greece. Because the game was close, Kotaridis did not see action.
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com.
| Maine Black Bears | 60 |
| Massachusetts Minutemen | 67 |
| at the Mullins Center | |
Official Basketball Box Score
Maine vs Massachusetts
12/23/03 7:00 p.m. at Amherst, MA(Mullins Center)
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VISITORS: Maine ( 5- 3)
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
23 DUBOIS,David........ f 0-1 0-0 0-1 1 4 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 15
32 CAMPBELL,Joe........ f 1-4 0-3 0-0 0 5 5 4 2 3 2 0 1 21
12 DOBSON,Eric......... g 1-5 0-0 4-8 4 0 4 4 6 4 5 0 0 31
21 REED,Kevin.......... g 3-10 0-2 2-2 1 9 10 2 8 0 1 0 2 36
43 MARKWOOD,Chris...... g 3-7 0-2 6-7 0 0 0 4 12 3 3 0 1 32
10 WALLINGFORD,Jon..... 0-1 0-1 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3
13 HADJISOTIROV,Ludmil. 1-3 1-2 0-0 0 1 1 1 3 1 3 0 1 12
14 PETKUS,Freddy....... 5-9 4-7 1-1 0 4 4 4 15 2 0 0 0 23
20 FLAVIN,Mark......... 5-10 2-3 2-2 1 1 2 4 14 0 2 2 0 27
TEAM................ 1 1
Totals.............. 19-50 7-20 15-21 9 24 33 24 60 13 16 2 5 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 9-21 42.9% 2nd Half: 10-29 34.5% Game: 38.0% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 3-9 33.3% 2nd Half: 4-11 36.4% Game: 35.0% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 9-11 81.8% 2nd Half: 6-10 60.0% Game: 71.4% 2
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HOME TEAM: Massachusetts ( 4- 4)
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
00 MARTIN,Brennan...... f 2-3 1-1 0-0 1 0 1 2 5 1 0 0 0 17
01 FREEMAN,Rashaun..... f 9-12 0-0 5-9 2 4 6 2 23 0 4 0 3 30
02 LEE,Gabe............ c 3-13 0-0 2-4 3 2 5 1 8 4 1 2 0 36
11 MAXWELL,Maurice..... g 2-4 0-1 2-2 1 3 4 4 6 1 1 1 1 21
12 ANDERSON,Anthony.... g 1-11 0-5 6-8 1 4 5 0 8 4 1 1 0 39
05 LASME,Stephane...... 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 2 2 3 2 0 2 0 0 8
13 CHADWICK,Chris...... 1-1 0-0 2-2 0 3 3 3 4 4 0 0 0 20
22 VIGGIANO,Jeff....... 2-3 1-1 4-4 1 2 3 4 9 1 0 0 0 13
34 BOWERS,Art.......... 1-4 0-1 0-0 0 4 4 2 2 1 2 1 1 16
TEAM................ 1 1 2
Totals.............. 22-52 2-9 21-29 10 25 35 21 67 16 11 5 5 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 12-30 40.0% 2nd Half: 10-22 45.5% Game: 42.3% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 2-7 28.6% 2nd Half: 0-2 0.0% Game: 22.2% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 10-13 76.9% 2nd Half: 11-16 68.8% Game: 72.4% 4,1
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Officials: Wally Rutecki, Earl Walton, George Harry
Technical fouls: Maine-None. Massachusetts-None.
Attendance: 2205
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Maine......................... 30 30 - 60
Massachusetts................. 36 31 - 67