MHERST - Does ITT Technical Institute have a basketball program? If so, it should consider issuing a challenge to the 20th-ranked University of Massachusetts. It's doubtful such a school would knock off the Minutemen, but there's a decent chance it would look good in defeat. UMass would probably make sure of that.
It's amazing how fluid, efficient, and aggressive UMass has been when playing against some of the best teams in college basketball. And it's odd how mistake-prone and lackadaisical UMass is when facing a presumably inferior opponent. Yesterday, against a La Salle team it probably should have defeated easily, the Minutemen needed several spurts and clutch plays to avoid the biggest Atlantic 10 upset this season.
That's why UMass coach Bruiser Flint harped on his team's woes after its 81-71 win before 8,412 at the Mullins Center.
Never mind that UMass improved to 19-6 overall, a win total the Minutemen didn't reach last season until the first round of the A-10 tournament. Never mind that the Minutemen are now 11-1 in the league and boosted their lead in the A-10 East to two games over Temple and Rhode Island, who comes to town Wednesday night.
''We went through a two-minute stretch where guys just absolutely lost their minds,'' said Flint.
''One of the things these guys have to realize is that you have to come to play against everybody. Championship teams bury squads like this. You don't let them stay in the game.''
Charlton Clarke tied a season high with 22 points to lead five scorers in double figures, a first for UMass this season. Yet the Minuteman who made the biggest contribution was reserve forward Chris Kirkland, who registered his first double-double with career highs of 13 points and 10 rebounds.
More important, the 6-foot-6-inch sophomore did the best job of containing 6-7, 254-pound center K'Zell Wesson (21 points on 7 of 9 shooting, 16 boards). Wesson scored La Salle's first 8 points, but added just 2 when Flint switched Kirkland on him for much of the first half.
''I think Bruiser wanted me to front him and get help on the back side, and that's what I really tried to do,'' said Kirkland, who outhustled La Salle players for loose balls and had some acrobatic leaps for rebounds.
La Salle (7-16, 3-10) trailed by 9 with 10:16 left in the first half but had a chance to take the lead when it rebounded a missed free throw with 2:29 left while trailing, 33-31. But guard Mike Gizzi (5 points on 1-for-9 shooting) missed a layup and UMass scored the last 8 points of the half for a 41-31 lead.
It marked the second consecutive game in which the Minutemen have struggled against a lesser opponent, following Thursday's 74-68 win at Duquesne.
''It's tough getting up for a game like tonight,'' said forward Mike Babul. ''We're usually up for big games. Against Kansas or Xavier, guys are so much more emotional.''
Even after overcoming the sluggishness to take a 58-42 lead with 10:31 left, UMass turned the ball over and took bad shots. La Salle got back-to-back, wide-open 3-pointers from Victor Thomas as part of an 18-7 run to cut the lead to 65-60 with 4:52 left. But Clarke hit a jumper with 2:57 left to put the Minutemen up, 67-60, and UMass was 8 for 8 on free throws over the last 1:27.
MHERST-- It wasn't the Valentine's Day Massacre that many had expected. But in the end the University of Massachusetts just had too many weapons for LaSalle and its big guns, (Shawn) Smith and (K'Zell) Wesson.
Five UMass players scored in double figures for the first time this season as the 20th-ranked Minutemen outlasted the stubborn Explorers, 81-71, yesterday before 8,412 fans at the Mullins Center.
Charlton Clarke scored a game-high 22 points and added six assists, while Chris Kirkland had his first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds as UMass won for the 13th time in its last 14 games and improved to 19-6.
The victory, coupled with Rhode Island's loss to Temple, gives UMass a two-game lead over URI in the Atlantic 10 East. The Rams will travel to the Mullins Center for another showdown at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.
The Minutemen may well have been looking to their URI rematch as they came up flat against LaSalle, which is 7-16 overall and has lost six in a row.
"We started off slow and flat like we did Tuesday night against Duquesne," Kirkland said.
"We usually get up for afternoon games, but not today," said Mike Babul, who had 10 points and six rebounds. "We are very emotional in big games like last week at Xavier. But today and Tuesday (against Duquesne) we didn't have much fire. But we'll be ready Wednesday."
While the Minutemen lacked some intensity, LaSalle played a very solid and spirited game. And thanks to Wesson, the 6-foot-7 junior center who had his 14th double-double with 21 points and 16 rebounds, the Explorers were in the game most of the day.
Wesson, who is among the top 10 in the country in rebounding (10.6 rpg), and senior guard Smith (6 points, 4 assists) keyed a late first-half surge that pulled LaSalle to within two points at 33-31 with 2:29 to play.
However, the Minutemen went on an 8-0 run to close out the half. Lari Ketner, who had 15 points and nine rebounds, hit on a layup and dunk, Kirkland dropped in a layup and Clarke hit a jumper with one second left as UMass took a 41-31 lead into the locker room.
"The last two minutes of that first half were crucial," LaSalle coach Speedy Morris said. "We had come back from 22-13 to get to within two and had the ball. We missed a couple of layups late and we felt we should have been down by no more than three or four points at the half.
"I thought our guys played hard, we had some opportunities, but we made some mistakes with the basketball. I was happy with the effort. All we really wanted was a chance to win the game. And we had that in the second half."
Indeed, after falling behind by 16 points, 58-42, with 10 minutes to play, the Explorers came roaring back behind the hot shooting of Victor Thomas.
Thomas hit three treys, fueling an 18-7 run that got LaSalle to within five points at 65-60 with 3:34 left.
However, Clarke came through with perhaps the biggest basket of the game as he drained a jumper as the shot clock expired with 2:59 left, putting UMass up by seven, 67-60.
From there it was a parade to the free-throw line as UMass made 14 free throws with Clarke cashing in eight and Monty Mack four.
Mack joined his four other teammates in double figures with 15 points on the day, including three treys.
Joining Wesson in double figures for LaSalle was Donnie Carr, who had 16 and Thomas with 10.
Kirkland and Ajmal Basit did a solid job in defending Wesson in the second half.
Wesson, who turned down a football scholarshop to UCLA as a tight end, had just seven points in the second half and didn't score a field goal in the final 16 minutes.
Kirkland played 27 minutes as UMass coach Bruiser Flint benched Tyrone Weeks, who played just nine minutes and did not score.
"Tyrone has to come ready to play, that's the bottom line, and he didn't today," said Flint. "Chris did an excellent job in the second half against Wesson and he made some good hoops and some big rebounds for us, too."
Overall Flint wasn't too thrilled with UMass' effort.
"Our guys didn't step up, we made some dumb mistakes," Flint said. "Sometimes our immaturity comes out. When you are a championship team you have to be able to bury guys like these."
MHERST, Mass. -- Lately, they all seem to turn out the same way for the Explorers.
Despite giving one of its better efforts of the season, La Salle continued its end-of-the-season nosedive by losing its sixth consecutive game, 81-71, yesterday to No. 20 Massachusetts.
"It feels like the same thing over and over again," said senior captain Mike Gizzi. "We gave a good effort, but we couldn't change the outcome."
The Minutemen (19-6 overall, 11-1 Atlantic Ten), who have won 13 of their last 14 games, displayed an extremely potent inside-outside game for most of the contest. UMass, which had five players score in double figures, shot 46.6 percent from the field against La Salle (7-16, 3-10).
Guards Charlton Clarke (22 points) and Monty Mack (15) were hot from the outside, helping UMass shoot 50 percent from three-point range in the first half.
In the paint, Philadelphian Lari Ketner and forward Chris Kirkland had their way with the Explorers for the majority of the contest. The 6-foot-6 Kirkland had 13 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. It was Ketner, though, who did the bulk of the damage for the Minutemen. Ketner, a 6-10 center from Roman Catholic, had 15 points and nine rebounds.
" [ Ketner ] is just a tough player," said Gizzi. "He was just too big and strong for us to handle."
Despite hitting just 11 of 35 shots from the field in the first half, La Salle hung tough, geting the majority of its points from 6-7 junior forward K'Zell Wesson. Wesson, who was ninth in the nation in rebounding entering yesterday's game, scored La Salle's first eight points. Wesson tied his career high in points with 21, while adding 16 rebounds.
La Salle trailed by as many as nine points in the first half, then managed to cut the lead to 33-31 on two free throws by Gizzi with under two minutes to play before intermission. UMass would not be denied, however. The Minutemen capitalized on two Explorers turnovers late in the half, turning one into a ferocious dunk by Ketner.
Thanks to several key baskets by Kirkland, the Minutemen went on a late 8-0 run to close the half with a 41-31 lead.
The second half turned out to be more of the same for the Explorers. After La Salle slashed the UMass lead to seven on a Gizzi jumper from the top of the key, the team's defense fell apart. With 11 minutes left in the game, forward Ajmal Basit hit a layup to give the Minutemen a 56-42 lead. Still, La Salle refused to give up and managed to cut the lead to 69-63 with less than two minutes left in the game.
However, several free throws by Clark and forward Mike Babul got the UMass lead back to 10 with 56 seconds remaining. From there UMass turned up the defensive pressure to preserve its victory.
The Minutemen's defense forced La Salle to shoot a horrid 37.3 percent from the field.
Sophomore Donnie Carr, who had been averaging a conference-high 18.4 points per game, was held to 16 points.
MHERST - The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team didn't look much like the potential Final Four team that Duquesne coach Scott Edgar recently said it could be, but then again the No. 20 Minutemen never really appeared to be in danger of losing, either.
The Minutemen (19-6, 11-1 Atlantic 10) looked brilliant at times Saturday and sloppy more often, but came away with an 81-71 win over La Salle at the Mullins Center.
 "Flat" described both Monty Mack on this play and the UMass intensity overall. |
"Tonight La Salle comes in and they don't have the best record and guys don't get up the same way," Babul continued. "I think we'll be better Wednesday night. It's a big game and we usually get up for those."
That game features the Minutemen playing Rhode Island at 7:30 p.m. in the Mullins Center.
Five UMass players scored in double figures Saturday for the first time this season. Charlton Clarke led all scorers with 22. Lari Ketner and Monty Mack added 15 each, while Chris Kirkland had career-highs in both points (13) and rebounds (10). Babul hit two free throws with just over a minute left to join the double-digit club.
The Explorers were led by junior K'Zell Wesson, who had 21 points and 16 rebounds. He was on top of his game early.
Using his 6-foot-7-inch wide frame, he scored La Salle's first eight points and was leading UMass by himself, 8-6, 3:24 into the game, prompting the Minutemen to call a 20-second timeout.
In the huddle Flint told his troops that Babul was open on the baseline. The Minutemen took advantage as Clarke launched the alley-oop to Babul, who slammed it home to tie the game 8-8.
After the teams traded baskets, UMass went on a 12-3 run, highlighted by five points each by Clarke and Kirkland, to open a lead that was never relinquished. La Salle at one point cut the lead to two points, but the Minutemen finished the half on a 8-0 run for a 41-31 advantage.
"We started kind of flat, but late in the first half we got a roll going," Kirkland said. "In the locker room we felt excited and wanted to come out in the second half the same way."
UMass opened the lead to as many as 16 points in the second half, but lost its focus. Highlighted by back-to-back 3-pointers by Victor Thomas, the Explorers got within five with 3:34 left, but UMass tightened up defensively and made its free throws down the stretch to capture its third straight win.
Flint expressed frustration with his team after the game.
"Championship teams bury squads like this," Flint said. "You have to come to play against everybody. Sometimes our immaturity comes out. We made some stupid mistakes."
hile the University of Massachusetts men's basketball team picked up two more wins, senior Tyrone Weeks might like to forget that last week ever happened.
The usually steady Weeks had his first goose egg of the season Saturday, scoring no points against La Salle after scoring just six against Duquesne on Tuesday.
After Weeks struggled early Saturday, UMass coach Bruiser Flint sat him for most of the rest of the game as Chris Kirkland and Ajmal Basit manned the power forward spot.
Weeks was unavailable for comment after the game, but Flint wasn't pleased with his showing.
"He didn't play well," Flint said. "I went with the guy who was out there playing well, and that was Chris Kirkland. Tyrone just has to come ready to play."
* * *
WHILE WEEKS HAS STRUGGLED, Charlton Clarke has thrived.
Clarke was named the Atlantic 10's co-player of the week last week after scoring 22 points against La Salle, and 16, including big shots down the stretch, against Duquesne.
Duquesne's Mike James shared the honor with Clarke, while Temple's Quincy Wadley captured the rookie of the week award.
* * *
The Minutemen advanced to No. 20 in the Coaches' Poll, up from No. 22 last week.
ith 4:15 remaining in the game, the ball bounced high toward the scorer's table headed for the sideline and La Salle possession.
At the time, the Minutemen were leading by just six points at 65-59, and sophomore forward Chris Kirkland wasn't ready to surrender ownership of the ball that easily. As he sprinted to the sideline, he leaped. Kirkland caught the ball high in his outstretched arms and all in one motion fired the ball backward over his head to a waiting Charlton Clarke.
 Chris Kirkland rips down one of his 10 rebounds. |
Few UMass fans were in attendance when Kirkland delivered a half-windmill dunk on Jan. 6 against Fordham, but the Pittsburgh native has had a cult following of fans ever since.
After Saturday's 13-point, 10-rebound performance, both career highs, against La Salle, Kirkland may have become a full-fledged crowd favorite and he was on the fans' minds as they left the building.
"Did you see that play Kirkland made?" one fan asked another.
Which one?
Was it the three point play in the first half when he soared through the lane to grab a Charlton Clarke three-point miss and put the rebound back in as he was fouled?
Or was it when he sailed through the lane for a two-handed dunk late in the second half?
Or one of the several other displays of athleticism that gave the crowd reasons to come to its feet in an otherwise boring game?
"Chris played great," said UMass coach Bruiser Flint. "He was active the entire game. He dove for balls ... He came up with big rebounds. He was big tonight. He did everything. Chris Kirkland played well and he deserved to play."
His defense was just as noteworthy. When he entered the game, La Salle's K'Zell Wesson already had eight points and had given Tyrone Weeks and Ajmal Basit fits for the Minutemen.
"I felt that Tyrone was having a bad game, so I wanted to go out there and help him out and just play my part for the team," Kirkland said.
Less than a minute after checking in, Kirkland stuffed Wesson. Three minutes later, Wesson, frustrated by Kirkland's defense, pushed off on him to pick up an offensive foul. That frustration lasted all afternoon.
"Chris did a good job on him," Flint said. "He got in his way and didn't let him rebound."
With Weeks spending most of the afternoon on the bench, it appeared that Kirkland, who is listed as a small forward would be playing out of position as a power forward, but that is the spot he's played all season on UMass' second team in practice.
"Tyrone plays just like him," Kirkland said. "I tried to stay in front of him and get help from the back side."
Kirkland was not a blue-chip recruit out of Sto-Rox High School just outside the Steel City, and in fact looked more like a blue-light special as he struggled through his freshman season.
But the player that high school coach Ed Goetz called the "hardest working player I've ever coached" validated the compliment and turned himself into a vital part of the UMass mix, especially Saturday.
"When we were down in the trenches, he came through," Clarke said. "He kept his hand above the rim. He was there for us today and that's what we need to win games, somebody to step up and he's been that guy."
The were 1,081 empty seats at the Mullins Center Saturday, and those not in attendance missed out. Kirkland was worth the price of admission.
t may not have been the textbook performance you look for this late in
the season, but the Massachusetts men's basketball team (19-6, 11-1
Atlantic-10) continued its march to their sixth regular season Atlantic-10
title in the '90s by beating LaSalle 81-71 Saturday at the Mullins Center.
UMass - who moved up to No. 18 in the latest AP poll - survived a
scrappy performance by the Explorers (7-16, 3-10 A-10) and pushed
their lead over Rhode Island and Temple in the A-10 East to two games
with only four left to play. UMass entertains Rhode Island (18-6, 9-3)
tomorrow night at the Mullins Center at 7:30 pm.
Though Massachusetts didn't destroy LaSalle as expected, the win - their 13th in the last 14 games - did highlight how much they've improved since November. Two of the problems that plagued them early in the season - production from the small forwards and ability to hit free throws down the stretch - turned into keys to victory.
Sophomore forward Chris Kirkland, who didn't even see action in the season opener at Fresno State, scored 13 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and had three steals against the Explorers. With Mike Babul chipping in 10 points and six rebounds, the Minutemen kept upset-minded LaSalle at bay with two players they haven't really looked upon for offensive production, and now appear to be eight players deep heading into the A-10 tournament and the NCAA's.
Charlton Clarke led UMass with 22 points, including a perfect 8-for-8 from the foul line. Lari Ketner scored 15 points and nine rebounds, and sophomore Monty Mack added 15 points.
LaSalle had the Massachusetts lead down to 65-60 with 3:36 left in the second half, on a pair of Mike Gizzi free throws. Clarke and Ketner converted baskets to push the lead to 69-60, but LaSalle guard Shawn Smith hit a three to bring the margin back down to six. Babul then threw an errant pass, giving the Explorers a chance to cut the lead to three, but LaSalle couldn't convert on consecutive possessions. The Explorers were forced to foul UMass to try to climb back in it, but Massachusetts was 8-for-8 from the line in the final 1:27 of the game.
The hero of the day was Kirkland, whose hustle brought the crowd to its feet more than once. Late in the second half, with UMass holding a slim 65-59 lead, Kirkland dove to the ground for a rebound, and then hustled back up the floor to save an errant UMass. Kirkland, well known for his athleticism, jumped in front of the scorers table, and with his back to the floor threw the ball back in play to Clarke to save the possession. Kirkland also provided a highlight-reel dunk at the 5:37 mark to give Massachusetts a 65-54 lead.
"He was down in the trenches," said Clarke of Kirkland. "He scrapped for every ball. We need someone to step up every night, [and] he's been that guy."
LaSalle center K'Zell Wesson was a force in the first half, scoring 14 points and pulling down eight rebounds. LaSalle had the UMass lead to two, 33-31, before an 8-0 run gave Massachusetts a 41-31 halftime lead. Ketner hit two straight field goals, and Kirkland delivered a basket before Clarke ended the half with a floater as time expired.
| La Salle Explorers | 71 |
| Massachusetts Minutemen (#20) | 81 |
| at the Mullins Center | |
LASALLE (71)
fg ft rb
min m-a m-a o-t a pf tp
Gizzi 30 1-9 3-7 1-3 2 3 5
Bragg 19 4-6 0-0 3-3 0 5 8
Wesson 37 7-9 7-10 8-16 1 4 21
Carr 37 7-19 1-2 0-2 3 1 16
Smith 34 2-8 1-1 1-4 4 4 6
Landgren 3 1-3 2-2 0-0 0 0 5
Collins 7 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
Thomas 28 3-10 1-1 3-4 1 2 10
Jordan 5 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 2 0
_______________________________________________
TOTALS 200 25-67 15-23 16-32 11 22 71
_______________________________________________
Percentages: FG-.373, FT-.652. 3-Point Goals:
6-22, .273 (Gizzi 0-4, Carr 1-5, Smith 1-3,
Landgren 1-2, Thomas 3-8). Team rebounds: 7.
Blocked shots: 1 (Wesson). Turnovers: 13 (Wesson
4, Gizzi 3, Smith 3, Bragg 2, Thomas). Steals: 5
(Gizzi 2, Smith 2, Bragg).
MASSACHUSETTS (81)
fg ft rb
min m-a m-a o-t a pf tp
Babul 34 3-6 4-8 2-6 3 4 10
Weeks 9 0-1 0-0 0-1 1 3 0
Ketner 30 6-13 3-3 4-9 0 3 15
Clarke 35 6-15 8-8 1-4 6 0 22
Mack 33 5-10 2-4 2-4 4 3 15
DePina 14 0-1 0-0 0-0 3 1 0
Kirkland 27 5-9 3-5 3-10 1 2 13
Basit 18 2-3 2-2 1-4 0 2 6
_______________________________________________
TOTALS 200 27-58 22-30 13-38 18 18 81
_______________________________________________
Percentages: FG-.466, FT-.733. 3-Point Goals:
5-13, .385 (Clarke 2-6, Mack 3-7). Team rebounds:
7. Blocked shots: 8 (Basit 4, Ketner 2, Kirkland,
Weeks). Turnovers: 13 (Babul 3, Mack 3, Clarke 2,
Ketner 2, DePina, Kirkland, Weeks). Steals: 6
(Kirkland 3, Babul, Clarke, Weeks).
__________________________________
Lasalle 31 40 - 71
Massachusetts 41 40 - 81
__________________________________
Technical fouls: None. A: 8,412. Officials: Tom
Scott, Terrance Murphy, John Moreau.
