Monday, February 13, 2012
First the Super Bowl, now the the Grammys. And to think the Giants were considering cutting Vic at one point.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Five minutes into last night's hockey game at the Mullins Center, I'm not sure many people were surprised. The Mass Attack were down 2-0 to Providence a night after beating #1 Boston University on the road. David Brown beat Kevin Boyle on the Friars' first shot of the game and just 90 seconds later UMass found themselves down two at home in a must-win game. As usual, UMass found some life towards the end of the first period when Mike Pereira scored what would be the first of three goals on the night.
Down 2-1, the Minutemen allowed two more goals in the span of 23 seconds early in the 2nd period to pretty much give away the game. Pereira would score two quick goals of his own to start off the 3rd (his second hat trick of the season) and Patrick Kiley made it a one goal game with six minutes left, but the comeback wasn't to be. UMass dug themselves a hole too early and gave away their most winnable game left on the schedule. Northeastern was idle so the two teams remain locked at 16 points and tied for the 8th and final playoff spot. Unfortunately Northeastern holds the head-to-head tiebreaker so as of now, UMass is out of the Hockey East Tournament.
Down in Philly things weren't much better as basketball didn't find their stride until too late in the game. UMass was only down one at halftime in front of a sold out Hawk Hill, but they would end up losing 73-62. I only listened on the radio, but it sounds like UMass had a terrible shooting night (24 of 71, 33.8%). Jesse Morgan scored 18 in his hometown while Vinson had 10, and Chaz added 11. The Minutemen got out-rebounded by ten and fell into a tie for third place with Xavier who they will host on the 21st.
Five minutes into last night's hockey game at the Mullins Center, I'm not sure many people were surprised. The Mass Attack were down 2-0 to Providence a night after beating #1 Boston University on the road. David Brown beat Kevin Boyle on the Friars' first shot of the game and just 90 seconds later UMass found themselves down two at home in a must-win game. As usual, UMass found some life towards the end of the first period when Mike Pereira scored what would be the first of three goals on the night.
Down in Philly things weren't much better as basketball didn't find their stride until too late in the game. UMass was only down one at halftime in front of a sold out Hawk Hill, but they would end up losing 73-62. I only listened on the radio, but it sounds like UMass had a terrible shooting night (24 of 71, 33.8%). Jesse Morgan scored 18 in his hometown while Vinson had 10, and Chaz added 11. The Minutemen got out-rebounded by ten and fell into a tie for third place with Xavier who they will host on the 21st.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
For the second straight Saturday, UMass basketball and hockey will be challenging the multi-tasking skills of Minutemen Nation. Starting at 7:00 hockey will be hosting a must-win game against Providence while 265 miles south basketball will try to steal a road game at St. Joe's. I suggest bringing a Walkman to the Mullins Center. Hoops will be on KIX 100.9 which comes in loud and clear inside the Bill.
It can't be said enough how critical tonight's game is for hockey. Last night's win over #1 Boston University was huge, but it was a bonus. Tonight's game was the one UMass fans were looking at for points this weekend and they still are. UMass must get them tonight - preferably two points since it's a home game. The Mass Attack are tied with Northeastern for the 8th and final playoff spot entering tonight and the Huskies are idle. Two points would create some nice separation as the remaining schedule doesn't get any easier than tonight.
Tonight's opponent, Providence, is three points ahead of UMass, tied 6th with New Hampshire. Keep an eye on Ross Mauermann (8G, 13A, 21P), Matt Bergland (5, 13, 18) and Tim Schaller (12, 5, 17). In goal will likely be Alex Beaudry (3.01 GAA, 89.4 SV%).
For basketball, tonight's game begins a brutal stretch of six games to close out the season. Of the three road games, this one is easily the most winnable. St. Joe's isn't the same promising Hawks team that came to the Mullins Center on January 14th. Since that game St. Joe's is 3-4 (although in fairness they have had a tough schedule). They've defended Hawk Hill though where they are 10-2 this season.
St. Joe's is a high scoring team averaging 71.3 points per game with four players averaging double figures. At the top of that list is junior guard Carl Jones who at 15.9 PPG is 5th in the A-10. Right behind him are Langston Galloway (15.4) and C.J. Aiken and Ronald Roberts - each with 11.2 a night. Aiken continues to lead the A-10 in blocks per game with 3.8.
They also boast one of the better defenses in the conference with 67.6 points allowed per game (6th), a 39.3 opponent field goal percentage (2nd), 7.6 blocked shots (1st), and a +1.7 rebound margin. It's not going to be easy for UMass to win this game, but they can if they limit the mistakes and force St. Joe's to turn the ball over which they are prone to do. UMass is going to need good defense in the paint and I think Maxie Esho should get some more minutes in this one. Vinson struggled against Nicholson, but Maxie showed us his potential, especially on the boards.
Player of the Game Prediction
I'm going to ride the hot hand and say Jesse Morgan has another great game to lead UMass to their 19th win of the season.
A couple of days ago, UMass announced a $33 million fundraising effort with the goal of "enhancing capital, scholarship, endowment, and sport specific goals over the next six years." They also announced the re-branding of the annual fund to "The Minutemen Club" (which MN highly approves of btw!) and a the upcoming launch of a new website: www.TheMinutemenClub.com.
As pointed out by a poster on the UMass Hoops message board, the yet-to-be launched domain was purchased by Old Hat Creative which has produced videos and ad campaigns for some of the biggest schools in the country. You can check out some of their work for UNC, Notre Dame, Michigan, and others here.
I found these two ads under their newly created University of Massachusetts-Amherst (gotta lose the hyphen) page.
If these are indeed the type of things we will be seeing over the months to come, I like them. Very well produced. The top ad is going to be in newspapers according to Old Hat's website and features the proposed renovations to McGuirk as well as the new basketball-specific Champions Center. The bottom as you can see is a new brochure for the Court Club.
I encourage everyone to get involved with helping UMass athletics during these important times for our school. We're going to need money, but also strong support in the stands and in spreading the word about the big things going on in Amherst. Keep tweeting about upcoming games, post the basketball highlights to Facebook, wear your UMass stuff around, and get to as many games as possible!
As pointed out by a poster on the UMass Hoops message board, the yet-to-be launched domain was purchased by Old Hat Creative which has produced videos and ad campaigns for some of the biggest schools in the country. You can check out some of their work for UNC, Notre Dame, Michigan, and others here.
I found these two ads under their newly created University of Massachusetts-Amherst (gotta lose the hyphen) page.
I encourage everyone to get involved with helping UMass athletics during these important times for our school. We're going to need money, but also strong support in the stands and in spreading the word about the big things going on in Amherst. Keep tweeting about upcoming games, post the basketball highlights to Facebook, wear your UMass stuff around, and get to as many games as possible!
It can't be said enough how critical tonight's game is for hockey. Last night's win over #1 Boston University was huge, but it was a bonus. Tonight's game was the one UMass fans were looking at for points this weekend and they still are. UMass must get them tonight - preferably two points since it's a home game. The Mass Attack are tied with Northeastern for the 8th and final playoff spot entering tonight and the Huskies are idle. Two points would create some nice separation as the remaining schedule doesn't get any easier than tonight.
Tonight's opponent, Providence, is three points ahead of UMass, tied 6th with New Hampshire. Keep an eye on Ross Mauermann (8G, 13A, 21P), Matt Bergland (5, 13, 18) and Tim Schaller (12, 5, 17). In goal will likely be Alex Beaudry (3.01 GAA, 89.4 SV%).
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| Last time UMass and St. Joe's met |
St. Joe's is a high scoring team averaging 71.3 points per game with four players averaging double figures. At the top of that list is junior guard Carl Jones who at 15.9 PPG is 5th in the A-10. Right behind him are Langston Galloway (15.4) and C.J. Aiken and Ronald Roberts - each with 11.2 a night. Aiken continues to lead the A-10 in blocks per game with 3.8.
They also boast one of the better defenses in the conference with 67.6 points allowed per game (6th), a 39.3 opponent field goal percentage (2nd), 7.6 blocked shots (1st), and a +1.7 rebound margin. It's not going to be easy for UMass to win this game, but they can if they limit the mistakes and force St. Joe's to turn the ball over which they are prone to do. UMass is going to need good defense in the paint and I think Maxie Esho should get some more minutes in this one. Vinson struggled against Nicholson, but Maxie showed us his potential, especially on the boards.
Player of the Game Prediction
I'm going to ride the hot hand and say Jesse Morgan has another great game to lead UMass to their 19th win of the season.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Today at 3:00 down at West Point, the 2012 UMass lacrosse season gets underway against Army. The Minutemen start the season ranked 11th in the Coaches Poll and 13th in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll. In terms of the CAA, UMass was picked to finish a very close second to Delaware in the pre-season CAA Coaches Poll.
Returning for the Minutemen this season are all but one of their top ten scorers from last year. Junior Will Manny (45 points) will lead the attack with senior Art Kell (44 points) while senior Tom Celentani (2011 All-CAA) will anchor the defense. Manny and Celentani were selected to the Pre-Season All-CAA team along with senior attacker Anthony Biscardi.
Senior Tim McCormack will be in goal looking to improve upon his 2011 performance where he posted an 8.33 GAA (4th (out of 6) in the CAA) and 54.8 save percentage (5th CAA).
The Black Knights and Minutemen kicked off the 2011 season in Amherst with #16 UMass getting the best of #12 Army, 8-5. UMass out-shot Army 50-22 in that game. McCormack made 9 saves while seven different Minutemen scored a goal.
This year's Army team starts the season unranked in both polls, but is listed under "receiving votes" in each. They were picked to finish second in the Patriot League.
Stay tuned below for updates.
#13 Massachusetts (0-0) at Army (0-0)
3:00 - Michie Stadium, West Point, NY
Video: UMassAthletics.com - Radio: 91.1 WMUA - Game Notes
Today at 3:00 down at West Point, the 2012 UMass lacrosse season gets underway against Army. The Minutemen start the season ranked 11th in the Coaches Poll and 13th in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll. In terms of the CAA, UMass was picked to finish a very close second to Delaware in the pre-season CAA Coaches Poll.
Returning for the Minutemen this season are all but one of their top ten scorers from last year. Junior Will Manny (45 points) will lead the attack with senior Art Kell (44 points) while senior Tom Celentani (2011 All-CAA) will anchor the defense. Manny and Celentani were selected to the Pre-Season All-CAA team along with senior attacker Anthony Biscardi.
Senior Tim McCormack will be in goal looking to improve upon his 2011 performance where he posted an 8.33 GAA (4th (out of 6) in the CAA) and 54.8 save percentage (5th CAA).
The Black Knights and Minutemen kicked off the 2011 season in Amherst with #16 UMass getting the best of #12 Army, 8-5. UMass out-shot Army 50-22 in that game. McCormack made 9 saves while seven different Minutemen scored a goal.
This year's Army team starts the season unranked in both polls, but is listed under "receiving votes" in each. They were picked to finish second in the Patriot League.
Stay tuned below for updates.
Chaz Williams' half-court alley-oop pass to Raphiael Putney tonight against St. Bonaventure came in at #3 on SportsCenter's top 10 plays!
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
UMass entered the night tied for second place and they will end the day in the same position after a 76-67 victory over St. Bonaventure tonight at the Mullins Center. Two of the three teams UMass (18-6, 7-3) was tied with won (Xavier and St. Louis), but La Salle lost in the final seconds at Richmond. That will leave UMass, Xavier, and St. Louis tied for second behind Temple who rallied to beat GW and stay atop the standings. Having already beat St. Louis, UMass will have at least a shot to control their own destiny with a game against both Xavier and Temple still left on the schedule. With tonight's win, the Minutemen moved to a perfect 12-0 at home this season.
It wasn't a great start for UMass who fell behind early as the shots wouldn't fall and the Bonnies dominated the glass. Ultimately St. Bonaventure would take a 34-31 lead into the locker room, but a deep Jesse Morgan three that took a lucky bounce and dropped at the buzzer would be a sign of things to come.
UMass came out flying in the second half on a 14-2 run to take a 45-36 lead just three and a half minutes in. A big contributor to that run was Morgan who ended the night with a team-leading 24 points while adding 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. He made 6 of his 7 three pointers. Chaz Williams also scored in double figures with 17 (5 assists and 6 rebounds) and Terrell Vinson scored 10.
Not to be overlooked is Maxie Esho who scored 9 points and grabbed 2 rebounds. I thought Maxie played especially well - definitely one of his better games in awhile.
The Bonnies closed the gap to 54-51 with 8:41 to go, but UMass went on another run - this time a 17-2 run - to go up 71-53 and seal the deal. Careless play at the end led to some Bonnie baskets that made the score a little closer.
UMass didn't really have an answer for Andrew Nicholson who fell just shy of a double-double with 24 points and 9 rebounds.
It's now onto St. Joe's on Saturday night to face the 15-10 (5-5) Hawks. This is one of those road games UMass can take and with just over three weeks to go, every win gets them a step closer to a direct ticket to Atlantic City.
Player of the Game
No doubt Jesse Morgan. His 24 points led the Minutemen and was a new career high.
Some football news just coming in from out West...
Nick Rolovich has joined Chris Ault's staff at Nevada. The former Hawaii offensive coordinator was reportedly joining Coach Molnar's staff as the new OC of the Minutemen, but has apparently changed his mind.
Interestingly, the original source on the hire was CoachingSearch.com which also had Kevin Morris joining the staff at FIU. Yesterday they changed his destination to Yale.
With a split road trip behind them that included a bad loss at Rhode Island and a good bounce-back win at George Washington, UMass (17-6, 6-3) is back at the Mullins Center tonight for the first time since January 28 to face St. Bonaventure (12-8, 5-3). Entering the week the Minutemen are in a four-way tie for second place in the A-10 with St. Louis, La Salle, and Xavier. Right behind them is St. Bonaventure who enter the game on a week of rest.
The Bonnies are led by Andrew Nicholson who I singled out in the post title for a reason. The 6-9, 240 senior forward is a lock to be drafted this June (currently going 36th overall to Toronto according to NBADraft.net). He leads the team in points per game (15.0), rebounds (7.0), blocks (30), and shoots 54.7% which is highest among starters. Nicholson will however pick up fouls and has fouled out five times this season. DK said on the radio show Monday that drawing fouls on Nicholson will be a key for UMass. Terrell Vinson said something to the effect that he looks forward to helping stack up the fouls on Nicholson, but knows he is going to score. Vinson said UMass just has to limit the damage.
The only other player averaging double digits on St. Bonaventure is fellow forward Demitrius Conger. Conger is scoring 12.2 points per game and grabbing 5.3 rebounds while playing over 33 minutes a night. Forward Da'Quan Cook and guard Matthew Wright are each adding 8.1 points.
For UMass, this is a game you have to win. It's said a million times, but you have to win your home games during the conference season. Especially after the bad loss on the road at URI. The other key is stealing a few games on the road. UMass might have that opportunity on Saturday at a struggling St. Joe's team. But for now the focus is on St. Bonaventure.
The game is part of a doubleheader with the women's team who is also facing St. Bonaventure at 5:00. The female Bonnies are ranked #25 this week so get to the men's game early to support the Minutewomen.
Player of the Game Prediction
Freddie Riley. Guys on the team say he's due for a breakout game and I think it'll be tonight.
The Series
All-Time: 39-19 UMass
In Amherst: 20-8 UMass
Under Kellogg: 1-2
Last Meeting: UMass beat the Bonnies 78-69 after a scary flight to Orlean in late January of last year.
Minutemen still in a tie for second place after defeating the Bonnies at the Mullins Center
UMass entered the night tied for second place and they will end the day in the same position after a 76-67 victory over St. Bonaventure tonight at the Mullins Center. Two of the three teams UMass (18-6, 7-3) was tied with won (Xavier and St. Louis), but La Salle lost in the final seconds at Richmond. That will leave UMass, Xavier, and St. Louis tied for second behind Temple who rallied to beat GW and stay atop the standings. Having already beat St. Louis, UMass will have at least a shot to control their own destiny with a game against both Xavier and Temple still left on the schedule. With tonight's win, the Minutemen moved to a perfect 12-0 at home this season.
It wasn't a great start for UMass who fell behind early as the shots wouldn't fall and the Bonnies dominated the glass. Ultimately St. Bonaventure would take a 34-31 lead into the locker room, but a deep Jesse Morgan three that took a lucky bounce and dropped at the buzzer would be a sign of things to come.
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| Jesse Morgan for three! (Daily Collegian photo) |
Not to be overlooked is Maxie Esho who scored 9 points and grabbed 2 rebounds. I thought Maxie played especially well - definitely one of his better games in awhile.
The Bonnies closed the gap to 54-51 with 8:41 to go, but UMass went on another run - this time a 17-2 run - to go up 71-53 and seal the deal. Careless play at the end led to some Bonnie baskets that made the score a little closer.
UMass didn't really have an answer for Andrew Nicholson who fell just shy of a double-double with 24 points and 9 rebounds.
It's now onto St. Joe's on Saturday night to face the 15-10 (5-5) Hawks. This is one of those road games UMass can take and with just over three weeks to go, every win gets them a step closer to a direct ticket to Atlantic City.
| Player | PTS | REB | A/B/S |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jesse Morgan | 24 | 4 | 3 A |
| Chaz Williams | 17 | 6 | 5 A |
| Terrell Vinson | 10 | 4 | 3 A |
| Maxie Esho | 9 | 2 | 1 S |
| Raphiael Putney | 7 | 4 | 4 B |
Player of the Game
No doubt Jesse Morgan. His 24 points led the Minutemen and was a new career high.
Nick Rolovich has joined Chris Ault's staff at Nevada. The former Hawaii offensive coordinator was reportedly joining Coach Molnar's staff as the new OC of the Minutemen, but has apparently changed his mind.
Interestingly, the original source on the hire was CoachingSearch.com which also had Kevin Morris joining the staff at FIU. Yesterday they changed his destination to Yale.
St. Bonaventure (12-8, 5-3) at Massachusetts (17-6, 6-3)
7:30 PM - Mullins Center, Amherst, MA
Video: UMassAthletics.com - Radio: KIX 100.9 FM
The Bonnies are led by Andrew Nicholson who I singled out in the post title for a reason. The 6-9, 240 senior forward is a lock to be drafted this June (currently going 36th overall to Toronto according to NBADraft.net). He leads the team in points per game (15.0), rebounds (7.0), blocks (30), and shoots 54.7% which is highest among starters. Nicholson will however pick up fouls and has fouled out five times this season. DK said on the radio show Monday that drawing fouls on Nicholson will be a key for UMass. Terrell Vinson said something to the effect that he looks forward to helping stack up the fouls on Nicholson, but knows he is going to score. Vinson said UMass just has to limit the damage.The only other player averaging double digits on St. Bonaventure is fellow forward Demitrius Conger. Conger is scoring 12.2 points per game and grabbing 5.3 rebounds while playing over 33 minutes a night. Forward Da'Quan Cook and guard Matthew Wright are each adding 8.1 points.
| Player | Pos | PPG | RPG | A/B/S | FG% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlon Kloof | G | 5.3 | 2.2 | 2.4 A | 43.8% |
| Demitrius Conger | F | 12.2 | 5.5 | 2.2 A | 53.6% |
| Matthew Wright | G | 8.1 | 3.1 | 1.2 S | 36.4% |
| Da'Quan Cook | F | 8.1 | 5.1 | 0.4 B | 42.6% |
| Andrew Nicholson | F | 15.0 | 7.0 | 1.5 B | 54.7% |
As a team the Bonnies have the second best scoring defense in the conference. They are allowing just 63.3 points per game and hold opponents to a conference best 30.3 rebounds. Compare that to UMass who leads the conference in scoring (77.2) and rebounds (40.5) and you have an interesting match-up.
For UMass, this is a game you have to win. It's said a million times, but you have to win your home games during the conference season. Especially after the bad loss on the road at URI. The other key is stealing a few games on the road. UMass might have that opportunity on Saturday at a struggling St. Joe's team. But for now the focus is on St. Bonaventure.
The game is part of a doubleheader with the women's team who is also facing St. Bonaventure at 5:00. The female Bonnies are ranked #25 this week so get to the men's game early to support the Minutewomen.
Player of the Game Prediction
Freddie Riley. Guys on the team say he's due for a breakout game and I think it'll be tonight.
The Series
All-Time: 39-19 UMass
In Amherst: 20-8 UMass
Under Kellogg: 1-2
Last Meeting: UMass beat the Bonnies 78-69 after a scary flight to Orlean in late January of last year.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Hockey lost their game against #4 Merrimack on Saturday in heartbreaking fashion when the Warriors scored the game winner with just 2 seconds to play. It was the annual Bright Out Night and still a good game to watch until the end. Here's a few pictures from the game with more at the link at the bottom.
All 44 pictures can be seen here: https://picasaweb.google.com/105221252169032139426/HockeyVsMerrimack
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| Faceoff |
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| Steve Mastalerz defends his goal |
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| Darren Rowe |
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| Mass Attack |
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| Mastalerz after the second period |
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| Mastalerz |
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| Sam picks a winner in the Chuck-A-Puck contest |
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| Joel Hanley's 3rd period goal |
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| Mike Pereira fights for the puck |
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| Conor Allen looks on with the crowd |
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| Mastalerz reacts after allowing the game winning goal |
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| Team acknowledges the fans |
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