Nov. 24, 2009
Box Score
Kyle Caiola (Parma, OH) notched a team-best 23 points as the River Hawks held Southern New Hampshire to just .288 FG percentage (15 for 52) and earned the 61-47 victory at home in Northeast-10 action on Tuesday night.
The game was a rematch of last year’s NE-10 Tournament First Round, which saw the No. 2 River Hawks upset by the No. 7 Penmen at home. With a score to settle, UMass Lowell came out on top and improves to 4-0 on the year with a 2-0 mark in NE-10 play. This marks the third time in program history the River Hawks have gotten off to a 4-0 start. Southern New Hampshire fell to 2-1 on the year with an even 1-1 record in conference action.
UMass Lowell was led by Caiola’s 23 points, as he shot 8 for 15 from the floor and was a perfect 5 for 5 from the free throw line. He was tied for a team-best seven rebounds and added three assists and a pair of steals in the game.
In the first half the River Hawks held their opponent without a field goal for nearly 16 minutes, as the Penmen scored on a layup to tie the game at five apiece at 18:35 and did not hit another field goal until the clock had wound down to 2:41 left in the first half. UMass Lowell’s defensive efforts held Southern New Hampshire to .143 FG percentage in the first half, as the Penmen went 3 for 21 in the first 20 minutes of play, compared to UML’s .407 from the floor (11 for 27) in the first.
“The first half was arguably the best defensive half I have ever been involved with,” head coach Greg Herenda said. “To hold a very good team to three field goals in one half is a testament to how hard our kids work every day. I couldn’t be any prouder.”
The second half was a different story, as the River Hawks’ 14-point lead was diminished down to three with just under 11 minutes remaining in the game. UMass Lowell went on an 11-point run, though, highlighted by five points by Caiola, to return to a 14-point lead with 7:27 on the clock.
“We sustained their run and I smartened up and gave the ball to [Kyle] Caiola and told my guys to get out of the way,” Herenda said. “He was phenomenal at scoring the basketball and sharing it when they stopped him.”
Freshman Scotty Tavares-Taylor (Boston, MA) had nine points for the River Hawks, seven coming in the first half, and went 3 for 8 from the floor. Senior Craig Heatherly (Mishawaka, IN) tied Caiola for a team-best seven boards in the contest, also adding six points and blocking three shots.
The UMass Lowell bench outscored the Penmen reserves, 19-6 and the presence of Ali Kanaan (Montreal, Que.) was felt back in the lineup, as the senior swatted five blocks, added two points and dished three assists on the night.
Southern New Hampshire was led by Stephen Wood (Queens, NY) who tallied 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds on the night. Both Tory Stapleton (Rahway, NJ) and Greg DeSantis (Trumbull, CT) tacked on 10 points apiece for the Penmen.
UMass Lowell outrebounded its opponent 41-34 in the game and stole the ball seven times, compared to Southern New Hampshire’s three. The teams each sunk four three-pointers and made 13 from the charity stripe.
“At Thanksgiving time, I am thankful I have 14 guys and a staff that work so hard for me every day,” Herenda said. “They got what they deserved tonight.”
The River Hawks return to action on Sunday, Nov. 29 when they head to North Andover for an NE-10 tilt against the Warriors of Merrimack College at 3:00 p.m.
