December 13 at Wagner (7 p.m.)
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Radio
River Hawk Radio Network: (980AM WCAP)
Talent: Nick Anastos (Play-by-Play), Matt Langone (Analyst)

TV
ESPN3
Talent: Chris Villani (Play-by-Play), Jim Borodawka (Analyst)

Twitter: @RiverHawkMBB | @RiverHawkNation Tweet ##UnitedInBlue

LOWELL, Mass. - Following a three-game road swing, the UMass Lowell men's basketball team returns to Costello for its first of two home games in the month of December when the squad hosts Boston University on Wednesday, December 13 in the first game of a doubleheader.     

A WIN WOULD
A win on Saturday would snap a four-game skid for the River Hawks. It would also mark Head Coach Pat Duquette's 50th career win. It would give UMass Lowell its second consecutive victory against the Terriers and tie the all-time series at 3-3. Lastly, a win would improve the River Hawks' home record this year to 6-1, good for their best start in friendly confines since 2010-11.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME
UMass Lowell is happy to get back home after its six-game November homestand that marked the most consecutive home games for the program since 2003-04 (7). In 2017-18, the team has more home games than ever before at the Division I level (16). Including a 5-1 record this season, the River Hawks have accumulated a 118-65 mark in front of River Hawk Nation since 2003-04.  

LAST TIME OUT
Junior Ryan Jones paced UMass Lowell with a game-high 20 points in an 89-75 loss at Brown on Dec. 9. Seniors Jahad Thomas and Matt Harris rounded out the double-digit scorers for the River Hawks with 15 points apiece, while Thomas added a team-high nine rebounds. The River Hawks cut the difference to just one early in the second half, but the Bears converted 13-of-16 free throws on 14 fouls in the final period to pull away for good.

LEADING THE FLOCK
Through 10 games, Jahad Thomas is pacing the River Hawks with 19.3 points and 10.0 rebounds. Matt Harris (14.1) and Ryan Jones (12.5) round out the team's scorers in double-digits. Redshirt-sophomore Connor Bennett is shooting 65.9 percent (27-41) from the field. Junior Shawn Jones has dished out 27 assists, while Thomas leads the team with 16 steals. Redshirt-junior Josh Gantz is first with 10 blocks, as well. As a team, the River Hawks are shooting 44.9 percent (269-599) from the field, 35.3 percent (72-204) from long range and 73.3 percent (184-251) from the foul line.

SCOUTING BOSTON UNIVERSITY
The Terriers, who are currently 4-4 on the young season, split a pair of games last week. The squad first fell, 69-54, at No. 10 Miami on Dec. 5 before defeating Bethune-Cookman, 90-87, on the road on Dec. 8. Cedric Hankerson and Nick Havener are both scoring in double figures with 11.8 and 10.6 points per game, respectively. Havener is pacing the team with 5.3 rebounds per game and 11 blocks, as well. Javante McCoy and Tyler Scanlon have been the team's primary playmakers so far with 18 assists apiece. As a team, BU is shooting 44.7 percent (216-483) from the field, 36.7 percent (69-188) from long range and 54.5 percent (73-134) from the foul line.

SPLIT PERSONALITY
The River Hawks have had two distinct streaks in 2017-18, split between a five-game win streak and their current four-game skid. Take a look at some key comparisons of the numbers during both stretches:

	Winning Streak	Losing Streak
Scoring Offense	86.6	73.0
Scoring Defense	71.0	86.0
Scoring Margin	+15.6	-13.0
3FG%	39%	30%
Opp. 3FG%	32%	48%
Rebounding Margin	+6.8	-4.5
Assists	16.0	11.0
Turnover Margin	+4.8	-2.5

                                  
                             
                          
                          
    
                
                       
 
                               




SWEET SPOT
The River Hawks are ranked 23rd in the nation for free throws made (184). The team is shooting 73.3 percent on free throws through 10 games, good for third in the America East. Individually, Matt Harris paces the team with an 89.2 percent clip (33-37) from the line, while Obadiah Noel drained a team-high 11 free throws at Wagner on Dec. 5.

SHARING IS CARING
A total of 10 different River Hawks found the basket in the team's outing at Brown on Dec. 9, marking the most team members that have contributed to the offense in a game since Dec. 6, 2016 at Sacred Heart (10). The Division I program record is 11 point scorers (vs. BU, 12/10/15).

OFFENSIVE STATE OF MIND
The River Hawks continue to boast a powerful offense, as they are third in the conference right now with an average of 79.4 points per game and fifth with a +2.1 scoring margin.

UNDER CONTROL
With just 14.5 turnovers per game, the River Hawks have been taking care of the ball this season. The team is third in the league with a +1.50 turnover margin.

A DIFFERENCE ON DEFENSE
UMass Lowell has made defense its top priority in 2017-18 and the difference is apparent. The team set a new program Division I record with 56 rebounds, in addition to tying the record for blocks with eight against UMass Boston on Nov. 12. Against Cornell on Nov. 19, the team forced a season-high 22 turnovers. The River Hawks are currently ranked second in the America East and 68th in the nation with 16.0 turnovers forced per game. They are also third in the league for blocks (3.3), and fifth in both rebounding defense (35.6) and defensive rebounds (25.2).                    

GOING STREAKING
The team's five-game win streak from Nov. 12-26 was the program's longest since 2014-15 (6 games). The streak also gave the team its best home court start since 2009-10 (6-0). Current active streaks for the team include having registered a three-point field goal in the last 108 consecutive games, dating back to Feb. 1, 2014. Individually, Jahad Thomas has scored at least 10 points in every game he's appeared in since Jan. 22, 2017 for a double-digit active scoring streak of 18 games.

LEADING THE WAY
Jahad Thomas, who was named America East Player of the Week on both Nov. 20 and Nov. 27, ranks among the America East's active career leaders for several categories. He is currently first in the league for career steals (132), second for points (1429) and assists (302), and third for rebounds (706). Classmate Mat Harris has also jumped onto the active leaders list, as he now ranks seventh for career points (977).

TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT
Since beginning 2014-15, 21 of the squad's 37 wins have been decided by seven points or less. The team has also trailed in the second half in 22 games during that same time frame before battling back to earn the victories.  
 

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