January 18 at UAlbany (7 p.m.)
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LOWELL, Mass. - The UMass Lowell men's basketball team hits the road for a pair of America East contests this week beginning at UAlbany on Thursday, January 18. Â Â
A WIN WOULD
A win on Thursday would snap a six-game skid, the team's longest since 2013-14 (Nov. 8-26). It would also mark the team's first conference win of the year, as well as it's first road win since Jan. 8, 2017.
LAST TIME OUT
Redshirt-senior
Jahad Thomas logged his fourth double-double of the season with 22 points and 11 rebounds in a 74-62 loss for UMass Lowell against New Hampshire on Martin Luther King Jr. Day at the Tsongas Center. Junior
Shawn Jones and freshman
Obadiah Noel chipped in with nine points apiece, while senior
Matt Harris totaled eight. The Wildcats created a 19-point advantage in the first half, and although the River Hawks closed the gap to just 10 early in the second, they were unable to come any closer.
LEADING THE FLOCK
Through 17 games,
Jahad Thomas is pacing the River Hawks with 18.9 points and 8.0 rebounds. He also boasts team-best marks for assists (56) and steals (27). Senior
Matt Harris (12.2),
Ryan Jones (10.3) and sophomore
Rinardo Perry (10.1) round out the team's scorers in double-digits.
Josh Gantz, who is shooting 47.3 (52-110) from the field, is first with 21 blocks. As a team, the River Hawks are shooting 44.7 percent (436-976) from the field, 33.7 percent (120-356) from long range and 70.5 percent (289-410) from the foul line.
SCOUTING UALBANY
The Great Danes sit at 14-6 overall in 2017-18 with a 2-3 mark in America East play. UAlbany split its last two outings, first picking up an 84-66 win at Maine on Jan. 13 before facing a 79-66 setback against Binghamton on Jan. 15. Joe Cremo is leading three double-digit scorers for the squad with 17.6 points per game, as well as 76 assists. Travis Charles and David Nichols add 15.1 and 14.8 points, respectively. Greig Stire is first on the team with 8.2 rebounds per game. As a unit, UAlbany is shooting 46.3 percent (542-1171) from the floor, 36.8 percent (113-307) from three-point range) and 75.2 percent (328-436) from the line.
GAINS FOR GANTZ
Josh Gantz has come on strong as of late. After averaging 5.5 points per game through the first eight games of the year, he has averaged 10.0 in the last eight, including a career-high 19 points at Hartford on Jan. 10. Additionally, 28 of his 38 assists and 12 of his 16 threes this year have come in the most recent nine outings. His field goal percentage has also improved from 42 percent (17-41) to 51 percent (35-69).
SWEET SPOT
The River Hawks are ranked third in the conference for free throws made (289) and fourth for free throw percentage (70.5)Â through 17 games. Individually,
Matt Harris is also third in the league with an 85.2 percent clip (52-61) from the line, while Harris (vs. BU, 12.13) and
Obadiah Noel (at Wagner, 12.5) have each drained a season-high 11 free throws in a single game.
A BUMPY ROAD
The River Hawks, who play 13 games away from friendly confines in 2017-18, have struggled on the road as of late. The team is in the midst of a 13-game road skid dating back to Jan. 8, 2017. As a program, UMass Lowell has accumulated a 90-124 road record since 2003-04.
OFFENSIVE STATE OF MIND
The River Hawks continue to boast a powerful offense, as they are fourth in the conference right now with an average of 75.4 points per game and fifth with a 44.7 field goal percentage.
UNDER CONTROL
With just 13.2 turnovers per game, the River Hawks have been taking care of the ball this season. The team is second in the league with a +1.88 turnover margin.
STEALING THE SHOW
On Dec. 13,
Rinardo Perry became the first River Hawk to log five steals in a game since
Mark Cornelius did so on Nov. 18, 2015.
Jahad Thomas is 69th in the nation right now with 1.9 steals per game. As a team, the River Hawks, who totaled 11 takeaways in the Nov. 19 win against Cornell, rank second in the league in steals per game (7.1).
SOPHOMORE STRIDES
Rinardo Perry has made great strides in his game during his second campaign with the River Hawks. The guard, who shot 35 percent from the floor for 4.3 points per game as a rookie, is now averaging 10.1 points with a 44 percent clip from the floor. With a total of 13 three-pointers all of last season, the sophomore already has 17 in 2017-18.
BLOCK PARTY
The River Hawks are currently averaging their most blocks per game (3.4) since 2012-13 (3.4). They are also third in the America East right now, led by
Josh Gantz with 1.2 per game.
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 115 consecutive games, dating back to Feb. 1, 2014.
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