February 15 vs. UAlbany (7 p.m.)
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LOWELL, Mass. - The UMass Lowell men's basketball team opens its final homestand of the season when America East opponent UAlbany comes to Costello for a Thursday night matchup beginning at 7 p.m.
A WIN WOULD
A win on Thursday would split this season's home-and-home series against UAlbany, 1-1. It would also improve the squad's overall record to 10-15, marking its fifth consecutive season with double-digit wins.    Â
LAST TIME OUT
Redshirt-senior
Jahad Thomas paced three double-digit scorers for UMass Lowell in an 81-69 setback at Vermont on Feb. 11. The River Hawks led by as many as 12 in the first half before the Catamounts tied the score twice and took the upper hand for good late in the period. Thomas, who scored over 20 points for the 10th time this season, added four assists and four steals. He also became just the sixth UMass Lowell player to surpass 800 career rebounds in the outing. He was joined in double figures by senior
Matt Harris and freshman
Obadiah Noel. Redshirt-junior
Josh Gantz added nine points and three steals.
LEADING THE FLOCK
Through 24 games,
Jahad Thomas is pacing the River Hawks with 19.9 points and 8.2 rebounds. He also boasts team-best marks for assists (84) and steals (32). Senior
Matt Harris (12.5) and junior
Ryan Jones (10.4) round out the team's scorers in double-digits.
Josh Gantz, who is shooting 48.7 (75-154) from the field, is first with 25 blocks. As a team, the River Hawks are shooting 45.8 percent (600-1309) from the field, 33.7 percent (162-481) from long range and 69.7 percent (368-528) from the foul line.
SCOUTING UALBANY
The Great Danes sit at 19-8 overall in 2017-18 with a 7-5 mark in America East play. UAlbany split its last two outings, first facing a hard-fought, 72-67 setback against Vermont on Feb. 8 before bouncing back with a 69-63 victory at Hartford on Feb. 11. Joe Cremo is leading three double-digit scorers for the squad with 17.5 points per game, as well as 103 assists. Travis Charles and David Nichols add 14.9 and 14.8 points, respectively. Greig Stire is first on the team with 8.2 rebounds per game, while Alex Foster totals 21 blocks. As a unit, UAlbany is shooting 46.2 percent (710-1538) from the floor, 36.5 percent (149-408) from three-point range and 75.4 percent (435-577) from the line.
DID YOU KNOW...
The River Hawks are 8-5 this season when
Matt Harris scores 11 points or more, but only 1-10 when he scores 10 points or less.
A SUCCESSFUL TRANSITION
Now in their first year of full DI eligibility, the River Hawks look back on a successful four-year transition period. Of the most recent 15 men's basketball programs to make the move to Division I, the squad finished second in APR (967). Additionally, UMass Lowell ranked fifth out of the most recent 25 transitioning schools in wins (40) during its four-year reclassification. Â
OFFENSIVE STATE OF MIND
The River Hawks continue to boast a powerful offense, as they are second in the conference right now with an average of 75.0 points per game and fourth with a 45.7 field goal percentage.
DOUBLING UP
With 20 points and 13 rebounds against Hartford on Jan. 27,
Jahad Thomas logged his 20th career double-double. He logged double-digit points and rebounds in three consecutive outings from Jan. 27-Feb. 8, marking the second time in his career with three double-doubles in a row.
RAISING THE BAR
Just when you think there is nothing left for
Jahad Thomas to accomplish, he raises his own bar even higher. He surpassed 800 career rebounds at Vermont on Feb. 11, becoming just the sixth UMass Lowell player to ever due so. He is ranked 26th in the nation among active career rebound leaders. Additionally, on Jan. 4 against Vermont and on Jan. 24 against Stony Brook, the redshirt-senior recorded a career-high 30 points.
WEDNESDAYS WORK
Now 24 games into the season, patterns of success have emerged for the team. It turns out, the River Hawks are most successful when playing on Wednesdays, as the squad is 5-2 so far in mid-week games. Their toughest day to play has been Saturday (0-5).
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 9.8 in the last 16, including a career-high 19 points at Hartford on Jan. 10 and at Binghamton on Jan. 21. Additionally, 45 of his 55 assists, and 22 of his 26 threes this year have come in the most recent 16 outings. His field goal percentage has also improved from 42 percent (17-41) to 51 percent (61-119).
SWEET (AND SOUR) SPOT
The River Hawks are ranked third in the conference for free throws made (385) and fourth for free throw percentage (70.0) through 24 games. Individually,
Matt Harris is second in the league with an 85.7 percent clip (66-77) 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. Although the team hit a mid-season rough patch, shooting just 61.9 percent at the line in the 10 games between Dec. 23 and Jan. 27, they have made the most of opportunities lately, with a 77.3 percent clip in the last three outings.
HELPING HANDS
One key to the River Hawks' balanced scoring has always been their ability to share the basketball, as witnessed by the team's season-high 20 helpers dished out against CCSU on Dec. 23 and against Hartford on Jan. 27. The squad is second in the America East rankings with 14.1 assists per game.
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
In 2017-18, the team has more home games than ever before at the Division I level (16). This season, the River Hawks are boasting a +1.5 scoring margin at home, compared to a -8.3 margin in road games. They are shooting 71.8 percent on free throws on their home court with a 67.4 percent clip away from home. The team has taken care of the ball at home too, with a +2.7 turnover margin compared to a -1.4 margin on the road. Including a 7-6 record this season, the River Hawks have accumulated a 120-70 mark in front of River Hawk Nation since 2003-04.
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 third in the league right now with 1.7 steals per game. As a team, the River Hawks, who totaled 11 takeaways in the Nov. 19 win against Cornell, rank third in the America East in steals per game (7.1).
BLOCK PARTY
Josh Gantz has registered his most career blocks this season with 25 so far. He is currently third in the league with an average of 1.0 per game.
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