January 29 vs. Stony Brook (7 p.m.)
Live Stats | Watch Live | Game Notes
February 1 vs. New Hampshire (5:30 p.m.)
Live Stats | Watch Live | Game Notes
LOWELL, Mass. - The UMass Lowell men's basketball team, who is 8-13 overall and 2-4 in league games, will welcome Stony Brook to Tsongas on Wednesday evening, January 29, at 7 p.m. before hosting New Hampshire on Saturday, February 1 at 5:30 p.m.
A WIN WOULD
A win on Wednesday would snap a three-game skid for the River Hawks. It would also give the team its second straight home win. A win on Wednesday would mark the River Hawks' first win against the Seawolves since 2018, as well.
LAST TIME OUT
Freshman
Ron Mitchell paced four double-digit scorers for UMass Lowell with 16 points in a 92-62 loss at America East opponent Vermont on Jan. 25. Mitchell recorded a personal-best four threes in the performance, while also leading the team on the glass with five rebounds. Junior
Obadiah Noel and graduate student
Christian Lutete added 13 and 12 points, respectively, while freshman
Kalil Thomas finished with a season-high 11 points. Graduate student
Josh Gantz matched a season best with a game-high five assists, as well.
LEADING THE FLOCK
Through 21 games,
Christian Lutete is leading the team with 20.5 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.
Obadiah Noel follows with 17.4 points and a team-best 32 steals.
Ron Mitchell adds 9.0 points and
Jordyn Owens paces the River Hawks with 67 assists.
Connor Withers boasts a team-best 25 blocks, as well.
SCOUTING STONY BROOK
The Seawolves are 13-8 so far this season, including a 4-2 mark in America East play. The team is coming off an 83-79 loss against Binghamton on Jan. 22, but had defeated UAlbany, 70-62, prior to that outing on Jan. 18. Elijah Olaniyi leads the team with 19.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He also adds a team best 47 assists this season. Andrew Garcia, who adds 12.3 points per game, chips in with 34 steals to rank first on the squad, while Mouhamadou Gueye totals 48 blocks. As a unit, SBU is shooting 43.2 percent from the field, including 35.8 percent from long range.
ANOTHER ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED
Obadiah Noel surpassed the 1,000 career points milestone with a jumper at 4:35 in the second half at UAlbany on Jan. 22. He becomes the program's seventh player to join the 1,000 Point Club at the Division I level, and the first to do so as a junior.
EARLY BIRD SPECIAL
The River Hawks have been most successful this year when jumping out to an early advantage. The team is 6-1 so far when taking a lead into halftime.
FREE IS FOR ME
UMass Lowell set a new season high with 25 made free throws at UMBC. In the next game, the team shot 89 percent from the charity stripe against Hartford. After shooting 70 percent from the line during the non-conference schedule, the team is currently boasting a 76 percent clip during conference play.
SETTLING IN
Kalil Thomas had the best week of his young career last week, averaging 9.5 points in a pair of games, including a season-high 11 points at Vermont on Jan. 25. The rookie had average just 1.5 points in his prior appearances.
SHARP SHOOTERS
The River Hawks, who are first in the league shooting 45.7 percent from the floor, have shot better than 45 percent on field goals 10 times this season, including a 59.3 percent clip against St. Francis Brooklyn. Two players are shooting over 50 percent individually.
UNDER CONTROL
Prior to the start of the season, Coach Duquette said that a better assist/turnover ratio was a big goal for the team. So far, the River Hawks have followed through with taking care of the ball and are first in the league in that category (1.10).
HELPING HANDS
Jordyn Owens dished out a career-high nine assists at Maine (1.15) to set a new single-game best for the team this season. Owens paces the squad with 67 assists in 2019-20. As a team, the River Hawks are currently ranked first in the America East with 15.1 assists per game.
STEALING THE SHOW
After going more than a year without logging double-digit steals, the River Hawks have already done so in four games this season, most recently against Hartford on Jan. 8. The team is currently second in its conference with 7.24 steals per game.
A THREAT ON THREES
The River Hawks drained a season-best 12 threes at Maine on Jan. 15. The team is currently second in the America East from three-point range (34.9%).
TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT
Since beginning 2014-15, 31 of the squad's 66 wins have been decided by seven points or less. The team has also trailed in the second half in 37 games during that same time frame before battling back to earn the victories. Â
NATIONAL NEWS
The River Hawks are ranked 31st in the nation for total assists (317). Individually,
Christian Lutete is ranked 14th for total points (430).
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
This season, UMass Lowell has a record 17 home games, including an eight-game homestand. With its sixth consecutive win in a home opener this season and a 5-6 record so far this year, the team is now 135-82 in front of River Hawk Nation since 2003-04.
PLAYING AT TSONGAS
For the first time ever, all of the River Hawks home conference games will be played at Tsongas, as the team will play record 11 games in the arena this year. With a victory against CCSU in the team's Tsongas debut for 2019-20 and sitting at 2-3 in the building this year, the team is now 10-22 all time in Tsongas.
Â
