SMITHFIELD, R.I. - The UMass Lowell men's basketball team (16-7, 7-3 AE) wraps up a three-game road swing at Bryant (17-9, 9-2 AE) on Saturday, Feb. 17.
A WIN WOULD
A win against Bryant would improve UMass Lowell's overall record to 17-7, good for the second-best start in program history, only behind the 17-5 start during the 2022-23 season. It would also mark the River Hawks' third straight victory against the Bulldogs. With a victory, the River Hawks would also become the first team in the country to reach ten road wins this season.
LAST TIME OUT
Senior
Quinton Mincey tallied a team-high 21 points, as the UMass Lowell men's basketball team faced a 71-64 setback at NJIT on Feb. 10. Mincey, who shot 60% (3-5) from beyond the arc, was one of three double-digit scorers for the River Hawks. Behind him, sophomore
Brayden O'Connor added 13 points alongside three assists, while senior
Ayinde Hikim filled up the box score with 11 points, four rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal.
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LEADING THE FLOCK
Four River Hawks are averaging double-digits, as
Ayinde Hikim leads the squad with 15.0 points per game. Behind him,
Quinton Mincey adds 13.3 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, while
Max Brooks chips in 12.7 points alongside a team-high 7.5 boards.
Cam Morris III rounds out the double-digit scorers with 11.5 points and 5.8 rebounds. Picking up from where he left off last year as the primary playmaker, Hikim paces his squad with 125 assists and 41 steals, while Brooks totals 47 blocks, so far.
ROAD WARRIORS
The River Hawks know they need to be an excellent road team to finish atop their conference standings. They are headed in the right direction, as they have already collected a nation-leading nine road wins this year. The nine wins matches the program's DI record set last season. However, last year it took the team until Feb. 22 to reach the nine-win mark away from home, compared to Feb. 8 this year.
BOUNCE BACK
The River Hawks have been quick to get back in the win column after every loss this season, following each of their setbacks with one or more victories.
PERIMETER PROTECTION
Heading into this season, Coach Duquette said one of the most important keys to success for his team this year would be becoming an elite perimeter defense team. So far, so good, as the River Hawks are ranked sixth in the nation in three-point percentage defense.
BROOKS TO THE MAX
Max Brooks had a career night at UMBC on Feb. 8, setting new personal bests for points (31), field goals (14) and rebounds (19). Brooks and Zach Edey of Purdue are the only players in the country who have 30+ points, 19+ rebounds and 3+ blocks in a single game this season. The senior is also closing in on 1,000 career points (968).
CLOSING IT OUT
With the America East more competitive than ever, the River Hawks know no game will be an easy one. That fact has already been on display early in the conference season, as four of the team's seven conference wins have been separated by just two possessions within the final 10 minutes, and three of those games were decided by eight points or less.
SHARING IS CARING
Scoring can come from many different threats on any night for the River Hawks. The team has boasted at least four double-digit scorers in eight of their 10 league games so far, including a season-best six, 10+ point scorers at UAlbany.
Q THE MUSIC
Quinton Mincey started quite the stretch for himself since the non-conference finale vs. Emerson, establishing himself as a premier sixth man during conference play. He first set what was then a new career high for points (18) with a personal-best three, threes against the Lions and has since averaged a team-best 18.7 points during America East play, compared to just 8.6 points per game previously. His latest career high for points came against UNH on Feb. 3 (25).
SHARP SHOOTERS
As a team, the River Hawks are shooting 48.8% from the field (21st nationally) after surpassing 48% shooting in 12 of 23 games so far. Individually,
Max Brooks ranks tenth in the nation in field goal percentage at 63.1%. In seven #AEHoops games, he ranks second with a 64.8% field goal percentage, while averaging 15.5 points.
NOT WASTING TIME
The River Hawks have been quick to attack this season, leading at the half in 16 of their 23 games. The team is 14-2 when holding the advantage going into the locker room so far.
INSIDE JOB
The River Hawks' have relied on their scoring from down low this season, with an average of 44.9 points per game coming from inside the paint. In the wins at UAlbany and UMBC, the team scored 58 points from the paint, which are conference season highs for the squad.
PRIMARY PLAYMAKER
Ayinde Hikim, who logged a season-high nine assists against UMBC on Jan. 11, is currently 32nd in the nation with 5.4 assists per game after surpassing the 100-assists milestone for the second-straight year against Vermont on Jan. 25. He is the eighth player in program history to record consecutive seasons with 100+ assists and with 125 helpers so far, he is closing in on the DI program record (143 - Jahad Thomas, 2016-17).
ON MY BLOCK
Max Brooks logged a season-high five blocks in the win against NJIT on Jan. 11. He is currently 37th in the country with 47 total blocks. As a whole, the River Hawks are 31st in the nation in blocks per game.
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