LOWELL, Mass. - The UMass Lowell men's basketball team (17-7, 8-3) is back in Costell Athletic Center this week for the final homestand of the regular season, starting with a rematch against Binghamton on Thursday, February 22 at 6:30 p.m. followed by a 1 p.m. tipoff against UAlbany on Saturday, Feb. 24.
CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY MONTH
The River Hawks will celebrate Black History Month on Thursday and will honor Harry Haskell "Bucky" Lew with a special pre-game reception and on-court presentation. Lew, a Lowell native, was not only the first Black professional basketball player, but also became the first Black coach of an integrated collegiate team when he coached Lowell Tech, predecessor of UMass Lowell, in 1922. Lew's granddaughter, Wendy Johnson, and biographer, Chris Boucher '93, will be in attendance. All are welcome to the Costello Athletic Center Film Room at 5:30 p.m. to learn about Lew' history and legacy.
A WIN WOULD
A win against Binghamton would improve UMass Lowell's overall record to 18-7, 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 Bearcats. A win would give UMass Lowell it's ninth league win of the season, as well, good for the second-most America East wins in program history just behind the 11 from 2022-23.
LAST TIME OUT
In a tightly-contested battle that featured 15 tied scores, senior
Yuri Covington shot 4-for-5 from beyond the arc en route to a game-high 27 points to help propel the UMass Lowell men's basketball team to a thrilling, 86-77 victory at America East foe Bryant on Saturday afternoon. Senior
Ayinde Hikim added 21 points in the contest, while sophomore
Brayden O'Connor rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points. Senior
Quinton Mincey registered a game-high 11 rebounds, while Brooks finished with four assists and four blocks. The River Hawks shot 46.8% (29-62) from the field and took a 41-33 rebounding margin.
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LEADING THE FLOCK
Five River Hawks are averaging double-digits, as
Ayinde Hikim leads the squad with 15.3 points per game. Behind him,
Quinton Mincey adds 12.8 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, while
Max Brooks chips in 12.5 points alongside a team-high 7.5 boards.
Cam Morris III contributes 11.4 points and 5.8 rebounds, with
Brayden O'Connor rounding out the double-digit scorers with 10.0 points. Picking up from where he left off last year as the primary playmaker, Hikim paces his squad with 128 assists and 42 steals, while Brooks totals 51 blocks, so far.
SCORING POWER
UMass Lowell is currently averaging 80.1 points per game, the highest scoring average for any league team since 2016-17 when UMBC averaged 81.1 ppg. Bryant is currently second in the league at 79.4 ppg. The last time two teams averaged 80+ ppg in the America East was the 1986-87 season (Northeastern & Siena).
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 ten road wins this year. The 10 wins away from home also set a new DI program record, improving upon the nine from last season. Additionally, in league play, the River Hawks have already gone an impressive, 5-1 away from home so far, compared to earning just three league road wins last season.
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 fifth in the nation in three-point percentage defense.
HOT HAND
Yuri Covington led the team with 27 points on a career-high nine field goals, including four threes at Bryant on Feb. 17. His performance earned him America East Player of the Week for the first time ever. Previously this year, he sunk seven threes at Boston University to mark the first time a River Hawk had done so since
Connor Withers hit nine in a playoff game at UMBC in 2021. Always the defender, though, Covington also added a personal-best five steals in the same outing.
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 (977).
SHARP SHOOTERS
As a team, the River Hawks are shooting 48.7% from the field (21st nationally) after surpassing 48% shooting in 12 of 24 games so far. Individually,
Max Brooks ranks 15th in the nation in field goal percentage at 62.6%. In eight #AEHoops games, he ranks second with a 63.7% field goal percentage, while averaging 14.9 points.
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 five of the team's eight 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 its 11 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 17.8 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).
NOT WASTING TIME
The River Hawks have been quick to attack this season, leading at the half in 17 of their 24 games. The team is 15-2 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 44.7 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.
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