SMITHFIELD, R.I. - The UMass Lowell men's basketball team (6-10, 1-0 AE) hits the road for its first America East road matchups of the season, as visiting the Bryant Bulldogs on Thursday, January 8 at 6 p.m. and the Binghamton Bearcats on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 2 p.m.
A WIN WOULD
A win against the Bulldogs would move the the River Hawks to 7-10 on the season, while giving them a 2-0 start to conference play for the third time in the last four seasons. A win would also extend the River Hawks lead in the Bryant series to 6-2. A win against the Bearcats would improve the River Hawks lead in that series to 16-9.
LAST TIME OUT
Xavier Spencer logged a career-high 23 points to help lift the UMass Lowell men's basketball team to an 83-71 victory against UAlbany in the 2026 America East Conference opener on Jan. 3 at Kennedy Family Athletic Complex. Spencer knocked down at personal-best nine field goals in the performance and a team-high five assists.
Angel Montas Jr. added 18 points and a game-high nine rebounds, while
Austin Green rounded out the double-digit scorers with 16 points and two blocks. As a team, the River Hawks shot 49% from the field, including 56% in the second half. The home team also outrebounded the opposition, 42-29 in the outing.
LEADING THE FLOCK
Through 16 games,
Austin Green leads the way with 14.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game.
Xavier Spencer, who ranks second with 10.8 points per game, adds a team-high 51 assists and 20 steals, while
Shawn Simmons II boasts 13 blocks to sit first on the team. Rounding out double digit scorers,
JJ Massaquoi adds 10.0 points per game as a freshman.
COMING IN HOT
After logging just two double-digit scoring games in his first 10 outings this season,
Angel Montas Jr. has been on fire as of late, averaging 20.3 points in the last three games, including registering his first two 20-point games as a River Hawk in back-to-back outings at Boston University and No. 25 Iowa. His 23 points at Iowa marked a new career high for the junior.
SPREADING THE LOVE
The River Hawks have boasted at least four double-digit scorers on eight occasions this year. Most recently, the team had four players score 10+ points at Boston University.
RAINING THREES
Xavier Spencer and
Darrel Yepdo each finished with a career-high four, three-pointers, as the team totaled a season-best 12 makes from long range in the win against Sacred Heart on Dec. 16.
HELPING HANDS
The squad matched its season best with 21 assists against Sacred Heart. So far, the River Hawks rank third in the America East with 13.8 assists per game.
OFFENSIVE OUTBURST
The 122-point scoring outburst against Fisher marked the most points in a game for the program since January 1995 against Assumption College.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
In two games this year, a pair of River Hawks have logged double-doubles. Most recently,
Austin Green finished with 20 points and a career-high 16 rebounds, while
Jerrell Roberson II registered career bests of 21 points and 15 rebounds against Fisher.
GAINING MOMENTUM
The River Hawks logged back-to-back wins for the first time during the 2025-26 season with a victory at Stonehill and against Emerson at home to kick off a span of four wins in six games.
GOOD FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Rookie
JJ Massaquoi has stood out for the River Hawks in his first collegiate appearances, posting double-digit points in six of 16 games so far, including leading the team with a personal-best 26 points at Wake Forest. He was also named America East Rookie of the Week on Nov. 24.
CAREER DAY
Shawn Simmons II and
Xavier Spencer both turned in career-best performances at Columbia, as Simmons II totaled 14 points and Spencer boasted 12 points and 12 assists for his first career double-double.
SHARP SHOOTERS
The River Hawks have found their groove, shooting at least 43% from the field in each of the last 13 games after averaging just 29% in the two previous games against UConn and New Haven. The team is now ranked first in the America East for field goal percentage.
