2008 Woodie Awards
UMass falls to 1-5 as road woes continue
Jason Mack, Collegian Correspodent
Issue date: 12/4/08 Section: Sports
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The Minutemen (1-5) took the lead with 18 seconds remaining, but UT (2-5) scored on a tip-in after a missed shot as time expired.
UT took a 55-54 lead on a reverse layup by senior Jonathan Amos coming out of a timeout with 3:24 remaining.
The teams battled without a basket for the next three minutes. The Rockets forced a jump ball with 29 seconds remaining and quickly turned the ball over.
Senior forward Tony Gaffney was fouled with 18 seconds remaining and hit both free throws to give UMass a 56-55 lead.
The Minutemen had a foul to give and used it on guard Tyrone Kent with nine seconds remaining.
Kent took the ball on the inbound pass and drove to the hoop. He missed a layup with one second remaining, and sophomore forward Justin Anyijong tipped it at the buzzer for the 57-56 win. The student section erupted onto the court following the buzzer beater.
Senior Chris Lowe had a game-high 15 points with four steals for the Minutemen, while junior guard Ricky Harris had 13 points. Gaffney scored 11 points with eight rebounds, and freshman center Tyrell Lynch added a game-high nine rebounds.
The Minutemen forced a total of 20 turnovers in the game but committed 18 of their own.
The game was the opening of UT's recently renovated Savage Arena. The crowd was into the game early as the Rockets jumped out to an 8-2 lead. Anthony Gurley cut into the lead with a three-pointer to make it 8-5.
The Minutemen took a 15-14 lead with 9 minutes, 40 seconds remaining on a 3-pointer from Gary Correia that bounced off the top of the backboard before falling in. The Rockets tied the game at 29-29 on a jumper from freshman Ian Salter and took a 31-30 lead with 12 seconds remaining in the half on a layup by senior guard Ridley Johnson.
But Lowe gave UMass the lead back heading into the second half on a jumper at the buzzer to bring the score to 31-30.
The Rockets retook the lead at 42-41 with 12:33 remaining in the second half on a basket by Kent.
Kent scored 13 points for UT and had seven rebounds, five assists and three steals. He shot 3-of-5 from beyond the arc.
The Rockets built a six-point lead before UMass fought back. Harris hit a 3-point basket to pull the Minutemen within one point. Gaffney then gave the Minutemen a 52-51 lead with 7:39 remaining with a dunk after a steal on the ensuing possession.
Amos scored 13 points with four rebounds and four assists.
Anyijong scored six points, had seven rebounds and took two key charges in the game.
The two teams tied with 28 rebounds each. UMass held a 12-6 advantage in offensive rebounds while the Rockets had a 22-16 advantage in defensive rebounds.
The Minutemen shot 9-of-10 from the free-throw line but made just 20-of-53 shots from the field. UT made 1-of-2 free throws and shot 26-of-48 from the field.
UMass hosts Boston College (6-2) at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Mullins Center.
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