River Hawks Start Strong with 91-55 Win against Rivier University

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LOWELL, Mass. – Led by an 18-point performance from senior Everette Hammond (Silver Spring, Md.), the UMass Lowell River Hawks men’s basketball team (1-0) turned in a complete team performance to defeat Rivier University (0-1), 91-55, in the 2021-22 season opener.

“We’re happy to get started,” said Head Coach Pat Duquette. “I’m grateful to start another season with fans. I think the guys were really looking forward to that. It’s been a long wait. I thought we had a great home crowd that came out to support our team. So I’m happy to get a win. I thought we were much better in the first half, particularly the last 10 minutes of the first. We learned some things about ourselves and we’ve got a lot to work on. It’s early, so I figured that, but we don’t have much time.”

With the decision, the River Hawks secured their second consecutive season-opening victory and eighth straight win in a home opener.

Of the 11 River Hawks who hit the court in the contest, 10 scored at least five points. Hammond was 4-for-6 from deep and shot 63.6% (7-11) from the floor. Graduate students Justin Faison (Prince George’s County, Md.) and John Hall (Philadelphia, Pa.) totaled 12 and 11 points, respectively, while sophomore Quinton Mincey (Upper Marlboro, Md.) also reached double digits with 10. As a team, the River Hawks shot 50% (35-70) and pulled down 48 boards.

Sophomore Ayinde Hikim (Washington, D.C.) laid in the River Hawks’ first buckets of the season before Hammond drained a three from the far corner to ignite an 8-0 run that put the home squad up early, 12-5. Hall and Faison then scored their first points in UMass Lowell uniforms to give the River Hawks a double-digit buffer at 20-9 with 11:24 remaining in the first half.

The height and athleticism of this year’s squad was on full display late in the first half, as the River Hawks dunked their way to 17 unanswered points to lead, 37-11, at 7:01. Senior Allin Blunt (Crownsville, Md.) led the offense with six points down the stretch, giving the home team a 49-23 advantage at the break.

The Raiders outscored their hosts, 7-4, coming out of halftime, but junior Kalil Thomas (New Orleans, La.) sparked the River Hawk offense with a triple. The home team would surpass a 30-point margin on a second-chance field goal by junior Darion Jordan-Thomas with less than eight minutes to play.

Next up, the River Hawks will hit the road for a five-game road swing beginning at Dayton on Saturday, November 13. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.