UMass Lowell Defeats St. Peters, 81-74

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On Friday night at Tsongas Center, the UMass Lowell River Hawks Men’s basketball took on a good team early in the St. Peter’s Peacocks (0-2). The 81-74 River Hawks (2-0) win was a “hard-fought win” according to head coach Pat Duquette. Consider that two of the River Hawks’s inside threats, Max Brooks and Cam Morris both fouled out late in the second half. It did not stop UMass Lowell from taking care of business against a team that has been where the River Hawks want to go. Which is the NCAA Tournament.

The go-to guy at Costello Athletic Center on Friday night was graduate senior Quinton Mincy. His 27 points was his ninth career 20+point night and the second of this young season. His ability to put the ball on the deck and get to the basket was a problem for the Peacocks all night. Mincy was so good at it that he was fouled 14 times during the game. He made 14-of-16 free throws to go along with his 6-of-13 shooting and 1-of-3 from deep. With Brooks and Morris in foul trouble most of the night, Mincy became the #1 option to score.

Mincy got help from the starting backcourt duo of senior Quincy Clark (11 points) and fifth-year player Yuri Covington (13 points). Their combined 25 points from the backcourt was a big help to the River Hawks. They had trouble scoring around the rim all night. Defensively, UMass Lowell did a good job of making it hard for St.Peter’s to score. In the first half, the Peacocks did not get to double figures in scoring until the 9:31 mark of the first half. A 3-point basket by senior Adetokunbo Bakare off a River Hawks turnover made it a 14-12 UMass Lowell lead. The River Hawks held St.Peter’s to 34.5% shooting (10-of-29) and 5-of-17 (9.4%) from deep. UMass Lowell ended the first half on an 8-0 run. A 3-point basket from Xzavier Lino, a three-point play from Clark (11 points), and two free throws by Covington gave the home team a nine-point lead at the break at 37-28. Lino was big off the bench with six first-half points on two 3-point bombs. He finished the night with eight points.

In the second half, the River Hawks led wire-to-wire. Yes, the Peacocks made runs at UMass Lowell. The first of which was a 6-0 run off of three straight baskets by Jakai Sanders Marcus Randolph (16 points) and Mouhamed Sow (14 points) that brought the lead down to nine at 43-34 with 16:14 left in the game. Another run of 6-1 by St.Peter’s based on three-point makes from Brent Bland and Bakare made it a 45-40 River Hawks lead with 13:32 left.

St.Peter’s would not quite go away as they would cut the lead to four late in the game. A three from Sow from the right side made it 70-66 with 2:29 to play. Two free throws from Randolph made it 72-68 with 1:52 left. Mincy scored four quick points on a basket in the paint followed by two free throws that made it 76-70 with 53 seconds left. Sow, on a second chance, made it a four-point game again at 76-72 with 32 seconds left. Sow would not stop scoring and with 10 seconds left, he made it 78-74 on a second-chance layup. But the River Hawks closed out the game at the free throw line as two makes each from Martin Somerville and Anthony Blunt sealed the second win of the season for UMass Lowell, 81-74.

The River Hawks held the lead for 37:22 of this game despite being outrebounded 37-29. They won the turnover battle committing only nine to the Peacocks 15. They were a blistering 27-of-32 (84.4%) from the foul line. St.Peter’s wasn’t bad from there themselves at 15-of-20 for 75%. UMass Lowell goes on the road next weekend for two games. At Gonzaga next Friday night, then to Washington for a game with the Huskies on Sunday night.