UMass has a unique opportunity to play both of the Big Apple?s premier sports palaces in the same season.
After failing to qualify for the NCAA tournament on Selection Sunday, the Minutemen (21-11) drew a No. 2 seed in the National Invitational Tournament.
UMass will host seventh-seeded Stony Brook (24-7), the America East regular-season champion tonight (7:15) at the Mullins Center. The victor will advance to the second round and face the winner of Indiana State vs. Iowa.
UMass earned a high seed in the NIT field of 32 teams with a fine showing in the Atlantic 10 tournament at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. UMass recorded wins over George Washington and Temple before losing to Virginia Commonwealth in the semifinals.
If the Minutemen reach the NIT semifinals for the second year in row, they will take the floor inside historic Madison Square Garden. UMass coach Derek Kellogg considers the Barclays-to-MSG postseason a worthy ambition.
?It would be great if we were fortunate enough to follow up a nice run at the Barclays Center with a nice NIT run and potentially get back there,? said Kellogg.
?I think that would be great for the players and the program to be able to play in two of the best arenas in the world all in one season. I think the guys have something big to look forward to and shoot for.
?We didn?t make the NCAAs and we are a little bit disappointed. But I still think this is a great tournament and puts us in the category as one of the top 60 teams in the country.?
Last year, the Minutemen enjoyed a successful NIT experience. UMass went on the road and secured wins at Mississippi State, Seton Hall and Drexel, becoming the fourth team in NIT history to advance to the semifinals with three road victories.
Matching or surpassing last year?s postseason run will test Kellogg?s ability to coach. Fortunately for the coach, he?s working with the same nucleus of players from last year?s team.
?These young kids are pretty resilient and I?m hoping that as fast as they were disappointed Sunday, we can turn that around pretty quickly,? said Kellogg. ?A lot of times when kids step on that floor, no matter how they are feeling, their competitive juices turn on and you want to play.
?I thought last year?s NIT helped us mature some and gave us the opportunity to play tournament basketball. I?m confident that because of the good experience we had last year to get to New York, the guys will want to relive that experience and go two wins further and win the thing.?
Point guard Chaz Williams is a Brooklyn native and he put on a star performance in the A-10 tournament on home turf. Williams started 32 games and averaged 15.9 points per game with a staggering 236 assists and 136 rebounds. He was selected an A-10 first-team All-Star. Freddie Riley (66 3-pointers) will start at off guard with Terrell Vinson, Raphiael Putney and Sampson Carter in the frontcourt.
Stony Brook has evolved into a mid-major power under America East Coach of the Year Steve Pikiell, a former UConn point guard.
Senior Tommy Brenton was named America East Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. Benton owns school Division 1 records for rebounds (1,089), steals (213) and assists (389).
Freshman Jameel Warner was Rookie of the Year for averaging a team-high 12.1 points per game with 226 rebounds and 46 blocks. Stony Brook set a school record with 12 road wins this season.
After failing to qualify for the NCAA tournament on Selection Sunday, the Minutemen (21-11) drew a No. 2 seed in the National Invitational Tournament.
UMass will host seventh-seeded Stony Brook (24-7), the America East regular-season champion tonight (7:15) at the Mullins Center. The victor will advance to the second round and face the winner of Indiana State vs. Iowa.
UMass earned a high seed in the NIT field of 32 teams with a fine showing in the Atlantic 10 tournament at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. UMass recorded wins over George Washington and Temple before losing to Virginia Commonwealth in the semifinals.
If the Minutemen reach the NIT semifinals for the second year in row, they will take the floor inside historic Madison Square Garden. UMass coach Derek Kellogg considers the Barclays-to-MSG postseason a worthy ambition.
?It would be great if we were fortunate enough to follow up a nice run at the Barclays Center with a nice NIT run and potentially get back there,? said Kellogg.
?I think that would be great for the players and the program to be able to play in two of the best arenas in the world all in one season. I think the guys have something big to look forward to and shoot for.
?We didn?t make the NCAAs and we are a little bit disappointed. But I still think this is a great tournament and puts us in the category as one of the top 60 teams in the country.?
Last year, the Minutemen enjoyed a successful NIT experience. UMass went on the road and secured wins at Mississippi State, Seton Hall and Drexel, becoming the fourth team in NIT history to advance to the semifinals with three road victories.
Matching or surpassing last year?s postseason run will test Kellogg?s ability to coach. Fortunately for the coach, he?s working with the same nucleus of players from last year?s team.
?These young kids are pretty resilient and I?m hoping that as fast as they were disappointed Sunday, we can turn that around pretty quickly,? said Kellogg. ?A lot of times when kids step on that floor, no matter how they are feeling, their competitive juices turn on and you want to play.
?I thought last year?s NIT helped us mature some and gave us the opportunity to play tournament basketball. I?m confident that because of the good experience we had last year to get to New York, the guys will want to relive that experience and go two wins further and win the thing.?
Point guard Chaz Williams is a Brooklyn native and he put on a star performance in the A-10 tournament on home turf. Williams started 32 games and averaged 15.9 points per game with a staggering 236 assists and 136 rebounds. He was selected an A-10 first-team All-Star. Freddie Riley (66 3-pointers) will start at off guard with Terrell Vinson, Raphiael Putney and Sampson Carter in the frontcourt.
Stony Brook has evolved into a mid-major power under America East Coach of the Year Steve Pikiell, a former UConn point guard.
Senior Tommy Brenton was named America East Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. Benton owns school Division 1 records for rebounds (1,089), steals (213) and assists (389).
Freshman Jameel Warner was Rookie of the Year for averaging a team-high 12.1 points per game with 226 rebounds and 46 blocks. Stony Brook set a school record with 12 road wins this season.
