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Quick Report: Massachusetts 74, La Salle 67

01/03/2016, 7:00pm EST
By Josh Verlin & Aron Minkoff

Tony Washington (above) had his first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds against the Minutemen. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Aron Minkoff (@AronMinkoff) &
Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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A shorthanded La Salle squad with just seven available scholarship players couldn’t quite hang with UMass, as the Minutemen came into Tom Gola Arena and walked away with a 74-67 win in the Atlantic 10 opener for both programs.

At First…
It was all Cleon Roberts for the Explorers early on. The 6-foot-6 junior scored 11 of La Salle’s 14 points and connected on three 3-pointers. The Explorers looked like they would take a lead into the halftime break after playing front-runners most of the first half, but Massachusetts closed out the half on an 8-0 run to take a 42-40 lead into the locker rooms.

Turning Point…
After surrendering the lead to La Salle in the opening minutes of the second half, 45-42, UMass went on an 11-2 run to take control of the game. From then on out it was just a matter of holding the Explorers at bay; La Salle tied it up once more, at 55-55 with 10:03 remaining, but other than that the Minutemen were up by anywhere between two and eight points down the stretch.

Standout Stars…
La Salle’s Jordan Price continued his terrific junior season with 23 points on 5-of-16 shooting, getting much of his production at the foul line (10-15). Sophomore forward Tony Washington had his first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, adding two blocks and only two fouls.

Trey Davis led Massachusetts with 18 points, while Seth Berger and Donte Clark added 15 apiece as four Minutemen scored in double figures.

Noteworthy Number(s)...
6: La Salle, which only began the year with nine scholarship players, was stuck with what amounted to a six-man rotation against UMass. Senior forward Rohan Brown missed his second straight game with a knee injury, while sophomore forward Yevgen Sakhniuk missed his second straight game with an illness. Freshman guard Karl Harris played 12 minutes as all five starters saw at least 33 minutes of action for the Explorers. This was also the sixth loss in a row for La Salle.

16: The rebound differential, as Massachusetts grabbed 47 rebounds (15 offensive) to 31 by La Salle (seven offensive). Washington (10) and Harris (6) led the way for La Salle, who didn't have another player with more than three boards without two of its three frontcourt players.

Up Next…
La Salle (4-7, 0-1 Atlantic 10) @  Fordham (Jan. 6, 7 PM)
Massachusetts (8-5, 1-0 Atlantic 10) @ Dayton (Jan. 6, 8 PM)

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