Lalanne played 12 minutes, and excelled in the second half, according to coach Derek Kellogg
Cady Lalanne grabs a rebound is his return from suspension Saturday against Elon.
SPRINGFIELD — In his return from suspension, University of Massachusetts center Cady Lalanne didn’t start, but played 12 minutes off the bench in the Minutemen’s overtime victory Saturday.
Perhaps surprisingly, the seven he played in the second half were among his best this season, as he snagged five rebounds and scored three points.
Considering Lalanne hadn’t practiced with the team for 12 days, UMass coach Derek Kellogg was very happy with result.
“I thought he played very well in the second half,” Kellogg said. “The team that made the run was Cady, Maxie (Esho), Jesse (Morgan), Freddie (Riley) and Chaz (Williams).”
The run Kellogg referenced was a three-minute stretch where UMass outscored the Phoenix 8-0 to open what would be its biggest lead of the day — nine points — with 9:31 remaining.
Part of Lalanne’s success likely had to do with Elon’s foul trouble. Both of its starting forwards played most of the half with four fouls, allowing Lalanne to assert more physical dominance in the paint.
Lalanne came out of the game with 8:15 to go in the second half, and never re-entered. During a later timeout, a trainer was stretching Lalanne’s legs, but Kellogg said it was nothing to worry about.
“I didn’t even see it,” he said. “He’s not hurt.”
WILLIAMS CALLS IT “OK GAME
On Thursday, Chaz Williams said, “I’m back.”
On Saturday, he maintained he was back after scoring 20 points and racking up nine assists against the Phoenix, only lamenting his four turnovers.
“Besides my turnovers I felt like I played an OK game, It could have been better,” he said. “When I say, ‘I’m back,’ that means 40 minutes of me playing the way coach wants me to play, and I feel like I demonstrated that out there today.”
Williams had tape on his right wrist, and took a hard fall Saturday while going up for a rebound that sent him limping into the backcourt. He didn’t want to make excuses, saying he was fine, but Kellogg admitted his star has some nicks and scratches.
“He’s very beat up,” Kellogg said. “For him to put up the stat lines he’s been putting up I think is a testament to his character, his toughness and him as a basketball player.”
THREE-POINT DEFENSE — AGAIN
One of the most important things the Minutemen noted in their scouting report entering Saturday’s game was Elon’s three-point shooting. The Phoenix entered Saturday averaging eight 3-point makes per game, and while they hit that number against UMass, it took them 35 attempts to do it.
“I thought we played good defense,” Kellogg said. “We really contested the three-point shots today.”
The Minutemen kept their opponents under 25 percent from long range for the second straight game — worth noting if only because they had allowed their prior four opponents to shoot at least 40 percent from 3-point range.