UMass heads to Oxford, Ohio, seeking its sixth consecutive victory.
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Chaz Williams and the Minutemen struggled against East Carolina's press late in the game Dec. 22, but coach Derek Kellogg says that won't be an issue against Miami (Ohio).
OXFORD, Ohio – Regardless of its next opponent, the University of Massachusetts basketball team needs to clean up the sloppy play that ailed it in a closer-than-it-should-have-been win at Northern Illinois on Saturday.
UMass tied its season high with 20 turnovers, and its mistakes allowed the Huskies a chance to tie or win with less than a minute remaining.
Perhaps when the Minutemen take the court at Miami (Ohio) Wednesday night at 7 in search of their sixth consecutive victory, playing against a team that thrives off of pressure, chaos and turnovers will give them extra motivation to correct their weekend mistakes.
The RedHawks (5-6) play three or even four guards at a time, using a diamond press and halfcourt trap to harass opponents as they try to bring the ball up the floor.
UMass (8-3) has struggled against the press at times, most notably in the final minutes of a Dec. 22 win over East Carolina, but coach Derek Kellogg says his team is better prepared to combat pressure.
“We’ll attack it now. I thought against ECU we had four or five more opportunities to go and try to score and we brought the ball out,” Kellogg said. “If we get pressed in the regular flow of the game, I think we’ll attack it and try to score.”
Miami started four players 6-foot-3 or shorter in its two most recent games, and the Minutemen believe that will allow them more flexibility to switch off of screens and picks on defense.
“It gives us more latitude to play freely on the defensive end,” point guard Chaz Williams said. “They’re very guard oriented.”
Forward Raphiael Putney, one of the players who could stand to benefit most from the Minutemen’s size advantage, agreed.
“It creates mismatches all over the floor for our team,” he said. “Just having the height advantage, the athleticism we can use – I think that will give us a good advantage.”
Kellogg, though, downplayed the importance of what his team would do against the RedHawks in halfcourt defense.
“We can’t let their defensive stuff affect us as much as what they do offensively, because they’re a little bit like us,” Kellogg said. “They need some defense to really create for them offensively.”
Kellogg cited decision-making and defensive rebounding as reasons the Minutemen failed to put 2-10 Northern Illinois away, but it also didn’t help that a few of the Minutemen – including Williams, who vomited on the sideline during the second half – have been suffering from flu-like symptoms.
Kellogg said illness is a common occurrence across college basketball programs in late December and early January.
“We’re doing a lot of traveling. Guys went home for the holidays. More often than not, guys get sick this time of year,” Kellogg said. “Although we’ve had a few bumps and bruises along the way, we’ve been fortunate that no one has gotten really, really sick.”
Williams said he is feeling better and Kellogg said the team is healthier as a whole than it was Saturday.
Flu or no flu, though, Kellogg said energy and taking care of the ball will be the keys to taking care of business against Miami.
“It’s going to be interesting. It has the potential to be an up-and-down, high-scoring game,” he said. “Really, we just need to make sure that we’re here with high energy and ready to play.”