OXFORD, Miss.
It’ll be interesting to see how Monday’s loss looks a month from now.
UMass showed both its considerable talent and considerable youth in a game that plummeted from apparent big win to gut-churning loss in a matter of moments. Will this game be a valuable lesson or an omen for a frustrating future?
As the Minutemen trickled out of the locker room, the players and coaches were replaying the final moments in their heads, wondering which play or plays they could have fixed to be celebrating instead of stewing. UMass coach Derek Kellogg, who was angry himself, didn’t want his players thinking coming close was enough.
“This should hurt. This should really bother us and hurt us,” he said. “I think we opened up some eyes, that we can play some good basketball when we are clicking on all cylinders. (But) we’re not old enough and mature enough to have not everyone on this team clicking at all times, and I think that as individuals they have to look in the mirror and say, ‘did I do everything I needed to do today to help this team win?’”
If UMass had won the game, there would have been plenty to like. On the road against an SEC team, a young Minuteman squad showed a ton of poise for much of the game.
They absorbed early Rebel surges in the first half. The newcomers, especially, looked up to the challenge. But it won’t mean much if it disappears in the final moments.
If the Minutemen build off this game and find success down the road, this will be remembered as an announcement that DeJon Jarreau’s recruiting hype was warranted.
The freshman was solid but hardly memorable in Friday’s win over UMass-Lowell. Against Ole Miss, he looked like a future star. He finished with 25 points, eight assists and six steals. Outside shooting wasn’t expected to be a forte for him, but he made four 3-pointers.
“I feel like I can play like this every game. Lowell game was my first game. I was rushing things. I was eager just to play good and that’s what hurt me,” he said. “This game I came in settled down and just played my game.”
Zach Lewis was a revelation, too. His outside shooting helped build the lead they couldn’t quite hold onto, but there’s no reason to think he can’t be an important scoring option off the bench.
Chris Baldwin is more raw than some of the freshmen, but he held his own for a lot of the game. On a night where Holloway was ineffective and Malik Hines was foul prone, UMass was at its best with him in the game.
Kellogg seems committed to using a four-guard lineup, and it was effective for a lot of the game. The Minutemen traded size for ball pressure. At times, it broke down and contributed to Sebastian Saiz’s 22 points and 19 rebounds, but for a lot of the game it rattled the Rebels, and, with Berger out, it was critical.
“Yeah, it was nice to see some of the younger guys kind of get going and play well. I thought (Jarreau) and Luwane and even Chris Baldwin were really good tonight. We need everyone to catch up,” Kellogg said. “The one thing I liked is that we showed we can go on the road and be a tough, scrappy team that can make some runs, but we also showed at times that we can do some things, that as a coach, could make you look in the mirror once and a while.”
Temple is going to come to Mullins on Thursday just as angry if not angrier. Lots of teams lose to Ole Miss on the road. Losing to New Hampshire at home is tougher to swallow. UMass will have to face a team eager to atone.
How the Minutemen respond should be an indication of things to come. This team doesn’t have an identity yet. The individual character of the new players is still largely a mystery and the collective character of the team hasn’t been revealed yet. Will the adversity steel them into something tougher or shrink them?
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage