AMHERST – Jockeying for positioning in the Atlantic 10 men’s basketball tournament is underway.
The UMass men’s basketball team is one of five teams within a half game of each other seeded between ninth and 12th. The Minutemen, Rhode Island, Fordham and Saint Joseph’s all have a 4-8 conference record, while Saturday’s opponent La Salle (12 p.m. at the Mullins Center) lags just behind a half game back.
In the conference tournament, which is March 9-13 in Washington D.C., the top four seeds receive double byes into the quarterfinals. The Minutemen are all but mathematically eliminated from those slots.
Then the next four teams (Nos. 5-8) get a bye to the second round. The bottom four teams have to play on the tournament’s opening day and face a daunting possibility of five games in five days to win a championship. It’s never happened since the league went to that format in 2014. The lowest seed to make the championship game was Saint Louis as a No. 6 in 2019.
“So much left to play for. Every possession of every game coming down the stretch matters so much,” UMass coach Matt McCall said. “If you can’t get up and excited to play (Saturday), there’s something wrong.”
Currently, UMass (11-13, 4-8) sits 11th with three of its final six games against teams in that bunched group. The Minutemen host La Salle on Saturday then face Fordham in a home and home Feb. 28 (New York) and March 3 (Mullins Center).
A win could go a long way to avoiding one of those Wednesday games between tiebreakers and the fact that UMass’ other three games are against upper echelon competition. The Minutemen travel to Dayton (No. 3 in A-10) and host VCU (No. 2) next week, and close the season March 5 at George Mason (No. 7).
“This is a big opportunity. This is a big game for us to get into good standing in the league,” UMass forward Trent Buttrick said. “We have a stretch here where we have some winnable games, so we’ve got to make the most of it. Every night’s an opportunity.”
La Salle (7-16, 2-11), meanwhile, could insert itself deep into the mess with a road win over the Minutemen. The Explorers haven’t beaten UMass since 2019, and that was in Tom Gola Arena. They haven’t won in the Mullins Center since Feb. 18, 2012.
The Explorers have lost three games in a row: two to Saint Louis and one against Richmond. UMass prevailed in the teams’ previous meeting this season in late January. The Minutemen erased a 16-point deficit to win their first road game of the season. They pounded La Salle on the boards 44-27 and shot 15 more free throws than the Explorers.
FREE Spring Break essentials at tomorrow’s @umassbasketball and @umasshockey games!
The first 500 students at the 12pm basketball game will receive a FREE tank top. The first 500 students at the 7:30 pm hockey game will receive a pair of FREE sunnies 🕶#Flagship🚩 pic.twitter.com/mrN0N56Pf9
— UMass Athletics (@UMassAthletics) February 18, 2022
“We made a conscious effort offensively to make the right play,” McCall said. “Our ball movement was terrific. Our unselfishness was terrific.”
UMass is hoping to bounce back after a loss at Saint Bonaventure in which McCall was pleased with the Minutemen’s effort and how they played, if not necessarily the result.
“I”m trying to make the most out of every day and give everything that I have every game,” Buttrick said.
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter @kylegrbwsk.