AMHERST — Derek Kellogg promised he wasn’t being coy when he said he hadn’t decided who’d be replacing injured point guard DeJon Jarreau in UMass’ starting lineup when the Minutemen host Harvard, Saturday at 1 p.m.
“Four of the spots are solidified. It’s really just the fifth guy and what I want to do,” Kellogg said. “I talked to each of the guys and they were pretty much open to whatever, which makes you feel good as a coach.”
Freshman Luwane Pipkins, who was already starting, will move from the two to point guard, but the team’s positional versatility means Kellogg doesn’t have to replace Jarreau with a guard.
Kellogg is choosing from the following four players (in alphabetical order):
C.J. Anderson — The junior guard/forward has been a starter before. Kellogg trusts him as a defender and a rebounder. While he doesn’t offer much as a scorer, he’s a good secondary ballhandler and backup point guard.
Zach Coleman — The junior forward would give the Minutemen a big lineup as Seth Berger would move to the three and Donte Clark to the two.
Coleman hasn’t actually score a point yet this season in two games, but he was a key contributor, especially rebounding the ball, when healthy last year.
Ty Flowers — The freshman from Connecticut has yet to show in a game what Kellogg said he’s displayed in practice. Starting him would be an attempt to jumpstart his season a bit and give the Minutemen another perimeter shooter.
Zach Lewis — The junior transfer guard from Canisius is tied for second on the team at 12.3 points per game. But Kellogg likes having a guy off the bench that can provide a spark offensively, which Lewis has done.
“I liken it to Vinnie Johnson with the (1980s) Pistons,” Kellogg said. “I like having that scorer that can come off the bench. But he’s been one of our leading scorers. It’s hard not to have him on the floor to start the game.”
Harvard, which was picked second in the Ivy League’s preseason poll, will arrive in Amherst at 1-2 after playing an odd schedule.
The Crimson opened the season with an 80-70 loss to Stanford in China. They followed that with a win over Fisher College, an NAIA school in Boston, before losing to Holy Cross, Tuesday.
Harvard, like UMass, is trying to mesh freshmen with veterans while dealing with injury issues. Freshmen Bryce Aiken, the team’s leading scorer at 11.5 points per game, and Christian Zuzang both missed Tuesday’s loss to Holy Cross with undisclosed injuries. According to the Boston Herald, their status for Saturday is uncertain.
Senior big man Zena Edosomwan, who averaged 13.1 points and 9.9 rebounds last year, played just seven minutes vs. Holy Cross. He’s averaging just 9.7 minutes in three games. Coach Tommy Amaker told the Herald his decline in playing time is performance related.
“Harvard is like us trying to mesh the new guys and the old guys,” Kellogg said. “They’ve had a few injuries. Two of their top freshmen that we’ve seen play a bunch didn’t play (against Holy Cross) and the big kid (Edosomwan) played just seven minutes and took no shots.”
Regardless, Seth Berger is expecting another good game in a series that’s been characterized by close games recently. The last three meetings have been decided by six or less points, with UMass winning twice.
“I’ve been telling the younger guys. This game is always really good,” Berger said. “This is one of the better teams we’re going to play. It’s always a fun game to play. We’re excited about this one.”
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage