A disappointing UMass men’s basketball season came to a disappointing end Wednesday.

The 11th-seeded Minutemen fell behind early and played catch-up for the majority of their Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament first round game against No. 14 La Salle. UMass re-took the lead on multiple occasions in the second half, but as has been the case all season, the club struggled to shoot the basketball in a 78-71 loss at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

UMass finished its season 12-20 overall, while La Salle advanced to play No. 6 Saint Joseph’s in the second round on Thursday.

The Minutemen shot 37.3 percent from the floor and 33.3 percent from 3-point range. Free throws once again haunted UMass, as it converted just 12-of-24 from the charity stripe. The team grabbed 16 offensive rebounds to keep them within striking distance, but couldn’t hit the big shot when needed.

“There were a couple big plays we made. Probably a couple foolish plays we made,” said La Salle coach Fran Dunphy, who is retiring after the season but kept it going for at least one more day. “I thought their offensive rebounding really hurt us. But we found a way and at this juncture, that’s what you’re hoping to do.”

Foul trouble plagued the Minutemen, as both Daniel Hankins-Sanford and Rahsool Diggins fouled out in the waning minutes of a one-possession game. With UMass leading 67-66, Hankins-Sanford fouled out trying to grab an offensive rebound on a missed Jayden Ndjigue free throw with 2 minutes, 57 seconds remaining.

With La Salle later ahead 69-66, Diggins was whistled for his fifth, another offensive foul on a drive to the basket with 1:42 to play.

That forced less experienced players into crunch-time situations. Nate Guerengomba missed the potential go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:10 to play, and the Explorers made 9 of their 10 free throws in the final 1:07 to keep the Minutemen at arm’s length.

Returning to the lineup from injury, Daniel Rivera paced UMass with 22 points and 12 rebounds, while Jaylen Curry went for 18 points and Diggins added 12.

La Salle’s Corey McKeithan led all scorers with 30 points, including 11-for-11 from the free throw line.