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KEVIN GUTTING

UMass junior guard Freddie Riley dribbles around Rob Poole of Siena in the first half of the Minutemen’s 82-75 win over the Saints in the Hall of Fame Holiday Showcase at the MassMutual Center in Springfield Friday. Riley had 20 points with six 3-pointers against Siena.

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KEVIN GUTTING

UMass sophomore guard Chaz Williams lays in two points after a steal against Siena in the first half of the Minutemen's 82-75 win over the Saints in the Basketball Hall of Fame Holiday Showcase at the Mass Mutual Center in Springfield Friday.

SPRINGFIELD - Trailing by double digits early in the second half, Freddie Riley brought the University of Massachusetts back into the game. Raphiael Putney kept them in it and Chaz Williams put UMass over the top.

The Minutemen survived a lackluster start to escape with an 82-78 win Friday in the Hall of Fame Holiday Showcase at the MassMutual Center.

Trailing 51-41 5 minutes, 24 seconds into the second half, Riley buried a 3-pointer. After O.D. Anosike answered inside, Riley hit another 3, firing up the crowd of 4,236. The shots were two of the three 3-pointers he made during UMass' 14-3 run that put the Minutemen ahead 57-54 with 11:25 left.

"I was just happy to be making shots finally and help my team," Riley said. "I was just playing my role and the shots went in."

Siena had a counterpunch and surged back ahead 67-63 before Putney took his turn. Against the Saints' zone, he made three straight floaters from just inside the free throw line as part of his solo 6-2 run that tied the game 69-69 with 4:05 left.

"Putney has the length that he has and he made a couple really nice plays against the zone," UMass coach Derek Kellogg said. "Those are much-needed baskets because we were struggling against the zone."

From there Williams took over. Until that point, Williams was 5-for-15 from the floor, often the victim of unkind rolls on layups that rimmed out. But he didn't miss when it mattered. The sophomore point guard scored 11 of UMass' last 13 points on three drives and five free throws.

"On any given night, any given time, any one of us guys or any one of the brotherhood can be a closer," Williams said. "It's just about wanting to take the next step and bringing the team to a victory."

After two free throws by Javorn Farrell put UMass up 78-75 with 21 seconds left, Siena point guard Evan Hymes raced to the basket trying for the easy two, but Sean Carter leapt for an emphatic blocked shot.

Riley grabbed the rebound and got the ball to Williams, who was fouled with nine seconds left. He made both free throws to make it 80-75. Kyle Downey (23 points) made a 3-pointer with four seconds left to pull the Saints within two and Siena called timeout.

The Saints sent Williams to the line again and the point guard made both to close out the win. Williams said he's spent a lot of time practicing free throws to be ready for those moments.

"I was always taught, being a point guard, you might have the ball in your hands toward the end of the game, so it's always good to make free throws," Williams said. "I just wanted the victory, just like the guys did. We all wanted the victory. So I didn't want to let my teammates down."

Williams finished with a career-high tying 22 points, six assists, two turnovers and three steals. Riley added 20 points and Puntey scored 13. Anosike, who was Williams' AAU teammate before college, had 22 points and 14 rebounds for Siena (3-6).

UMass (8-3) has eight days off for final exams before playing Quinnipiac on Dec. 17 at 7 p.m. at the Mullins Center.

Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Follow UMass coverage on Twitter at twitter.com/GazetteUMass. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at http://www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage.