AMHERST — Donte Clark didn’t want his 1,000th career point to come in a loss. The UMass junior guard made sure it didn’t happen.

On a night when a lot of his teammates were struggling to score, Clark put the Minutemen on his back to get a 78-67 victory and the milestone along with it.

“I’m happy that in a week of finals and guys getting ready to go home for the Christmas holiday or the break that we were able to get a win,” Kellogg said. “I knew it was going to be a hard-fought game. They beat Wagner on the road and Wagner played us really tough, so if you kind of weigh those things together.”

UMass (9-3) completed the Gotham Classic at 4-0.

It was point No. 1,003 for Clark that finally got UMass going. Trailing 61-56, Clark scored driving to the basket. The play started a 12-3 Minuteman run that put them ahead 68-64.

After the teams traded free throws, C.J. Anderson found Zach Lewis open in the right corner. UMass was 0-for-5 from the 3-pointer range in the second half, but Lewis didn’t hesitate. The junior buried the 3 to make it 73-66 with 3:09 left. The Broncs, who had played with swagger all game, suddenly looked desperate and began rushing offensive possessions.

UMass finished the game on a 10-1 run, creating a final score that made the outcome look more comfortable than it was. The Minuteman defense got much tougher down the stretch as Rider shot 1-for-14 in the final 9:22 of the game.

DeJon Jarreau, who was a bit out of control early, settled down late and was a key part of UMass’ final surge. He finished with eight points, five rebounds and three assists.

“The first half I was kind of rushing it. I wasn’t taking my time,” Jarreau said. “In the second half I just came and played like a true point guard; shared the ball, rebounding and taking care of the ball.”

Kellogg prodded his freshman for more.

“Yeah. I’m just waiting for him to crank it up from the jump. I mean, that’s kind of my expectation level for him. It says a lot about his character because his best basketball was the last four minutes,” said Kellogg, who hoped some home cooking would spark the New Orleans native. “I’m waiting for him to put that together for a full game. He just needs to go down and get some crawfish etouffee or something like that and kind of get him right when we come back.”

Clark finished with 27 points, eight rebounds and four assists. His milestone came on a dunk off a pretty assist from Luwane Pipkins with 14:28 remaining.

“(Donte) has just matured so much basketball-wise,” Kellogg said. “Now he’s letting it come to him. He’s probably the one who is now talking to the guys about locking up on defense and shot selection, which is a beautiful thing to see. I think he’s really helping our team mature as he’s maturing. Eight rebounds, that’s a tough dude. That’s a dude who’s getting in there and battling.”

UMass survived foul trouble all over its frontcourt. Rashaan Holloway had 16 points, five rebounds and three blocked shots in just 13 minutes of playing time before fouling out. Freshman Brison Gresham (four rebounds, two blocked shots) also earned five whistles.

Freshman point guard Stevie Jordan led Rider (8-4) with 15 points and eight assists.

The Minutemen scattered for a holiday break after the game. They’ll reunite, Monday in Atlanta in preparation for Wednesday’s 2 p.m. game at Georgia State that closes out nonconference play.

“We have a tough, tough game at Georgia State and that will be a really tough one on the road,” Kellogg said. “And then we follow it up with probably the toughest start to the conference play in my tenor here. It’s going to be a fun battle for the next couple weeks.”

Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage

]]>