UMass basketball: Minutewomen host George Washington senior day with A-10 title in sights

By HANNAH BEVIS 

Staff Writer 

Published: 02-24-2023 6:34 PM

You know it’s been a good season of basketball when everything comes down to the final game of the regular season. 

The No. 1 seed at the Atlantic 10 tournament is still up for grabs, something UMass women’s basketball fans should be grateful. The Minutewomen’s Wednesday loss at Saint Louis gave them two conference losses, but fellow contender Rhode Island also fell to Fordham in overtime, which kept UMass in first place with the tiebreaker. 

There’s going to be a lot of math after the final regular season games Saturday, but to simplify, UMass (23-5, 13-2 A-10) is still tied with Rhode Island (22-5, 13-2) for the top spot. If they both win on Saturday, they will share the regular season title, but the tournament seeds will come down to tiebreakers. Because UMass and Rhode Island split their season series 1-1, the next tiebreaker is record against next best common opponent. 

To keep things interesting, three teams are currently tied for third place – St. Louis, Fordham and George Washington (yes, the team UMass is playing on Saturday). To keep things even more interesting, if any of those three teams remain tied after Saturday, the tiebreaker for UMass and Rhode Island changes slightly – it’s the best combined record against all of those teams. If Saint Louis, George Washington and Fordham all finish with 10-6 records (which could happen if both Rhode Island and UMass lose on Saturday), the tiebreaker will be UMass’ record against those three teams (2-2) against Rhode Islands’ record against them (2-1). In this hypothetical, Rhode Island would have the top seed by virtue of having fewer losses, even though that’s only because it’s played fewer games. 

The best thing the Minutewomen can do is win on Saturday and hope Rhode Island loses to keep things simple. If Rhode Island does win, UMass needs Fordham to win; if Fordham wins, the Minutewomen have the tiebreaker advantage over all scenarios. 

It’s complicated and wild and part of why postseason basketball is called March Madness.

Besides the postseason shuffling going on, there’s another reason you should head to the Mullins Center on Saturday afternoon. Sam Breen, who’s already all but guaranteed to have her number retired once she finally graduates, is just 23 points away from breaking the all-time UMass points record. Sue Peters currently holds the record, which stands at 1,858 points. Breen has scored 1,836 points during her time with UMass, and has the chance to break that record in her final game at the Mullins Center. Goosebumps. 

It’s a chance to witness history, which doesn’t roll around very often, and whether Breen breaks the record or not, Saturday will also be the last time for fans to watch Breen and Destiney Philoxy on their home court. Both players have been instrumental in the Minutewomen’s ascent to the top of the Atlantic 10 conference and made them into an NCAA contending team. Saturday’s game is a final thank you to the duo that has given UMass basketball new life during their time at Amherst. 

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George Washington is a tough team to play last on the schedule, especially considering how much they have to play for, but the Minutewomen wouldn’t want it any other way. 

 

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