AMHERST — What happened to the Mullins mojo?
After an undefeated start through six games at home, the UMass men’s basketball team has dropped four of its past five games in Amherst. The Minutemen took down Saint Louis on Jan. 20 sandwiched between losses to Duquesne, Rhode Island, George Mason and George Washington.
They’ll host Saint Joseph’s at noon Saturday to wrap its only week of the Atlantic 10 season with two home games.
UMass’ offensive production dropped from 83.2 points per game at home in its opening win streak to 72.6 over its past five games. The Minutemen also allowed 78.6 points per contest during their last five games compared to 71.6 in the opening winning streak.
Oddly and concurrently, UMass has won its past two road games after losing its first five.
Saint Joseph (10-12, 4-7 A-10) comes to Amherst after falling in a tight game against Davidson during the week. The Hawks are just 1-7 on the road this season. Their only win was a 27-point runaway blowout at Richmond on Dec. 30.
They’ll bring a middle of the pack offense (seventh, 70.1 ppg) and slightly below average defense (10th, 70.7) to the Mullins Center. The Hawks are the conference’s third-best rebounding team (37.6 boards per contest).
Saint Joseph’s does have the league’s worst turnover margin, giving up the ball 4.14 times more than its taking it away.
Guard Jordan Hall leads the Hawks in scoring (14.4 ppg) and is second in the A-10 in assists per game (6.4). He also grabs seven rebounds per game, second on the team.
His backcourt mate Taylor Funk averages 14.2 points per game and makes 2.8 3-pointers per game to lead the league. He also shoots 88.1 percent from the free throw line, second in the league.
Big man Ejike Obina ranks seventh in the A-10 in rebounding (7.2 per game) and third in field goal percentage (59.7). He scores 12.7 points per game and has amassed six double-doubles in 22 games.
UMass (10-12, 3-7) blasted the Hawks in their previous meeting during last year’s A-10 tournament second round, hitting 15 3-pointers and scoring 100 points for the first time since Nov. 9, 2018, against New Hampshire. Only six of the 10 Minutemen that participated in that game are available on UMass’ roster; five Saint Joseph’s players return.
UMass’ remade roster has the A-10’s third-best offense (76.0) and worst defense (77.9). The Minutemen are still one of the nation’s best 3-point shooting teams, No. 9 at 39.1 percent. They hit 10.2 triples per game, tied for 12th nationally.
Guard Rich Kelly is seventh nationally hitting 50.5 percent from deep. That mark leads the A-10.
THE CAMBY MAN – UMass is hosting Marcus Camby Day for the game Saturday. Two tickets are available for $21. Camby, a national player of the year for the Minutemen, wore No. 21, and it’s now hanging in the rafters at the Mullins Center.
He’ll be in attendance at the game, and the first 1,000 fans through the doors will receive a free black replica Camby UMass jersey and a commemorative poster.
Camby recently partnered with White Lion Brewing to release a beer in his name which is sold at the Mullins Center.
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter @kylegrbwsk.