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PHILADELPHIA – Massachusetts' Chaz Williams put the Minutemen ahead 61-60 with a layup with eight seconds left and the Explorers failed to convert on the other end, sealing the team's' first home loss at Tom Gola Arena since November 18 on Wednesday at Tom Gola Arena.

“We lost to a very good team and I knew it was a very good team,” head coach Dr. John Giannini said. “[After beating Butler and VCU] I knew the challenge ahead of us was tremendous.”

La Salle (14-6, 4-3 A-10) found itself down 33-27 at halftime but clawed back into the game and took a 51-50 lead at the 8:00 mark, its first lead since being up 8-6 early in the first period. The Minutemen and Explorers exchanged buckets for much of the half's remainder until Tyreek Duren scored on a contested layup with 37.9 seconds.

UMass (14-5, 4-2 A-10) put the ball in the hands of its trusty point guard, Williams, who entered the night averaging over 16 points per game. Williams had only four points until his team's final possession, when the crafty ball handler sprung a leak in the Explorer defense and put in the go-ahead bucket. La Salle advanced the ball but couldn't come up with a clean look at the basket. 

“We had a lot of breakdowns,” Giannini said. “The one at the end of the game stands out most noticeably.”

”We were very close but we were never quite able to do it, and you just have to make the play. There's no way to put it other than you need a little more effort and a little more toughness in those instances.”

Wright tied a team-high 16 points (7-10 FG, 2-3 FT) and added six rebounds and a block. Senior Ramon Galloway poured in 16 points (7-18 FG, 2-5 3PT) with six boards, six assists, and three steals. The senior scored three consecutive buckets for the Explorers midway through the second stanza, including a thunderous jam off a steal to cut the UMass lead to 45-41.

Duren chipped in with 10 points, two assists, and three steals and sophomore Steve Zack hauled in a team-high nine rebounds and two blocks.

The Explorers shot 42 percent (25-59) from the field, 35 percent (6-17) from behind the arc, and converted 4-6 from the free throw line. Nearly identically, UMass notched a 43 percent (26-61) clip from the field, 31 percent (4-13) mark from three, and a 5-6 line from the charity stripe.

The Minutemen were paced in scoring by Raphiael Putney (17 pts; 7-11 FG, 3-5 3PT) and Maxie Esho (11 pts; 5-3 FG, 1-1 FT). The size and length of their front court affected the Explorers all night long and held a 37-32 team rebounding advantage.

“Tough week physically, tough week mentally, tough opponent and we just came up a play short,” Giannini said.

The Explorers will look to start another winning streak on Saturday, when they take on the George Washington Colonials in Washington D.C. at 2 PM.