The addition of starting forward Kale Catchings to Harvard’s already sizeable frontcourt disabled list proved too much, as UMass defeated Harvard, 87-77, at the Mullins Center on Saturday afternoon.
Facing a Minutemen squad that lives and dies at the three point line, Tommy Amaker, whose Crimson (5-4) have been without the services of forwards Mason Forbes, Justice Ajogbor and Bennett Pitcher for the first part of the season, opted to use highly touted rookie wing Louis Lesmond in place of Catchings and go with a four-guard lineup.
The decision paid off over the first 12 minutes of the game, as the visitors took advantage of a UMass (6-3) team that entered the day 311th in the nation in defending the three, hitting seven of their first 11 attempts from long range to open up a 33-16 lead.
Unfortunately for Harvard, the half was 20 minutes long.
The Minutemen hit five of their next six three-pointers to spark a 25-7 run over the next six minutes to take their first lead of the day at 41-40. Meanwhile, the previously hot-handed Crimson cooled off with only one made three on their last six attempts of the half and headed into the locker room down by one.
On the positive side, the shorter Harvard lineup forced 10 turnovers and held a +18 advantage in points off of turnovers. But on the other side of the ledger, the Crimson gave up 10 points from the free throw line while not getting any attempts of their own.
Harvard reclaimed the lead at the 18-minute mark, 52-50, following a driving layup by Luke Sakota, but UMass reclaimed it 90 seconds later from a wide open three by T.J. Weeks.
The teams stayed close over the next few minutes and another driving layup, this time by Idan Tretout, tied it up at 65 with just under ten minutes to go in regulation. The junior guard from Brooklyn, who went to nearby Wilbraham & Monson Academy, missed the and-one to put the Crimson in the lead.
UMass rebounded with an 8-0 run over the next two minutes, highlighted by two three-pointers, one old-fashioned and another from long range, by C.J. Kelly.
A triple from the left baseline by Lesmond made it 77-73, but a short jumper from the right baseline by Weeks and a contested layup by Trent Buttrick quickly extended the host’s lead to eight with four and a half minutes left. Another successful contested shot three minutes later, this time from the left baseline by Kelly, made it 84-75 and effectively put the game away for UMass.
Harvard ended the day making 11 three-pointers but only managed to hit four of 22 (18%) over the last 28 minutes. UMass, which entered the contest eighth nationally in three-pointers per game and 21st in three-point field goal percentage, finished with 15 triples on 52% shooting. On the defensive side, the bigger Minutemen wore down the Crimson on the boards (+14, +15%) and getting to the free throw line (+13 attempts, +14 made baskets).
Chris Ledlum, Harvard’s lone traditional frontcourt starter, ended the day with team highs of 20 points and six rebounds. Noah Kirkwood, playing his usual mix of frontcourt and backcourt positions, had 16 points and six assists, while the backcourt of Sakota, Tretout and Lesmond finished with 15, 14 and nine points, respectively.
UMass, which won its third straight contest and first one over Harvard since 2017, were led by Noah Fernandes with game highs of 24 points, six triples and nine assists. Weeks added 21 points and Kelly scored 16, while each nabbed eight rebounds.
The Crimson, which have lost two in a row for the first time this season, will look to get back in the win column when they host Division III Babson College Monday night at 7 p.m.