Men's Basketball Defeated On A Buzzer Beater By UMass, 77-75

Bryce Cotton leads the Friars with 23 points.

Nov. 16, 2012

BAYAMON, Puerto Rico - The Providence College men's basketball team was defeated by UMass, 77-75, when Terrell Vinson tipped in a shot at the buzzer for the Minutemen to break a 75-75 tie in the first round of the Puerto Rico Tip Off on Thursday, November 15 in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. The Friars battled back from a 12-point first half deficit and led for most of the final 10 minutes of the second half before UMass tied the with 1:22 left.

Playing with just six scholarship players, the Friars looked like they would have trouble matching up with the up-tempo pace of UMass as it raced out to a 26-14 lead with 8:46 remaining in the first half. The Friars were able to cut the lead to six at halftime when Kadeem Batts made a shot in the closing seconds to cut the deficit to six points (41-35) after 20 minutes of play. Batts had a strong first half, leading both teams with 12 points and seven rebounds.

In the second half the Friars were able to slow the Minutemen down as UMass was not able to solve the Friars zone defense, and it was outscored, 40-36. PC's lead got as large as five points in the final 10 minutes of play. The Friars were leading by three points with 1:22 remaining when Jesse Morgan hit a clutch three pointer to tie the game at 75-75.

Batts finished with 19 points and nine rebounds. Bryce Cotton had a strong game for the Friars, registering 23 points and five assists. LaDontae Henton added a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds.

The Friars will return action on Friday, November 16 for their second game of the Puerto Rico Tip Off versus Penn State at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN3.