RICHMOND, VA – For the first time in 23 years, the Atlantic 10 Championship Women's Basketball Final will include a team from Amherst, Mass.
Seventh-seeded Massachusetts led Saturday night’s A-10 semifinal for over 32 minutes, defeating No. 3 seed Saint Louis 90-81 at VCU’s Siegel Center.
UMass is the lowest seed to play for an A-10 title since Duquesne was seeded seventh in 2017. A victory for the Minutewomen would make it the lowest-ever seed to emerge as champion. Massachusetts will face VCU Sunday at noon on ESPNU with an NCAA Tournament bid on the line.
“It’s just a great day for the University of Massachusetts and our program,” said Verdi. “I am just extremely proud of our kids. It’s amazing what you can do with seven players and the amount of fight and love they have for one another. They did a great job following the game plan and we were very disciplined. We just found a way to win and made plays down the stretch. I thought we executed well. We started to attack the interior and get open shots. They deserve this and we’ve been at this for seven months and they’ve been home for four nights. I’m proud of their effort and all of their hard work here today.”
This victory also makes it the second time in A-10 Championship history that all of the top four seeds have been eliminated from the championship, with the other occasion being in 2018 when No. 5 George Washington bested No. 6 Saint Joseph’s.
Since Tory Verdi took over as Massachusetts’s women’s basketball coach, Saint Louis ended his team’s season on two separate occasions, including a 40-point setback in his first season, an outcome he did not forget.
“We were in a dark place then, there’s no question about that ,” he recalled. “I remember very well that 40-point loss at Saint Louis, and it was tough to digest but you’ve got to start somewhere and that’s where we were. Slowly but surely, you really had to change expectations and develop a culture within the program. You build it one brick at a time. I’m all about the right fixes, getting the character kids who believe where they are, love where they are and want to be a part of something special.”
Sam Breen recorded her 15th double-double and seventh in a row with 28 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 11-for-16 from the field. Not to be outdone, Destiney Philoxy also scored 28 points on an 11-for-17 effort from the field. Ber'Nyah Mayo was a key contributor towards the victory with her 13 points.
“We’ve done it the whole year playing for each other,” UMass’s Sam Breen said. “Now that there’s limited numbers of us, we’ve taken that into consideration even more. We’re not letting any fatigue hit us. This adrenaline is keeping us going.”
Saint Louis was led by Rachel Kent’s 18 points in 38 minutes of work. Myia Clark added 16 points before she also departed the contest. Brooke Flowers earned her seventh double-double and fifth in the last six games with a 15-point, 11-rebound effort. Ciaja Harbison also added 15 points.
“Our defensive philosophy was to not give up the lane, and that’s all UMass did,” Saint Louis coach Lisa Stone said. “Give them a ton of credit. Philoxy and Breen were a lot. We couldn’t do anything with them. They are playing at a very high level and they are on a mission. They did not show any sign of fatigue. We didn’t respond, we were flat. It’s disappointing when you get to this point and we’ve been at this point for five years, one game away from championship Sunday and the opportunity left us."
Saint Louis led 21-19, overcoming an early six-point deficit by riding an 11-2 run and then scoring five of the final seven points in the quarter.
UMass was able to go on a 12-2 run of its own over 4:13 of second-quarter action, opening up a six-point advantage.
The Minutewomen led by as many as nine points in the quarter, but Kent’s three-point basket gave Saint Louis some momentum heading into the locker room.
UMass shot 55.2 percent from the field in the second half as both Breen and Philoxy were able to work their way around the Billiken defense for baskets.
“They were really getting downhill against our defense,” Saint Louis’s Rachel Kent said. “We tried to switch it up, go 2-3 and back to man to try and throw them off. I just we needed to stay together more, help each other out and really be more intense on defense.”
Saint Louis cut its deficit to four points in the third quarter, however UMass netted the final eight points of the period, opening up a 13-point advantage in the process.
A Clark 3-pointer allowed Saint Louis to trail by seven points with 3:11 remaining in regulation, but the Billikens were unable to make enough stops as UMass secured victory.
Reflecting on the victory, Verdi, on the verge of tears, finally exhaled, even offering multiple smiles explaining the team-effort he had just witnessed.
“I see what you’re trying to do here,” said Verdi. “You’re trying to get this Italian emotional.”