Game Info: Tuesday, December 31, 2024 - 2:00 p.m.
Location: Hagan Arena - Philadelphia, Pa.
TV: ESPN+ | Listen: sjuhawks.com | Live Stats: sjuhawks.com | Saint Joseph's Game Notes | UMass Game Notes | Tickets

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Opening Tip
The Saint Joseph's men's basketball team begins Atlantic 10 play, hosting the UMass Minutemen on New Year's Eve. Tipoff from Hagan Arena is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.

Into Conference Play    
Tuesday begins Atlantic 10 Conference play for the Hawks. It is Saint Joseph's 43rd year of A-10 play. SJU is the fifth longest consecutively tenured member of the conference, behind George Washington (Charter Member - 1976), UMass (Charter Member - 1976), St. Bonaventure (1979) and Rhode Island (1980). Duquesne was a charter member of the Atlantic 10 (then the Eastern 8), but competed in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference in 1992-93. St. Joe's has an overall record of 356-341 in the A-10, a .511 winning percentage. It has won the conference seven times and taken home the A-10 Tournament title on four occasions.

Out Of Conference Experience 
SJU went 9-4 in non-conference games, the second best mark in Billy Lange's time as head coach. The Hawks are 19-7 the last two years in non-conference play. As part of the non-conference slate, the Hawks defeated power conference foes Villanova (BIG EAST), Texas Tech (Big 12) and Virginia Tech (ACC).

Farewell, Old Friend 
On February 29, 2024, UMass announced that the 2024-25 season would be its final season in the A-10. The Hawks and Minutemen have played 79 times, all of them since Saint Joseph's joined the conference for the 1982-83 season. Six of those games have come in the A-10 tournament. St. Joe's is 20-12 against the Minutemen on Hawk Hill.

Rarified Air
With his 22-point effort against Delaware State, Erik Reynolds II enters the game against UMass at 1,831 career points, currently ranking fifth on the  Hawks' scoring list Carl Jones (2009-13) is in fourth place at 1,845. Reynolds also connected on four three-pointers against the Hornets, giving him 293 in his career. His next one will tie Pat Carroll (2005-09) for the second most all-time at Saint Joseph's. He is also just seven treys away from joining Langston Galloway as the second ever Hawk to hit 300 three-pointers. Galloway dropped 343 from 2010-14.

Mid-Major?    
The question needs to be asked if the Atlantic 10 should be considered a high major conference rather than its generally considered mid-major moniker as the A-10 is the only conference other than the Power 5 to have seven teams in the top-102 of the NET ratings. Six of those teams reside inside the top-100, including the Hawks at 95. Dayton leads the A-10 in the NET at 41 followed by St. Bonaventure (52), VCU (69), Rhode Island (70) and George Mason (89). Davidson comes in at 102 UD and SBU are also receiving votes in the AP Poll.

Tis Better To Give Than Receive    
The Hawks continue to dish out assists at a prolific rate with 21 more against Delaware State. The 21 assists against the Hornets came on 27 made baskets. At 77.8, it is the highest percentage of field goals this season connected to an assist for SJU and the seventh time this year above 60 percent. Saint Joseph's is averaging 18.5 assists per game in the month of December, including 19.8 a contest in the last five games.  

Block Party    
St,. Joe's rejected nine more shots against Delaware State, bringing its total to eight times it has swatted five or more opponent attempts in a game this year. The nine blocks against DSU were distributed among seven different players. Rasheer Fleming and Justice Ajogbor lead the way with 21 and 18 blocks, respectively. It isn't just the two forwards however as nine different Saint Joseph's players have a rejection and seven have blocked five or more shots. At 5.8 swats per game, the Hawks are 12th nationally and are tied for second in the A-10. The Hawks rejected 12 Coppin State shots on November 26, a season-high. They also achieved double digits in the season-opener against Navy.

Scouting Report    
UMass enters play 5-8 overall and is coming off a 78-62 loss against Arizona State in the Hall of Fame Classic on December 21. The Minutemen were picked to finish ninth in the Atlantic 10 preseason poll.

Jaylen Curry leads the four players in double figures for Massachusetts at 13.3 points per game. Rahsool Diggins tallies 11.9 an outing with  Daniel Rivera and Dani Hankins-Sanford posting 10.7 and 10.3 a contest, respectively. Rivera is averaging 7.4 rebounds per game. Curry has 59 assists.

The Minutemen have done an excellent job of protecting the rim this season, ranking ninth nationally and are tied with the Hawks at 5.8 blocks per game. They also do a good job of getting to the line, taking 23.6 free throws a contest.

Shooting has been a major point of concern for UMass, which ranks either 14th or 15th in the conference in field goal percentage, free throw percentage and three-point percentage. It is in the bottom-10 nationally, connecting on 62.2 percent at the stripe and 26.7 percent beyond the arc.

Frank Martin is in his third season Massachusetts with a record of 40-35 in Amherst. In 18 years as a collegiate mentor he has amassed a record of 328-236, guiding Kansas State to the Elite 8 in 2010 and South Carolina to the Final Four in 2017.

All-Time Series    
Tuesday is the 80th meeting between St. Joe's and UMass in a series that dates to the 1982-83 season. The Minutemen hold a 42-37 all-time edge. The two schools had never played in men's basketball prior to the Hawks joining the A-10. Saint Joseph's is 6-4 against UMass at Hagan Arena.

Last Time Against UMass    
In a game that saw six ties and eight leads changes, the Hawks rallied from a four-point halftime deficit to come away with a 78-77 win at the Mullins Center on January 23, 2024. Erik Reynolds II led all scorers with 31 in the game. Xzayvier Brown added 11. Rasheer Fleming pulled in 11 rebounds. After the Minutemen took the lead with 12 seconds left, Lynn Greer III missed his initial shot, but got his own rebound and scored as time expired for the win.

Something's Gotta Give    
It will be a contrast in style on Tuesday as the Hawks rank 13th nationally in fouls per game, committing just 13.8. St. Joe's has allowed the second fewest free throw attempts to its opponents in the A-10 at 202, an average of 15.5 a contest. UMass gets to the line at the fourth-best rate in the conference, taking 23.6 attempts an outing.

Up Next    
The Hawks have their first road test of the conference slate, traveling to Saint Louis on January 3, 2025. Tipoff from Chaifetz Arena is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. eastern time with the game to air on ESPN.