BOSTON, MASS. (December 4, 2024)—The Clark Athletics Center was rocking for the Beacons' Little East Conference matchup against the Rhode Island College Anchormen on Wednesday evening. UMass Boston fell just short, ultimately losing grasp in the deciding moments in overtime to cut their win streak at four.
The Basics:
UMass Boston 83 – 90 Rhode Island College
UMass Boston 4-2 (1-1 LEC)
Rhode Island College 4-4 (1-0 LEC)
How it Happened

• Junior Guard Hector Perez (Easton, Mass.) opened the flood gates for UMass Boston with a corner three to open the scoring. Graduate forward Mark Barrett (Brookline, Mass.) connected from downtown to retake a two-point lead at 8-10. The two units battled in a tightly contested first half. The largest lead for either team was no greater than five points. Just under the five-minute mark, first-year LEC Rookie of the Week Cameron Perkins (Danbury, Conn.) went on an eight-point run by himself, scoring four consecutive inside and mid-range baskets to keep the Anchormen at bay. In his season debut, junior Connor Walden (Marshfield, Mass.) stepped in and picked up right where he left off from the 2023-24 season, stepping into a crisp jumper just inside the arc to close out the first half. At the conclusion, UMass Boston led by four (28-24).
• History repeated itself to resume the second half, as Perez opened up scoring with a spot-up mid-range jumper off the dish from Barrett. Sophomore guard Xavier McKenzie (Lowell, Mass.) continued to have his way in the driving lane, slashing his way to the rim to make it a three-point game. With 7:36 remaining in the game, the Anchormen worked out a comfortable 14 point lead. Little by little, the offensive outlets for UMass Boston began to chip into the deficit, with baskets from Perkins, McKenzie, and Walden to bring it back to within five with just over five minutes remaining. Perkins made it a one-possession game with four minutes to go off the offensive rebound tip-in following Walden's miss. Perkins' basket lit a fire in the Clark Athletics Center as spectators began to foresee the second-half comeback. He turned up the intensity by tying up the game at 69 following a post-up midrange J that sent the Beacons' faithful into a frenzy. Coach Harris would call the unit to the clipboard in the final minute to scheme the X's and O's. His after-timeout (ATO) play called upon Walden, and he answered truthfully with a midrange jumper to bring them to within one in under 30 seconds. Raphel Laurent (Peabody, Mass.) put his body on the line to jump the passing line and dove into the scorers' table to save a deflected pass into the hands of senior captain Emanuel Zayas (Hollywood, Fla.) to give the Beacons possession in their offensive half. The Anchormen were forced to foul and put Zayas on the line, where he went 1-2 to provide the Beacons with five more minutes of life in overtime. The Anchormen's halfcourt prayer to end the game was off the mark, as time expired with the two teams knotted even at 72.
• The Anchormen would win the tip to begin OT, and would jump to a five point lead in the first two minutes. A McKenzie step-back jumper brought UMass Boston to within one, but that's the closest the Beacons would get in OT, as the Anchormen would go on a seven-point run in the final moments of a Little East Conference thriller from UMass Boston.

By the Numbers

• Perkins would have his way offensively with a dominant, career-high 35 points (12-19 FG, 11-14 FT), and team-high nine rebounds.
• McKenzie used the lane to score 15 points to go with four rebounds, four assists, and a block.
• Walden scored eight points in 14 minutes in his season debut.
• Laurent had six points, five rebounds, and two steals, one of which led to the Zayas free throws that sent the Beacons to OT.
• As a unit, the Beacons shot 44.6% from the field, 35% from beyond the arc, went 20-30 from the charity stripe, forced 16 turnovers, and registered 30 rebounds, nine assists, three blocks, and eight steals in an outstanding effort.

Who's Next:

• The Beacons will look ahead to hosting another LEC matchup on Saturday, December 7, at 3:00 p.m from the Clark Athletics Center against the Warriors of Eastern Connecticut State University. Tune in for live coverage.