Young UMass Lowell Team Looks to Prove Itself During 2010-11 Campaign
LOWELL, MA (Nov. 5, 2010) – The UMass Lowell men’s basketball team, the defending Northeast-10 Tournament Champion, has been selected No. 9 in the NE-10 Preseason Coaches Poll, as announced by the conference office on Friday.
The squad is no stranger to surprising their peers, though, as they were selected No. 12 just two years ago, before finishing the season in second place. Last year, despite finishing the season ranked No. 7 in the NE-10 standings, the River Hawks captured the conference tournament championship.
UMass Lowell is coming off a 20-12 season in 2009-10, with a 13-9 clip in conference action. The River Hawks stormed their way through the post-season, knocking off #2 Bentley and #3 Merrimack on the road to host the championship game, when they defeated #9 Adelphi 73-58 to capture the third conference title in program history.
In this year’s poll, UMass Lowell received 120 points to place them in the middle of the pack of the 16-team conference.
“After losing the majority of our championship team from last year, I had no idea where we would be picked,” said Head Coach Greg Herenda, who enters his third year at the helm of the River Hawk program. “We are very young and inexperienced, so we have a lot to prove again.”
Atop the poll was Bentley, as the Falcons grabbed 216 points and nine first place votes. Saint Anselm picked up the No. 2 spot with 195 votes and a first place nod. In third was Merrimack (189 points, 1 first place vote), No. 4 Saint Rose (182, 2) and the defending regular season champion Stonehill Skyhawks (174, 3) rounded out the top five.
The sixth slot went to American International (139), No. 7 was Adelphi and just ahead of UMass Lowell was Assumption at No. 8 with 124 votes. Just after the River Hawks, Southern New Hampshire completed the top 10 with 111 votes.
“Obviously, we are much more concerned with the rankings in February than the polls in November,” Herenda said. “Our conference is so well-balanced every year that you have to take each game one at a time. We are very excited for another challenging year in the Northeast-10.”
The River Hawks return just six veterans from last year’s squad, a team that earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year. This year’s team will work hard to make it three in a row.
Returners include NE-10 All-Tournament selection, sophomore Scotty Tavares-Taylor (Roxbury, Mass.) and leading returning scorer Matt Welch (Lowell, Mass.), a mid-season addition from the University of New Hampshire. Junior Robbie Walton (South Boston, Mass.) was a walk on that earned his way into the starting lineup for the River Hawks, making 12 starts in the second half of the year.
Juniors John Corbacio (Stoney Creek, Ont.) and Pete Steere (Lancaster, Mass.) will add experience in the paint, while sophomore Romeo Diaz (Methuen, Mass.) is a flexible wing that can contribute both offensively (4.5 ppg) and on the glass (2.9 rpg).
Herenda and his staff are excited with the progress and possibilities of their band of newcomers, including Akeem Williams (Brockton, Mass.), Kerry Weldon (New York, N.Y.) and Antonio Bivins (Miami, Fla.). All the newcomers have extreme potential and will work hard every day to compete for playing time to contribute to their the team.
The River Hawks will open their season in just over a week, as they host the Tip-Off Classic at UMass Lowell. First they will take on Post on Saturday, Nov. 13 at 2:00 p.m. before facing Felician the following afternoon at 4:00. The NE-10’s own Pace will also play in the tournament.
The squad will begin its conference schedule at home against Saint Michael’s College on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at 7:30 p.m.
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