A lot has ensued for both the men’s and women’s UMass Boston basketball teams since winter break. The majority of the basketball season has been played since the beginning of January, including some very important matchups against opponents within the conference. So, with that being said, let’s take a look at how the men and women’s basketball teams have been doing since winter break and where they stand going into the last two weeks of the season.
Men’s basketball
Since returning from winter break, the UMass Boston men’s basketball team has put up a 4–5. Not exactly the return to action you would hope for, especially considering each of those games came against other Little Eastern Conference opponents. Their most recent game was this past Saturday when the Beacons would match up against Plymouth State, who are the fourth ranked team in the conference. The Beacons came out flat to start the game as they found themselves down 29–17 at the end of the first half. The Beacons picked it up a bit on the offensive end in the second half but couldn’t contain Plymouth State as they lost by a score of 73–47.
With that loss the Beacons moved to 5–7 in the conference, which is good enough for sixth place. The Beacons have just four games remaining on the schedule, however their hopes to make it to the conference tournament are far from dead. Two of the four teams remaining on the schedule include the University of Southern Maine and Castleton University. Both those teams sit well below UMass Boston in the standings and should result in wins for the Beacons. The most important game that should be viewed as a must-win for the Beacons is against Rhode Island College. Rhode Island College is currently seeded one spot ahead of the Beacons. In order for the Beacons to make the LEC tournament, they are going to have to leapfrog Rhode Island College in the standings by beating them next Saturday.
Women’s basketball
Since early January, the UMass Boston women’s basketball team has put up a 4–3 record, all against LEC opponents. Like the men, the women’s most recent game was against Plymouth State. Plymouth State has been far from competitive this season, as they are 0–10 in the conference, however they did put up quite a fight against the Beacons as they were able to keep it close by a final score of 57–52, with the Beacons coming out on top. Senior Meg Dixon had a notable performance recording a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
With that win, the Beacons now sit in fifth place in the conference, well within reach of making the conference tournament. UMass Boston still has plenty of time to move up the standings with six games remaining on the schedule. The Beacons have two notable matchups against the University of Southern Maine, who currently hold the fourth spot in the conference standings. If the Beacons can take care of business in those two games, then they can almost guarantee themselves a spot in the top four, getting them into the LEC tournament.
As of right now, both the men and women’s basketball teams are on the outside looking in when it comes to making the LEC tournament. However, both teams are well within reach and have great opportunities to move up in the standings in the final two weeks in the season. If both the men and women can win the notable games mentioned in this article, then we could be looking at a LEC tournament appearance for both teams.