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BOSTON — In the Hall of Fame Series at TD Garden on Friday evening, the Boston College men's basketball team secured a 71-55 victory over the UMass Minutemen. The Eagles now stand at 2-0 on the young season, while the Minutemen drop to 1-1.
UMass came out firing, racing to a 14-6 advantage with 14:14 remaining in the first half. During that opening stretch, the Minutemen connected on six of their nine field-goal attempts, including 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. Boston College, meanwhile, struggled to find its rhythm, hitting just 2-of-9 from the field and missing all six of its three-point tries in the early minutes.
Following the first media timeout, the Eagles began to claw back. A 6-1 spurt, fueled by four points from forward Brandon Benjamin, trimmed the deficit to 15-12 with 11:36 left in the half. Boston College eventually took its first lead at 28-26 on a layup by guard Money Williams with 4:25 remaining. That basket was part of a 7-0 run that also featured two free throws from Williams and a three-pointer by guard Zak Smrekar. The Eagles held their advantage into halftime, leading 37-35.
Boston College opened the second half with an 8-2 run to extend its lead to 45-37 with 15:55 to play. The Eagles then built their largest cushion of the day at 55-43 after Williams sank two free throws with 8:56 left in regulation. UMass responded with an 8-0 run to pull within four at 55-51 with 5:35 remaining, but Williams drilled a three-pointer and the Eagles added four free throws to push the lead back to 62-51 with 4:17 on the clock. Boston College maintained control the rest of the way to seal the 71-55 win.
Williams finished with a game-high 35 points. As a team, the Eagles shot 37.3 percent (22-of-59) from the field and a chilly 11.1 percent (3-of-27) from three-point range, but they compensated by making 24 of their 26 free-throw attempts.
Boston College will next host Maryland Eastern Shore (0-2) on Tuesday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET and will be streamed on ACCNX.
Key Analysis
Despite a rough shooting night from beyond the arc, Boston College's ability to get to the free-throw line and convert proved decisive. Williams' scoring outburst and the Eagles' 24-of-26 performance at the charity stripe offset their long-range woes. UMass, which started hot, couldn't sustain its early efficiency and was ultimately undone by Boston College's second-half runs.