UMass Blows 18-Point Second-Half Leads, Loses At Ball St. In OT
The Minutemen lost 74-73 on the road in overtime at Ball State.
UMass blew an 18-point second-half lead Tuesday night and fell at Ball State 74-73 in overtime.
The Minutemen dropped to 15-14 overall and 6-10 in the MAC, extending their losing streak to five. Ball State improved to 9-19 and 4-11 in league play. UMass remains eighth in the conference, holding the final spot as the top eight teams qualify for the league tournament in March, but it’s now only a half-game ahead of Central Michigan.
Isaiah Placide finished with 19 points, tying his Division I career high, and scored 14 after halftime. He hit the game-tying three-pointer with 25 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime and later converted a three-point play followed by a three-pointer in the extra session to give UMass a late one-point lead.
But Ball State answered on the ensuing possession as Armoni Zeigler drove for a layup with 16 seconds left, putting the Cardinals ahead 74-73. After a timeout, UMass was unable to get a shot off before the buzzer.
Leonardo Bettiol added 14 points and 14 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season. Danny Carbuccia scored 12 points and K’Jei Parker added 10. UMass finished with a 49-41 edge on the glass.
The loss marked UMass’ fourth overtime game of the season. The Minutemen are 0-4 in those contests.
Carbuccia opened the game’s scoring with a driving layup and a three-pointer as the Minutemen established early control. A Parker three-pointer with 13:35 left in the first half pushed the lead to 12-5.
After Ball State trimmed the margin to 16-14, UMass responded with a 12-0 run. Placide and Parker each connected from beyond the arc during the stretch, extending the lead to 28-14 with 6:13 remaining in the half. Bettiol’s hook shot later made it 32-16 before the Cardinals closed the half on a 5-2 spurt to cut the deficit to 34-21 at the break.
Marcus Banks Jr. keyed the early moments of the second half, knocking down two three-pointers in the opening 1:43 to restore a 16-point cushion at 40-24. The Minutemen stretched the advantage to 18 twice, including at 49-31 following a Bettiol layup.
Leading 53-35, UMass struggled to generate offense as Ball State mounted a 17-3 run. After Parker’s three-pointer with 12:12 remaining gave the Minutemen an 18-point edge, they managed just one field goal the rest of regulation until Placide’s tying three.
In overtime, Ball State scored on its first three possessions to build a four-point lead. Placide responded with six consecutive points, first converting a three-point play and then drilling a three-pointer to put UMass ahead 73-72 with 36 seconds remaining, but Zeigler’s layup proved decisive.
What’s next: UMass travels to Bowling Green for a 2 p.m. tipoff Saturday. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
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