UMass completes second-half rally

Minutemen win with 2d-half rally

Etienne Brower, who had 18 points for UMass, comes down with a rebound against Houston's Marcus Malone in the second half. (NANCY PALMIERI/Associated Press)

AMHERST - Historically speaking, the number 10 has always been revealing.

From Moses and The Ten Commandments, to 1979's Bo Derek perfect 10 movie, to David Letterman's famous Top 10 lists, the number has symbolized a milestone.

The University of Massachusetts Minutemen began a 10-game stretch last night that will tell the tale of their season. UMass came in riding high at 10-2, its best start of a season since the 1996 Final Four season. But as the new year opened, UMass faced a slate with 10 straight opponents with winning records, a combined 98-26 before last night. Four from that crew were Top 25 teams, and another two were in the "also receiving votes" category - including last night's opponent, Houston, which came in 11-1.

UMass rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit to post an electrifying 95-89 victory.

The Minutemen needed to deliver the goods at crunch time after Houston's Dion Dowell hit a 3-pointer while falling down to tie the score at 89 with 1:11 left.

On the next possession, Gary Forbes (a game-high 19 points) got fouled with 55 seconds left. He hit both to give UMass a 2-point edge. The Minutemen then hounded Houston's best player, Robert McKiver (a team-high 15 points), into a fadeaway that bounced off the rim.

Chris Lowe hit a pair of free throws to make it a two-possession game, and after a Lanny Smith miss on the other end with 17 seconds left, the Minutemen were basically home free.

At the finish, coach Travis Ford grabbed the microphone, like John Calipari in the mid-'90s, and thanked the crowd of 4,321 for its support. "Thank you all for staying," Ford said. "Thanks for bringing us back. We needed you."

A few minutes later, after celebrating in the locker room, Ford said, "I'm very proud of the effort from our guys, very proud of the commitment to the system. Our guys kept responding. We kept believing."

"We see the big picture," said Forbes. "We want to make it to the NCAA Tournament. This is the kind of game we have to win."

The UMass performance made a believer out of Houston's veteran coach Tom Penders. "If they can stay healthy, they're going to be a tough game for anybody," said Penders. "This team's for real."

In the first half, it looked like Houston was poised to bring a halt to UMass's 14-game home winning streak. The Cougars scored on one fearless drive after another, and also proved to be surprisingly good in the halfcourt. The Minutemen were flustered, and got little from their starters, except for Lowe, who twisted and torpedoed his way into the lane for 10 of his 18 points.

At intermission, Ford decided to spread the floor and give UMass some driving lanes uncluttered by teammates. The strategy worked wonders as Etienne Brower (17 of his 18 in the second half) led an emotional surge. Ricky Harris (11 of his 16 after intermission) also started heating up.

UMass won the rebounding battle for only the second time this season, 43-39. The Minutemen shot 53.1 percent in the second half to right the ship after a tentative 40 percent showing in the first 20 minutes.

UMass has little time to celebrate. The Minutemen head to Tennessee to take on undefeated Vanderbilt, ranked No. 15, Saturday.