Rhode Island Starters 
Thomas, House, Lawrence, Green, Brown

Massachusetts Starters 
Curry, Diggins, Ndjigue, Rivera, Abdelgowad

How it Happened
Rhode Island held on for an 88-82 win over Massachusetts on Wednesday night at the Ryan Center in the teams' penultimate meeting as Atlantic 10 foes. 

Despite holding a 21-point lead, the Rams (15-6, 4-5 A-10) were nearly toppled by the Minutemen, who outscored their hosts by 15 over the final 16 minutes. 

Massachusetts (9-12, 4-4 A-10) controlled play at the start of the game, pulling away by nearly double-digits before the Rams started to reel them in. After four ties, Jaden House finally awarded URI the lead when he hit a pair of free throws at the 4:56 mark (31-29). The teams went back and forth over the next few possessions until Sebastian Thomas was fouled on a made 3-pointer and converted on his ensuing trip to the charity stripe, kicking off a run that sent the Rams into the locker room with a 46-38 advantage.

Momentum was entirely in favor of Rhody after the break, as the team started the half with a 13-0 run to go up by 21 on a Jamarques Lawrence three (59-38, 16:27). The offense cooled off following the initial outburst, going nearly three full minutes without any points until House laid in a basket at 13:20. 

As URI's offense lost steam, the visitors' got going. UMass made nine straight field goals during a nearly three-minute period in which the Rams were held without a field goal, allowing the visitors to trim the lead down to just four on a Daniel Sanford-Hankins trey (80-76, 3:14). Minutes later, Sanford-Hankins narrowed the deficit down to one possession when he hit a jumper that made it 82-80 URI with just over a minute to go. 

Though the teams alternated free throw attempts down the stretch, Rhode Island managed to stay in front for the victory. 

Inside the Box Score

• With the win, Rhode Island has earned its most home wins (11-2) since going 12-3 in 2019-20. 
• The victory also helped the Rams snap their first two-game losing streak of the 2024-25 season.
• URI shot 56.6 percent from the floor, its best showing of the season. The Rams made 30 of their 53 shots. 
• Guard Sebastian Thomas scored a team-best 22 points, snapping a two-game skid in which he did not surpass 20. He flirted with a triple-double with eight rebounds and seven assists.
• Thomas was one of four Rams to finish in double figures, joined by guard Jaden House (18), forward David Green (18) and guard Jamarques Lawrence (13). 
• Center Javonte Brown recorded a game-high four blocks, double UMass' effort as a team, and poured in eight points. 
• The Minutemen out-rebounded the Rams 39-34. UMass entered the night averaging a league-best 40 boards per game, 25th in the nation. 
• Massachusetts' Rahsool Diggins scored a game-high 27 points. 
• Rhode Island and Massachusetts are scheduled to meet one final time during the regular season on Saturday, March 1 in Amherst. UMass announced that it will join the Mid-American Conference in 2025-26. 

Up Next
The Rams will have to wait a week for their next game, which will be played at Fordham on Wednesday, Feb. 5. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on ESPN+.