Trailing by five points, 31-26, Eastern (3-4) went ten minutes without a field goal – getting four points on free throws in that stretch – as UMass (4-2) surged to a 24 point, 54-30 lead with just over nine minutes left. The Beacons,who snapped a four-game losing streak at the hands of Eastern, scored 11 straight points to open that run, getting points from five different players in that run. The lead crested at 25 points, 57-32, with nine minutes left.
Sophomore guard Amigo Paniagua – the Beacons’ leading scorer with an average just under 20 points, was limited to just four points before fouling out with his team leading by 12 with 5:21 left. However, Barros finished with a game-high 27 points – ten above his average. Barros converted half of his 14 field goal tries, was 3-for-4 from three-point range and was 10-of-17 from the foul line.
Barros led a balanced attack which featured five double-figure scorers. The Beacons commited only five turnovers in taking a five-point lead into the lockerroom. Eastern raced to a quick 7-1 lead after six minutes but UMass scored 16 of the next 19 points to move out to a seven-point, 17-10 lead midway through the half.
Eastern junior forward Leon Martin led the Warriors with 12 first-half points 5-for-5 from the floor) and sophomore center Kevin Zalucki grabbed eight first-half rebounds. Martin was held to just two free throws in seven second-half minutes and Zalucki had just one rebound in 18 second-half minutes.
Junior guard Matt Albon had season-highs of 23 points and nine rebounds to pace Eastern. Albon connected on eight of 12 field goals in the second half . Martin had 14 points and six rebounds, Zalucki nine points and nine rebounds and senior guard Michael Stallings ten points – all in the second half.
Eastern hosts the University of Southern Maine Saturday at 3 p.m. in a Little East Conference game.