Nothing like a road trip to bring the UMass men’s basketball team together.
The Minutemen play their first game away from the Mullins Center at 1:30 p.m. Thursday against Colorado as part of the Myrtle Beach Invitational. They’ll face three games in four days in Myrtle Beach, S.C., against a robust field.
“Right before this we were just eating, and I was at a table with a bunch of the guys eating and laughing, which isn’t something we’ve been able to do,” UMass forward Matt Cross said.
UMass (1-1) has 10 newcomers on its roster. Their lack of familiarity showed at times in both the season-opening win over Central Connecticut State and their loss against Towson last time out (Nov. 10).
“Everything’s been a lot of trying to get us right from within. The players understand it all starts with us,” UMass coach Frank Martin said. “If we don’t get us figured out, everything outside of us is not of tremendous relevance.”
That “us” should finally have every piece accounted for. The Minutemen have shuffled players in and out due to injuries and a lack of availability since the summer. Now all of the pieces are available.
“We’re good. We’ve had a really consistent week of preparation. Everyone’s been in there. This morning (Wednesday) at practice, I thought that’s the sharpest practice we’ve had since before Central (Connecticut),” Martin said. “We continue to learn, and to learn we need guys on the court. We dealt with in and out with guys in preseason practice, and now we’ve got guys on the court.”
They’ll need it against a Colorado team that has established itself as one of the Pac-12’s most consistent teams since it joined the league in 2012. The Buffaloes (2-1) reached the NCAA Tournament last year and have been five times in coach Tad Boyle’s 12-year tenure.
Colorado fell at Grambling State but responded with essentially a road win against then-No. 11 Tennessee in Nashville. Guard KJ Simpson leads four Buffaloes averaging double figures at 17.7 points per game.
“Their offense and the spacing is phenomenal. He creates opportunities for his lead guard to be able to drive and put him in great space to make decisions,” Martin said. “He’s got a little Princeton flavor. He’s morphed it into his own little deal and it’s really good and really hard to defend.”
After the Buffaloes, UMass will face either Texas A&M or Murray State on Friday depending on first round results. Either Charlotte, Boise State, new Atlantic 10 member Loyola Chicago or Tulsa awaits in Sunday’s final round.
“I’m excited to be down here and take on these challenges,” Martin said. “We’re going to grow tremendously from this week.”
The trip to Myrtle Beach may have provided de ja vu for Martin, assistant coach Brian Steele and South Carolina transfers Wildens Leveque and Brandon Martin. The Minutemen are staying in the same hotel the Gamecocks did when they played Coastal Carolina last season.
“It was a surreal feeling last night and on the bus. I’m saying I can’t believe I just left here, now I’m right back,” Frank Martin said. “It is what it is. That lasted for a couple minutes then it was Wildens in a UMass uniform, me in a UMass T-shirt and let’s go coach ball and let’s represent our school.”
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter @kylegrbwsk.