Pierre's late heroics lead UMass past Saint Joseph's 80-79

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AMHERST, Mass. (AP) — Carl Pierre scored 21 points and his jump shot with 2.7 seconds left completed a 17-point, second-half comeback as UMass beat Saint Joseph's 80-79 on Saturday.

Pierre buried a 3 with 17.6 seconds to go to bring the Minutemen (10-17, 3-11 Atlantic 10) within 79-78. Saint Joseph's turned it over on its next possession and after Pierre's go-ahead shot, Lamarr Kimble missed a 3-point shot as time expired.

The Hawks (11-16, 4-10) led 54-37 at halftime and the two teams traded baskets to start the second half. Pierre's late score marked UMass' only lead of the game. Jonathan Laurent led UMass with 24 points and eight rebounds. The Minutemen finished 31-of-54 shooting (57.4 percent) including 10 of 21 from 3-point range. Keon Clergeot distributed seven assists to help UMass snap a two-game skid.

Chris Clover led the Hawks with 19 points and Kimble scored 14 to lead six players in double-digit scoring.