UMass Beats Rhody In Early Exhibition

Rhode Island Starters Fontenet, Hinton, Harper, Raupelis, Deniusas Massachusetts Starters Wimbley, Jr., Clayton, Wang, Clerc, Castineyra AMHERST, Mass. – Massachusetts defeated Rhode Island 81-68 in the first exhibition game of the year for both sides. Big man Cheick Sylla had 14 points and 18 rebounds for the Minutemen. The former longtime Atlantic 10 rivals spent the day together, as coaches Archie Miller and Frank Martin held a joint practice Sunday morning before the exhibition game. UMass jumped out to a big lead at the start of both halves, which ultimately was the difference in the final result. It led by…