UMass' Chaz Williams is defended by Fordham's Bryan Smith.Click here for more photos from the game »

AMHERST – After a string of gut-wrenching nail-biters capped by Wednesday's failed comeback bid at Richmond, Chaz Williams said the University of Massachusetts basketball team came into its matchup with Fordham looking to get its swagger back.

The Minutemen got that and then some Sunday, cruising to their most convincing win, 90-52 at a sold-out Mullins Center.

The game was never in doubt, a rarity for the No. 13 Minutemen (17-2, 4-1 Atlantic 10) in recent weeks. UMass recovered from a 7-0 Fordham barrage to open the game by putting together scoring runs of 20-2 and 20-0 en route to a 16-point halftime lead and 38-point second-half bulge, both season highs.

As for getting its swagger back, the final outcome – the most lopsided in series history, besting a 30-point win from the 1995-96 Final Four season – was nothing short of mission accomplished for UMass.

"We felt like we weren't playing UMass basketball and doing what we're used to doing," said Williams, who scored a game-high 18 points before being pulled with the outcome easily in hand. "Coming out today, we just wanted to focus on executing Coach's game plan.

"I thought, other than the start, that was a nice complete game for us," coach Derek Kellogg said. "The guys paid attention to detail and really locked in defensively. And it was nice to see the ball go in the basket. I thought we shot the ball very well."

The Minutemen made 51.6 percent of their shots, including 13 from beyond the 3-point arc after making just 2 of 14 at Richmond.

Kellogg joked that he made each of his players take "9,000 shots over the last two days" to shake off any ill effects from Wednesday.

"After some of those open ones we missed against Richmond, I didn't want to see that again," he said.

Kellogg admitted he grew a little worried when, in spite of his team's renewed determination to play a complete game, the Rams (8-11, 1-5) opened with seven straight points from Jon Severe and Ryan Rhoomes.

Like he's done so often this season, Kellogg turned to his bench for inspiration, inserting junior forward Maxie Esho and sophomore guard Trey Davis just 2 minutes, 47 seconds in.

"We were down 7-0 and I couldn't watch anymore," he said. "Maxie will at least bring energy, and I think Trey has proven he can make some open shots. We just needed to mix it up a little bit, and it worked out."

The move, as expected, resulted in increased energy and a flew high-flying dunks to get the capacity crowd into the action. But it also allowed UMass to set up its full-court defense, centered around Esho, and throw Fordham off its early rhythm.

"When you've got 9,500 people in the building, you want to press and get the game moving," Kellogg said. "You know, you're coming off a loss, you haven't played in a couple of days and you're kind of stagnant. I thought that gave us the energy we needed to at least say, 'We're here.'"

And once the Minutemen arrived, they had no intention of leaving.

Up 40-24 at the break, Kellogg encouraged his players to keep the pressure on and put away the Rams as soon as possible. UMass responded by scoring the first 17 points.

"I explained to them, 'Let's try to be the team that makes the run to start the half and put the game away,'" he said. "They were committed to doing that. You could tell by the attitude and energy in the locker room they were committed. And they executed."

With a healthy cushion, the team's trio of healthy freshmen – guard Clyde Santee and forwards Seth Berger and Demetrius Dyson – took the floor and combined for 15 points to help close things out with Davis and sophomore forward Tyler Bergantino.

Kellogg again praised the sellout crowd, the third of the season and second at the Mullins Center, for providing an extra boost.

"When you have the crowd that we had, it's tough not to come and play and compete," he said. "You might not play perfect, you might get off to a slow start, but when you've got all those fans and students cheering for you and waiting to get into the game, I think that's a huge boost. It's the sixth man we've been looking for for a long time."

Davis (13), Esho (10) and senior forward Raphiael Putney (13) joined Williams scoring in double figures. Davis added nine assists and Williams eight.

Severe, the A-10's leading scorer at more than 20 points per game, was limited to just seven on 2-for-14 shooting. Junior guard Chris Whitehead led Fordham with 13 points, while senior guard Branden Frazier added 12.

The Minutemen are back on the road for a two-game stint at St. Bonaventure Wednesday and Saint Joseph's Saturday.