• Player
• Seasons: 2022-23, 2023-24
• Number: 33
• Position: F
• Height: 6' 7“
• Weight: 230
• Hometown: Beverly MA
• High School: St. Mary’s High School (Lynn MA)
• Prep School: Brewster Academy (2019-20), Woodstock Academy (2018-19), Cushing Academy (2017-18)
• Transfer From: Louisville
• Transfer To: SMU
• Birthday: February 21, 2001¹⁾

• Committed to UMass on 4/25/22.²⁾ UMass made it official on 5/10.³⁾
• Cross requested a waiver to the usual NCAA transfer rules after leaving Louisville, and it was granted, making him eligible to play for us in 2022-23.⁴⁾
• Roster page at UMassAthletics.com
• Entered the transfer portal on 4/16/24.⁵⁾⁶⁾ Coach Martin encouraged him to capture a larger NIL offer.⁷⁾
• Was an NIL partner with The Mass Collective⁸⁾. Deal terminated upon entry into the transfer portal⁹⁾
• Graduated in May 2024¹⁰⁾

• Atlantic 10 First Team¹¹⁾
• Played in 28 of the season's 31 games, missing 3 to an ankle injury. Started 27, the one exception after the ankle injury
• Put up career bests of 15.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg
• Led the team in both rebounding and steals, in totals and per game average
• Rebounding avg was second in the A-10, just behind 8.5 from Dayton's DaRon Holmes
• PPG of 15.3 was second on the team (Josh Cohen 15.9), tenth in the A-10
• Shot .624 from two-point territory, best of his career and much better than the .422 from 2022-23
• NABC All-District Second Team¹²⁾
• Pre-Season All-Atlantic 10 Third Team¹³⁾
• October: A quick "get to know" video for Cross and Josh Cohen
• Put up 19 & 5 in 20 minutes of work against Quinnipiac (11/13)
• Snared a career high 16 rebounds against Harvard (11/17). Also scored 16 points, both numbers led the Minutemen
• Set a new career high in scoring with 31 points against CCSU (11/22). Also hauled in 9 rebounds, both numbers led the Minutemen. Shot an impressive 11-13 from the floor
• On November 28, Cross was leading the nation in Sports Reference's PER (Player Efficiency Rating)¹⁴⁾
• Led the team with 11 rebounds in the win over South Florida (12/2)
• Shot 7-10 from the field and put up 17 points at Towson (12/6)
• Tallied 14-6-5 in 27 minutes of work in the win over UMass-Lowell (12/9)
• Doubled-up West Virginia (12/16) with 13 & 13, overcoming a 7 turnover night
• Led UMass in points (17) and boards (9) in the loss vs Georgia Tech (12/21)
• Put up 19-8-5 in the win over Portland (12/22)
• Put up 14-7-5 in the win over Old Dominion (12/24)
• Swiped a career high 8, scored 24, pulled in 9 rebounds, and dished 5 assists in the win over Siena (12/30)
• Tallied 15 & 8 in the win over Duquesne (1/3)
• Led UMass in points (18) and boards (14) in the close game at Dayton (1/7). Early on in the game, Cross took a DaRon Holmes arm to the face¹⁵⁾ and lost most of a tooth.¹⁶⁾¹⁷⁾ He still went on to play a total of 30 minutes
• Rolled his ankle against La Salle (1/10) after putting up 6 & 4
• Sat out the games at Rhody (1/13), at Lo-Chi (1/17), and GW (1/20), resting the ankle
• Returned at Saint Joe's (1/23), coming off the bench and registering 12-9-4
• Led UM with 19 points in the win at Saint Louis (1/27)
• Article 2/2/24: After years of moving around, Matt Cross has found a home at UMass; and the Minutemen have found their leader
• February: Interview with The Field of 68
• Tallied 9 and 9 versus George Mason (2/3), but racked up 7 turnovers in UM's narrow win over the Patriots
• Led UM with 19 points at St. Bonaventure (2/7)
• Notched 10-7-6 and 3 steals in the win over Rhode Island (2/11)
• Led UM in points (16) and boards (13), and shot 8-9 from the line in UM's win at Richmond (2/14)
• Put up 15 & 8 in UM's narrow loss at La Salle (2/17)
• Put up 18 points, shot 7-9 from the field, and snared a team-high 12 boards in the win over VCU (2/20)
• Shot 8-12, scored 17, rebounded 7 in the win at GW (2/27)
• Shot 9-13 from the field and 8-10 from the line for 26 points in the win at Davidson (3/2)
• Tallied 15 & 9 in the Senior Night win over Fordham (3/6)
• Held to 2-9 shooting in the A-10 Tournament loss vs VCU (3/14)

• Played in 25 of the season's 31 games, starting 23
• Averaged 12.2 points per game, second on the team behind RJ Luis (13.4)
• Led the team in rebounding with 6.3 rpg, which ranked 12th among the Atlantic 10
• Was UM's leading scorer in 9 games
• Article 3/11/23: Cross’ basketball odyssey led him back home to UMass (Daily Hampshire Gazette)
• Sustained a Grade 2 MCL injury sustained in the 2/14 game vs Loyola Chicago.¹⁸⁾ Missed the next three games, returning to action in the Senior Day game with St. Bonaventure (3/4), putting up 5 & 4 in 20 minutes
• Put up 15 & 8 at La Salle (2/11)
• Led UM with 17 points at Fordham (2/8)
• Missed the games against Duquesne (1/28) and at George Mason (2/1) with a nasty stomach bug that put him in the hospital.¹⁹⁾ Returned with a vengeance, putting up a career-high 28 points, with 10-15 FG shooting, against Davidson (2/4)
• Tallied 16 & 8 in the win over Richmond (1/25)
• Put up two straight double-doubles, with 15 & 10 at VCU (1/17) and 14 & 10 at Saint Joe's (1/21)
• Led UM in both points (22) and rebounds (7, co-leader) in the win over Rhode Island (1/14)
• Tallied 13 & 9 versus La Salle (1/11)
• Led UM with 9 rebounds against Dartmouth (12/20), and put up 16 points
• Led UM in points and rebounds, 19 & 13, versus North Texas (12/17)
• Put up 19 points, with 8-8 shooting from the line, versus UMass-Lowell (12/8)
• Tallied a double-double, 15 & 14, versus Murray State (11/18)
• Sat out the season opener against CCSU (11/7) with a slight toe injury.²⁰⁾ Played in the next game vs Towson (11/10), logging 22 minutes off the bench, scoring 13 points (co-led the team)

• Announced his commitment to Louisville on 2/25/21.²¹⁾ Louisville announced it officially in mid-March.²²⁾
• Double figure scorer in nine games in 2021-22, starting nine games for the Cardinals.
• Third on the team in blocked shots with 14, including 11 in ACC games.
• Produced his first career double-double against North Carolina on Feb. 1 with 13 points and a career-best 15 rebounds. Cross knocked down 3-of-5 three-pointers, his sixth game this season with multiple threes.
• Made his first start of the season against DePaul (12/10), contributing 11 points and six rebounds. He added 13 points and five rebounds vs. Southeastern Louisiana (12/14), also in the starting lineup.
• Contributed 13 points and a season-high seven rebounds at NC State (12/4), including a three-pointer with 28 seconds remaining to break the tie game.
• Scored eight points and grabbed five rebounds vs. Maryland (11/27), including burying a three-pointer that pulled UofL from a three-point deficit late in the game.
• Scored 14 points, making all four of his three-point attempts, to lead four Cardinals in double figures against Navy (11/15).
• Totaled 15 points, five rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot against Southern (11/9) to tie for 13th in scoring for a UofL debut. Cross suffered a dislocated ring finger on his right hand, but returned to play with the finger taped.
• Roster page on GoCards.com
• Opted to transfer out of Louisville after they cut ties with head coach Chris Mack.

• Season did not count towards eligibility due to COVID-19 pandemic.
• Appeared in the first 14 games, starting nine of them.
• Averaged 6.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Added 20 assists, 11 steals and seven blocked shots in the season.
• Set Miami’s ACC-era freshman 3-point percentage record with a 40.0 clip on 20-of-50 shooting.
• Twice shot 4-of-6 from deep to tie for the fifth-best single-game mark by a Hurricane freshman in the ACC era.
• Against Clemson (1/2), logged the most assists (seven) in a game by a Miami freshman since Chris Lykes on 3/3/18.
• Third Miami freshman in the ACC era to start the season opener (North Florida 11/29), including the first in seven years.
• Scored in double figures four times, pulled down five-plus boards three times and reached five assists once.
• Paced the Hurricanes in steals and blocks twice each, as well as points and assists once apiece.
• Notched 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting to go along with seven rebounds and two blocks versus North Florida (11/29) in the opening game.
• Scored 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting against Stetson (12/4).
• Grabbed a season-high eight rebounds against Jacksonville (12/19).
• Tallied 16 points, finishing 6-of-8 from the floor and 4-of-6 from deep, at No. 24/RV Virginia Tech (12/29). Also snared five rebounds and dished three assists.
• Totaled nine points and a career-best seven assists in 31 minutes against Clemson (1/2). The seven dimes were the most for a Miami freshman in three years.
• Scored nine points in a career-best 32 minutes in the win at NC State (1/9).
• Posted 16 points in the win over No. 16/18 Louisville (1/16), shooting 4-of-6 on 3-pointers and 4-of-4 at the line. Also notched four rebounds and two assists.
• Went scoreless in the games at Syracuse (1/19) and at home vs Notre Dame (1/24), shooting a combined 0-8 from the field.
• Was a coach's decision DNP for the game at Florida State (1/27).
• Miami announced the next day that Cross was no longer with the team.^23)24)25)26) The Miami Herald reported “no serious disciplinary issues,” but no further explanation was given by the school.²⁷⁾
• Roster page on MiamiHurricanes.com

From Sports-Reference.com: Stats, Game Logs

Through the 2023-24 season

Current highs available at RealGM.com

• Committed to play for SMU in the 2024-25 season,²⁹⁾ as a graduate student³⁰⁾

• As an 8th grader, played and started for Saint Mary's.³¹⁾³²⁾ Mary's won a state title in the 2015-16 season.³³⁾ The following season, Cross and Saint Mary's reached the state finals.³⁴⁾
• Played at Cushing Academy for one season, his high school sophomore year.³⁵⁾
• Averaged 13 points, eight rebounds and five assists per game as a junior at Woodstock (Conn.) Academy, helping his team to a conference title. Played for coach Tony Bergeron, who went on to assistant coach at UMass in 2019-20 and 2020-21.³⁶⁾³⁷⁾ Played with Noah Fernandes, TJ Weeks, Tre Mitchell, Ronnie DeGray, and Preston Santos.³⁸⁾
• Averaged 18.6 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game as a senior in helping Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H. achieve a 37-3 record, a 2019-20 NEPSAC runner-up finish and a National Prep Championship title.
• Ranked among the top 100 high school student-athletes in his 2020 recruiting class, including No. 86 in the ESPN 100, No. 93 in the 247Sports composite rankings, and No. 99 by Rivals.com.
• Earned first team All-NEPSAC Class AAA honors.
• Received an offer from Frank Martin and staff at South Carolina. Also received offers from Florida, Butler, Iowa, Indiana, and Texas A&M.

• Matthew Jacob Cross, born Feb. 21, 2001.
• Son of Jim and Cyndi Cross. Has an older brother, Nick, and an older sister, Jess.
• His father played basketball at Salem (Mass.) State and his brother played basketball at Florida Gulf Coast.
• Majored in sport administration at Louisville.
• Wears uniform number 33 because Hall of Famer Larry Bird also wore that number. Larry Bird and Ray Lewis have had the greatest influence on his athletic career.³⁹⁾
• Best moment of his athletic career to date (written in 2021) was scoring the game-winning basket with three seconds remaining at TD Garden in the semifinals of the Massachusetts Division 4 state semifinal for St. Mary’s High School in Lynn, Mass.
• Suffered a compound fracture in his right leg playing football in high school on Dec. 16, 2016 as a ninth-grader playing for St. Mary’s in the 2016 Division 3A Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium and lost about a year of competition, missing his ninth grade season of basketball.
• When playing basketball as a kid, he pretended he was always hitting the game-winning shot.⁴⁰⁾
• Enjoys playing video games, watching movies and listening to music in his spare time.
• Feels Jack Nicholson would be the best actor to play him in a movie.⁴¹⁾
• Would most like to meet Marcus Luttrell.⁴²⁾

Per his Louisville bio

• Basketball Player: Larry Bird
• NBA Team: no particular team
• Athlete, other than a basketball player: Ray Lewis, Rob Gronkowski
• Movies: Lone Survivor, American Sniper, Forrest Gump, Wolf of Wall Street
• TV Shows: Game of Thrones, Naruto
• Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio
• Website: YouTube
• Instagram Follow: @margotrobbie
• Musical Group/Singer: George Strait, Rod Wave
• TV Sports Personality: Marshawn Lynch
• Food: breakfast
• Midnight Snack: oatmeal
• Vacation Spot: Bahamas

• Twitter: @mcsnipes33
• Instagram: @mattcross33