Another postseason disappoinment

Albany 67 Vermont 58

For the second year in a row Vermont's quest for the title ends at the hands of Albany. I would describe it as the "perfect storm" game. Albany was on their home floor coming off a dominating victory over UMBC. Vermont's sluggish starts had reared their ugly heads in the previous two games. In the early going the ball seemed to bounce Albany's way and a few calls went their way as well. While this was going on the Cats simply couldn't buy a basket and looked a step slower than Albany. By the time everything was sorted out, they were down by too large of a margin to stage a comeback. Will Brown is a brilliant coach and seems to have Becker's number at this point as far a game planning and executing. My hat is off to Brown and his team and I hope they beat Stony Brook on Saturday. I will say that I am happy to see the format change to campus sites next year because I think it gives the conference its best chance to put the best team in the tournament. Also selfishly I would like to see more games at home each year. There is really no more analysis needed as Vermont didn't show up and ran into a hot team. The only thing that even kept the Cats in the game was Clancy Rugg's sudden prowess from the three point line. It is unfortunate for this senior class to have their time in the America East end this way because they have meant a great deal to the Vermont program. This is one of the best overall senior classes of all time and many group and individual records have been broken. I personally loved this group of guys and will miss watching them play. The unfortunate fact however, is that post season disappointments are a substantial part of their legacy. As freshman they were the number one seed and were upset in the semifinals by Stony Brook. They then bounced back to win the title as sophomores. As juniors they were upset in the title game on their home floor by Albany. This years disappointment is still fresh in everyone's mind. Now the difficult part is they still made the post season and won 20 games every year. One might say that the price of being so good, so soon in their careers hurt them more than anything. When success seems to come so easily and so quickly, outsiders are left wanting more and more. I for one am focusing on the wealth of accomplishments that this group was able to achieve and gear up for a chance at a run in the NIT. This was an amazing ride and I look forward to one last race.