Vermont 73 Bryant 47
From the opening tip Vermont steamrolled Bryant in their most dominating performance of this young season. The intensity was clear from the very beginning as the Cats were diving for every loose ball and getting their hands in every passing lane. The energy was electrifying and they completely overwhelmed Bryant. Vermont imposed their will and knocked Bryant on their heels. The final score doesn't even do the game justice. With nine minutes to go the score was 53-23. If not for a few garbage time threes, Bryant would have struggled to break 40 points. For all of the improvements on offense (which are numerous), it was the defense that set the tone. Dre Wills is a lock-down perimeter defender and is capable of shutting down the opposition's best guard. Dyami Starks led the NEC in scoring last season and dropped 30 on Vermont last year. Wills was in his grill all night and he struggled to get shots off. Prior to garbage time he was in single digits in the scoring column. The team seemed to take Wills lead and played with tremendous intensity. The thought was that this team would take a large step back on the defensive end with the graduation of some very good defenders. After the first five games, I think the defense is going to continue to be a strength for Vermont. The ability to guard the perimeter and get out in transition is a huge advantage. Having Ethan O'Day to protect the rim and alter shots allows the guards to be even more aggressive. On the offensive side of the ball Vermont continues to score with tremendous efficiency. As I stated in my last post, Vermont is able to outscore their opponents in the paint by getting high percentage shots at the rim. This game was no different as Vermont outscored Bryant 38-14 in the paint. As a result the Cats shot 59% from the field. Regression is inevitable but Vermont is currently shooting 53% on the season. That is an impressive number and speaks to the play-making and shot-making ability of this team. Seemingly getting to the rim at will in this young season, Vermont is set up for future offensive success. The maturation and improvement of Wills in the early part of the season is fun to watch. I personally have always liked the way Wills plays. Last year he looked so good in spurts but was too raw and the minutes just weren't there. He also battled injuries and never quite looked 100%. This year he is aggressively getting to the rim and has a tremendous motor. Wills is all out on every play and has a nose for the ball. I said in my season preview that he was the best rebounder on this team and that ability was on display several times during the Bryant game. Wills has tremendous potential and is still scratching the surface of what he can do. A 14 pt, 9rb, 3ast, 4stl, 2 block game will play on any team. He also manged to play great defense while only committing one foul. Here is a link to a piece on Dre Wills from One Bid Wonders. Bookmark that website for all your America East news. They do great work. It was nice to see Brandon Hatton get into the game after missing the early part of the season with a concussion. His offensive game is smooth and as he gets used to the college game and learns the defensive side of the ball, he has the potential to be a great spark off the bench. It was great to see what this team can do when firing on all cylinders and this would be the perfect time to be playing their best basketball. The next game is a very tough road game against Quinnipiac. That will be one of those strength vs. weakness games. Quinnipiac is one of the best rebounding teams in the country and it is a clear area of weakness for Vermont. After that game is a very important early conference home game against Hartford. That game will be a very clear indicator of where this Vermont team fits in the America East hierarchy. The Hartford game is followed by the best home game on the schedule this season as Harvard comes to Patrick Gym on December 6th. That game is followed by two more home games to finish a four game homestand. This is the crucial part of the non-conference schedule and will be a great barometer for the rest of the season.
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