UNH 73 Vermont 68
Vermont suffered their first conference loss of the season and in my eyes probably played their worst game of the season. The Cats looked sluggish from the get go and didn't get their footing until a spirited comeback bid that ultimately fell short. Downright abysmal free throw shooting was the first wave of poor play. During a crucial stretch of the first half where Vermont should have put UNH away, Vermont missed six consecutive free throws. That is the same as turning the ball over on three straight possessions. Dre Wills is not a very good free throw shooter and will always have erratic games but Kurt Steidl was the other culprit during that stretch and he just can't give up those freebies. The phase of the game that doomed Vermont from that point on was their defense. All year their defense has been top notch and kept them in games until the bitter end. For the middle 20 minutes of the game Vermont looked lost. Their defensive rotations were slow and several players flat out lost their man. The interesting thing is that Becker mentioned the defense prior to the game, stating that he thinks sometimes players are taking too many chances. This was very evident in this game and it presents an interesting dilemma for Vermont going forward. Taking chances on defense is what allowed Vermont to crawl all the way back into the game and gave them a chance to win. However Dre Wills hedged too far looking for a big steal, allowing his man to hit a corner three that iced the game for UNH. I have seen Wills do this several times over the last few games and it will be interesting to see how he responds. His steal numbers are through the roof and he is still the best defender in the conference, but will he have to give up some of the flash and play boring on the ball defense? That remains to be seen and I hope he can balance the two because I love watching him play defense. The foul trouble is starting to become a huge issue because now Ethan O'Day AND Hector Harold are getting into early foul trouble every game. Those guys have got to figure something out. As far as the fouls go the game was called far to tight in the first half both ways and there was absolutely no flow. There were 28 combined fouls in the first half which is just ludicrous. The games at UNH have a tendency to devolve into free throw shooting matches so that was not necessarily a surprise. For me when looking at the schedule every year I am always wary of the road game at UNH. Every year no matter how bad they are UNH plays every team tough at home. Vermont in particular has had their fair share of struggles winning at UNH. This was a game that I had circled as a loss from day one and therefore I am not judging it to harshly. For one, UNH is a good team. They have played everyone in the league tough so far and more importantly have been in close games for the entire conference schedule. They are the upset team to watch out for in the conference tourney this year for sure. Vermont had played a few cake games and lost their edge. Anyone who read my blog last year knows that I want losses in the conference schedule. I am very wary of going 15-1 or 16-0. This is part superstition and partially backed up by evidence. Vermont has only been the regular season and conference champion one time. The America East regular season champ has actually not made the NCAA tournament since the 2008-2009 season. The playoff format has changed this year which should in theory make it easier for the top overall seed but I will believe it when I see it. The road team has won three straight in the title game. The last time Vermont went to the NCAA tournament they lost to a previously winless Binghamton team on the road. My point is sometimes teams get too comfortable and forget what it is like to be in a close game or forget what it is like to lose. As a coach, it is easier to drive a point home in practice or tell a player he needs to make adjustments coming off a loss then it is coming off a win. I know some would disagree wholeheartedly with my point of view but I offer the most recent example as evidence. With last years team, cracks were starting to form down the stretch, even before the playoff collapse. Slow starts, poor first halves, sloppy defensive rotations. The hard part was that they kept winning. The Binghamton game on the road at the end of the season was just a terrible performance. Binghamton was a terrible offensive team and Vermont fell behind big and couldn't stop anyone. This was the game that was supposed to refocus the group for the stretch run. Vermont made a furious comeback and won the game in overtime. Becker's thoughts about the game, to me, held less weight because they had won and just thought they could always pull the rabbit out of the hat. Then against Albany in the semifinals, the magic was gone. I truly believe that if they had lost that game to Binghamton they would have been a much more hungry and focused team in the playoffs. Sometimes losses are necessary. I will never call it a "good loss" because that term makes no sense. However, some teams, especially young teams need a reminder about the work it takes to win games night in and night out. The other thing that happens when you are a program with sustained success is the pressure to win can creep up when you least expect it. Vermont was picked fourth in the preseason poll and everyone was expecting a rebuilding year. Most people, including me, felt like getting to the semifinals would have been an accomplishment. Vermont has played very well and exceeded expectations thus far, but the danger is then expecting too much. Some of the reactions to the loss are as if Vermont has been favored from day one. This team still has a lot to work and and while they are looking like a team that can compete for a championship, they should still be considered an underdog. That is the piece that is hard to keep in perspective. Vermont has been playing good basketball but they as a team still need to remain focused on growing and maturing so they can learn from this loss. That way this type of game will hopefully be avoided come playoff time. Luckily for Vermont the game at UMass Lowell on Sunday provides a perfect opportunity to showcase their resolve. That will be another tough road game and it is also a trap game with the big home showdown against Albany coming up next Wednesday. This team has been able to respond to challenges throughout the season and I expect them to do so on Sunday. As a final thought, Zach McRoberts is looking really good. Back to back double digit rebounding games and he has been especially tough on the offensive glass. He has very active hands and out works opponents for the ball. Vermont has been looking better on the glass and McRoberts play is a big reason why.
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