UMass Lowell 93 Vermont 82
Well....that is the game that has finally shaken my faith and has me questioning where this team is headed. Vermont was outplayed from the opening tip, in every facet of the game, and looked like a team who is completely lost. The players from UMass Lowell looked confident and sure of their game plan. Every time the Cats made a run, Lowell responded by knocking down a big shot. They played a great game so before I delve into the reasons why Vermont is lost right now I will congratulate Lowell on a perfectly executed game plan. This game exposed so many of the flaws that this team has been hiding and overcoming to start the season. First and foremost, the lack of toughness on this team is becoming alarming. Last year with a very similar group, they never seemed to be out of a game and were always one run away from taking control. This year once the ball starts rolling downhill, they look powerless to stop it. This goes for every player on the team. The Cats are just folding under pressure every step of the way. This is especially evident on the defensive side of the ball. The defense is a complete mess, especially in the first half. Here are the conference first half points given up 40, 34, 42, 45. Here are the second half points given up 32, 35, 26, 48. The Lowell game was the first time that a team continued to score at a high pace throughout the entire game. The rotations are just awful and Becker cannot seem to find any combination that is able to make the right decisions. There is not a very clear solution to the struggles on defense because if the players don't have the rotations and schemes down by now, it is unlikely they are going to suddenly figure them out. On offense, Vermont is really struggling to consistently make shots. There are stretches in each game where the Cats miss several layups and cannot finish around the rim. That makes them rely heavily on their perimeter shooting which at this point is exclusively the three point line. They are getting absolutely nothing in the mid-range. That is allowing teams to pressure the ball without fear, because if they get beat they only have to cover the paint. Someone has to start taking and making some mid-range jumpers. The three point shooting has begun to drop off and that is squarely on the shoulders of Ernie Duncan and Kurt Steidl. Duncan is 0-11 from three in the last two home games and Steidl is 8-30 from three over his last seven games. Tonight they were a combined 0-9 from three and none of them were really even close. Both players look slow and seem to be playing through an injury as they do not look like the same players that started the season. Vermont is a complete mess as a team and some of the flaws are looking like they will be tough to overcome. This team has been overcoming obstacles at a steady pace over the last two seasons but they may have finally reached a breaking point. With the always difficult Binghamton road game coming up on Thursday they don't even have time to lick their wounds. I thoroughly dislike the Binghamton away game each year as Vermont always plays incredibly poorly. I would like to say that they cannot play any worse than they did tonight but right now I just don't know.
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