Vermont 81 UMass Lowell 67
The bench mob showed up in a big way and Vermont ground down a depleted UMass Lowell squad to extend its win streak to eight games. Lowell lost their best and arguably the conference's best player in Jahad Thomas for the second half due to injury and was unable to recover. I would have liked to see him out there for a full game as he is a dynamic player to watch. Anthony Lamb was the game changer in this one. Thomas got out to a hot start for Lowell and then Lamb switched on to him at the defensive end. Lamb was able to slow him down just enough to disrupt the Lowell offense and allow Vermont to get their footing. Lamb finished with 14 points and 14 rebounds in one of his best all around games of the year. This game was a perfect illustration of how the Cats depth is such an effective weapon. Trae Bell- Haynes went out with foul trouble in the first half and Vermont looked sluggish and back on their heels. Enter Cam Ward who has struggled to find his game this year and he promptly led Vermont back into the game and finished with 17 points to lead the Cats. Unlike Lowell, Vermont can withstand the loss of a player in game and continue to attack. It is great to see Ward finally get going as he can be such a weapon off the bench when he is playing confidently. Kurt Steidl continued his hot shooting, scoring 12 points on 4-7 shooting from deep. Steidl threw in 4 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 2 steals for good measure. Another methodical effort from Vermont and round one of the "revenge tour" goes to the Cats. Now they have a nice break to get ready for two very tough road games. It will be interesting to see if Vermont can continue their momentum and focus through the long layoff.
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