Vermont 65 Bradley 64
Nothing but drama to start the season.
Vermont got their first win on the season in a nail biter against Bradley. Trae Bell-Haynes made his first free throw of the season with two seconds left, lifting the Cats to victory. Bell-Haynes continues to struggle at the line furthering a trend which began last season. It is some kind of irony that his first made free throw won the game. It will be interesting to see if Bell-Haynes can right the ship at the line. The story in this game was Stef Smith. He came off the bench and in his first real game action pumped in 14 points including 3-5 from deep. He was really the only Vermont player who was a threat from the perimeter in this game. The hype surrounding Smith from the preseason has carried over and it looks like he will have a major impact this year and beyond. Drew Urquhart looked great once again and is playing with incredible confidence. He looks faster and more decisive on the court. Ernie Duncan is struggling with his shot to start the season and I have to wonder if his preseason injury is to blame. He worked on his back on the sideline every time he sat out and can't seem to get into a rhythm. It will be a situation to monitor for sure. Anthony Lamb picked up two fouls almost immediately, drew the wrath of Becker on the sidelines, and was never able to get back into a rhythm. Some of that credit has to go to Bradley as they ran a strong double team at him every time he had the ball. I expect Lamb to bounce back in a big way for tomorrow's game. This game is almost identical to the way Vermont began the Gulf Coast Showcase last season. They slogged though a poor first half with an 11:00 start time. They never really found their shooting rhythm but fought through it and won 60-59, you guessed it, on a shot from Trae Bell-Haynes. I guess the Cats aren't morning people. Good teams find a way to win even when they don't have their best stuff and Vermont did just that. Bradley was a tough, physical team that played good defense. A good early test and now the Cats can sleep in and get ready for Coastal Carolina. This three games in three days format is such a good barometer for the rest of the season as it really challenges the mental toughness of a team. I though Vermont learned a lot about themselves during the Gulf Coast Showcase last year and I expect they will do the same this year.
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