UMBC 74 Vermont 61
The Cats winning streak came to a screeching halt at the hands of UMBC. Vermont struggled to find an offensive flow without Anthony Lamb who missed the game with a concussion. Vermont didn't make their first field goal of the second half until there were under 9 minutes left. The offense was just atrocious and it was hard to watch as no one was able to step up and make the tough shots. Holding the Cats scoreless for long stretches has become UMBC's calling card since Ryan Odom took over. The defensive scheme he employs has been very effective at disrupting Vermont's offensive flow. The Cats looked like a team missing their go to player and team leader. It goes without saying but there is no one more crucial to the Vermont's success than Lamb. In years past with the balanced scoring, the Cats were able to overcome injuries as their offensive scheme was not overly dependent on one player. That is not the case this season and it is exacerbated by the fact that Lamb is Vermont's only true post player. Their frontcourt is not deep enough to make up for his absence. Now they have a few days to pick themselves up and get ready to go after Stony Brook as that game takes on a different feeling now that they are sitting at one loss. Bad games happen and the Vermont fans have been spoiled over the last two years with Vermont not laying a egg during conference play. Hopefully Lamb is back for the game against Stony Brook but if he is not someone is going to have to take charge and fire up the Cats.
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