Vermont vs Yale 11/19/21

Vermont 61 Yale 53

What a gutsy effort. 

Ryan Davis dominated down the stretch and led the Cats to a hard fought victory over Yale. Yale played tough physical defense from start to finish and for much of the game imposed their will on Vermont. Vermont matched Yale's intensity on the defensive side of the ball in what was another classic Bulldogs/Catamounts slugfest. Both were equally anemic on offense and it was going to come down to which team's stars shined down the stretch. Davis worked for every bucket and finally broke through with some tough finishes underneath and trips to the free throw line. He then knocked down his first three of the season to give Vermont the offensive lift they had been looking for. Azar Swain kept responding for the Bulldogs in an exciting back and forth between the two leading scorers. Ben Shungu shook off a very tough first half and knocked down a big three of his own down the stretch. Justin Mazzulla was also huge down the stretch going 6-6 from the line and adding another clutch bucket underneath. This was a big time gut check game for the Cats. There were not at their best and Yale was smelling blood in the water early in the second half. Vermont dug deep and dominated the boards down the stretch, eliminating Yale's second chance opportunities. This evening's game was a perfect example of the impact of having such a veteran laiden team. Only 5 turnovers for the game and tremendous execution down the stretch. 

Davis was just incredible tonight. I think this was the finest all around performance of his career. He finished with 18 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 4 blocks (all team highs). He really did it all. Big buckets and tough rebounds in traffic. The blocks tonight were huge as he played the role of one man defensive stopper. He has improved his ability to move laterally and is so patient when waiting for the right time to get the block without fouling. He also had a beautiful pass to a cutting Mazzulla for a clutch bucket. That was a player of the year game. Shungu settled for too many jumpers in the first half and really struggled against Yale's physical perimeter defense. He came through when it mattered most and that has always been a hallmark of Shungu's game. Mazzulla played big minutes down the stretch as Becker went with his best defensive lineup to close the game out. This was definitely a "if you don't play D you don't play" game from the coaching staff as Fiorillo/Gibson/Sullivan all sat down the stretch due to defensive mistakes. Evan Guillory was awarded minutes for this very reason and did a great job matching Yale's physicality. The coaching staff has a tough task in balancing lineups with offense and defense. The new/inexperienced guys will get up to speed as time wears on but tonights message was clear. Either play defense or sit. Unfortunately this brings up the perimeter shooting again. I am going to bang this drum all year because it will be the difference between a Catamount title run and an early exit. This team has so many good pieces but the perimeter shooting is painful to watch so far. Today's final tally was 4-24 from three and that includes a bank shot. If they can't find some level of consistency they are going to make it very hard for themselves and it will put too much pressure on their defense. 

This was a great win over the preseason favorite to win the Ivy league. Winning these type of tough grinders in the non-conference is helpful to build and learn from for those tough league games later in the year. It was also great to have the energy of a tight game back in Patrick Gym. Now it is off to Florida for the Gulf Coast Showcase. The three games in three days tournaments are always a fun test and make for an exciting basketball atmosphere. First up for the Cats is Oakland University (which is in Michigan). Should be a tough game against the very dangerous duo of Jamal Cain and Jalen Moore.