Vermont falls in the America East title game

UMBC 74 Vermont 59 

UMBC continued their incredible play down the stretch and DJ Armstrong Jr. put together an all time championship game performance to lead the Retrievers to the tournament berth. The final score (and box score) will not do this game justice and don't tell the whole story. It will be easy to nitpick the poor Vermont shooting or look at the free throw disparity and if you didn't watch the game think same old problems. It was a closely contested game throughout with both teams responding to runs each way. Vermont's defense was really good and they made every shot tough for UMBC. DJ Armstrong Jr. single-handedly won this game with an insane performance, hitting tough contested shots, and scoring 13 points in a 4 minute stretch after Vermont took a three point lead. It was insane to watch and an incredible clutch performance. Armstrong Jr finished with with 33 points and almost all of his makes were deep, off balance looks, with hands in his face. Tip of the cap to him. To illustrate the point of how incredible his performance was, the rest of the Retrievers shot 12-40 (30%) and their leading scorer Jah'likai King was held scoreless. Great performance by UMBC and they will continue their hot streak into the NCAA tournament. 

TJ Long led the way for the Cats with a vintage 17 point performance in his final game. TJ Hurley struggled to make shots against a UMBC team determined to take him out of the offense and finished with 11 points. It is too bad the injuries never allowed the TJ & TJ experience to be fully realized. Gus Yalden chipped in 11 points and 5 rebounds (4 offensive) but battled foul trouble in the second half. Lucas Mari willed the Cats into the lead with his energy on both ends of the floor before getting hit with a elbow to the head and not returning down the stretch. He finished with 6 points and 8 rebounds. He was really incredible getting the Cats back into the game. Sean Blake finished with 7 points and 6 rebounds.

I will post a season review sometime in the coming weeks but in the meantime it is time to turn our attention to the Vermont women's basketball team following their incredible performance in the championship game last night. There are Catamounts in the postseason!

ON TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!

Vermont 63 NJIT 54

Vermont continued their strong defensive play late in the season and booked a trip to the title game at UMBC on Saturday.  That was a magnificent team win. The cohesiveness that this group has found since the UMBC loss is an incredible accomplishment. Four players in double figures, six players with at least 4 rebounds, seven players with at least 1 assist, and a stingy, physical defensive effort. Tonight was the "next man up" Vermont mantra at its finest. The right plays at the right time. With all the challenges that Vermont faced this year, they are playing their best basketball of the season in March and avenged last year's semifinal loss to make it back to the title game for the 4th time in the last 5 years. Now they get to go on the road and I hope they get to play loose and free as the underdogs. Vermont has always been the hunted so I hope this group gets to come out as the hunters. UMBC has been on fire, winning 11 in a row since the loss to Vermont on January 29th. The Cats have nothing to lose and earned the opportunity to play for the championship. 

Sean Blake and TJ Hurley led the balanced attack with 14 points and 5 rebounds apiece. Both played with force and toughness in the face of the physical ball pressure from the Highlanders. TJ Long stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 (!) steals. His defensive intensity over the last two games has been incredible. His back to back threes in the second half gave the Cats a huge lift when the offense was struggling. Noah Barnett also had 11 points and hauled in 4 rebounds. He also made his first career three at the most clutch moment possible. It is hard to say a three with 9 minutes to go is a game winner, but that is exactly what it felt like. He has been playing incredible basketball over the last few weeks. Momo Nkugwa once again made a driving layup in a clutch spot. Lucas Mari finished with 4 points and 5 rebounds. Gus Yalden struggled to get it going and finished with 6 points and 4 rebounds but continues to show major improvement on the defensive end. 

 

Nothing better than playing on championship Saturday!

HOW CAN YOU NOT LOVE COLLEGE BASKETBALL!!!!!

Vermont 77 Bryant 57

College basketball is the best.

Fresh off his player of the year award, TJ Hurley exploded in the second half and carried Vermont to the America East semifinals. What a game, what an atmosphere. Patrick was electric and the Cats showed out in one of their most well played games of the season. Vermont had Bryant at arms length for much of the game until the Bulldogs cut the lead to just four with 8:30 to go. The Cats responded with a 12-0 run and never looked back. Throughout the game, Vermont had the intensity, effort, and swagger that they have shown in spurts this season. The defense was once again really good and it goes beyond the box score. On paper Bryant shot a high percentage and took a lot of free throws, but they only attempted 38 shots for the entire game. That is an absurd number even for a slow paced game. Vermont gave up TWO offensive rebounds (they once again this season are second in all DI in defensive rebound percentage) and forced 12 Bryant turnovers. They were physical and in the Bulldogs grill from the opening tip. Offensively the Cats shot 57% (28-49) from the field and 45% (9-20) from three. Everybody that stepped on the on the floor made plays that helped contribute to the win. 

What more can you say about TJ Hurley? An all time playoff performance from an all time Catamount. Talk about a guy that earned it. Four years of hard work, battling through injuries, improving and expanding his game, and now player of the year. He absolutely put the team on his back and scored 24 of his game high 29 points in the second half. Hurley finished 9/12 from the field and 5/7 from three. The first of the back to back and-one drives was a thing of absolute beauty. Not to mention fouling out Bryant's best player in the process. Gus Yalden and Sean Blake both chipped in 12 points and got the Cats going with strong first halves. Noah Barnett was incredible as usual with his energy and hustle, finishing with 8 points and 7 rebounds. He had a big block and a clutch, full extension, diving on the floor steal in a big moment. Momo Nkugwa continues to defy logic with his calm, under control and yet explosive play down the stretch. His dunk in the first half was vicious and thankfully he survived the scary fall. He had one of the most clutch buckets of the game, driving to the rim right after Bryant cut the lead to four to give the Cats some breathing room. Over the last 5 games he has played 86 minutes and has committed ONE turnover. (he has not turned the ball over in the last 4 games at all). Just incredible for anyone, much less a young player in the most important games of the season. TJ Long's defensive intensity set the tone from his first minutes on the court and he finished with 3 steals.

What a great college basketball game in an incredible atmosphere. There is nothing better than basketball in March. Tuesday can't come soon enough. 

Another 20 win season

Vermont 69 Albany 56

Vermont used a strong defensive effort to secure another 20 win season for the program. It continues to impress that the coaching staff has been able to take different groups of players with different skillsets and still find ways to win at a consistent level year in and year out. This year may have taken a bit more of a circuitous route than in years past, but the player development and team cohesion still shines through. Great win to honor the seniors and secure the two seed for the America East playoffs. The key to this game was the incredible double teams that forced Albany big man Okechukwu Okeke into SEVEN turnovers. The defense was connected all night and forced Albany into really tough shots in the second half. This game also has the distinction of the most banked in shots I have ever seen. Offensively the Cats really attacked the rim in the second half and got to the free throw line, which wore down the Great Danes. 

Gus Yalden led the way with 19 points and stayed red hot from three with a 4/6 effort from distance. Watching him play this year has been pure joy and he has brought an energy to Patrick that is unlike anything I have seen from a player in the past. The crowd really responds to him and he just looks like he is having so much fun. Airplane celebration was top notch today. TJ Long finished with 13 points and 8 rebounds. His rebounding continues to be huge and I thought he made a great adjustment in the second half to drive the ball instead of setting for threes. Noah Barnett chipped in 9 points and 5 rebounds and is starting to benefit from the extra defensive attention given to everyone else. TJ Hurley had 9 points and 5 rebounds as well and continues to impress in a big way on the defensive end. He is a brick wall.  Sean Blake had a really rough stretch in the second half but finished with 9 points and 5 assists. Ben Johnson added 5 points on his senior day. Momo Nkugwa stepped in for Blake and was really good. He played tough defense and handled point guard duties with ease. He plays with a poise beyond his years. 

Its the most wonderful time of the year. Saturday can't come soon enough.