Vermont 90 Holy Cross 80
As the Gus Bus screamed into the crowd:
"WE'RE BACK, WE'RE BACK, WE'RE BACK...."
Basketball returned to Patrick and the first look at this year's team produced some electric moments on the way to a 90-80 victory over Holy Cross. The NCAA has taken its fair share of lumps over the last few years but changing the exhibition rules to allow more flexibility, including allowing DI opponents, is an absolute win. What a great atmosphere and a great game to kick off the season.
First off, if that doesn't get fans pumped for the year, I don't know what will. After several years of tough, grinding, and often ugly exhibition games, that game was full of fun and excitement. This team has depth, versatility, and a wealth of playmakers. One of the things that stood out was how many "lunch pail" guys they have. So many players making the little play, getting into the trenches, and playing with energy. Opponents are not going to be able to set weak picks this year because Vermont has guys who are ready to straight up truck some dudes. Man, that was fun to watch.
Will Davies had one of most electric Catamount debuts that I can remember. Davies finished with 24 points to lead the Cats but more importantly, it was the way that he did it that was so impressive. He had highlight after highlight and impacted the game in just about every dimension. He has such a great feel for the game and is absolutely relentless. It is hard to pick a favorite moment from the game, but the two standouts are the absolute stuff block at the rim and the alley-oop dunk. He knocked down 4/8 from three (including a cold step back in the corner), got to the rim, fought through picks, and displayed great communication and leadership. His backcourt mate Darrel Yepdo was right behind him with an electric 20 points of his own. Yepdo shot 4/7 from three and showed incredible downhill acceleration getting to the rim. Having this point guard duo is an incredible luxury and gives Vermont that dynamic offensive ability they have been searching for the last few years. They are going to be fun to watch. Khalil Badru came off the bench and scored 14 points and grabbed 5 rebounds. He is great at elevating in the mid-range and knocking down tough shots. He can defend any position and will provide some highlight worthy moments throughout the season. John Broom is going to be a kind of silent assassin. He impacts the game without the ball in his hands and is a really tremendous rebounder. He finished with 7 points and 7 rebounds. There were a few rebounds he grabbed today that it felt like he had no business grabbing. Coming all the way back after closing out a three-point shooter to sky for the rebound and pulling one down in a group of four Crusades to name a few. Noah Barnett continues to do Noah Barnett things. Out hustling guys to the ball and shifting momentum with his energy. He finished with 8 points and 4 rebounds and looks like he has worked on his offensive game. Daniil Glazkov finished with 9 points and could be a real swing player for the Cats. He plays with a great calm and has a well-rounded game. He had a finish at the rim this afternoon that was insane. Glazkov is a very big guard and plays with physicality on the defensive end. He has a ton of upside. Gus Yalden finished with 8 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 steals in an up and down opener for him. Holy Cross was determined to run him through the ringer and make him work on the defensive end. I don't know if I have ever seen a team run a post player off so many down screens to initiate their offense. They really wore him down and he was quite frustrated by the end of the game. Yalden is going to experience that transition from surprise first season to target on his back second season. Teams are going to plan all sorts of creative ways to try to take him out of his comfort zone this season. The good news is, he is going to be up to the task, and he will not have to shoulder such a huge offensive load this season. This team has some real weapons.
No reason to nitpick the first game (that is for the coaches to do in film tomorrow). The defense is going to get better as rotations tighten up and players get comfortable with the system. They have guys who can be great defenders, and the positional size of this group is great. The shooting was a nice surprise and will really open things up if the Cats can find consistency from the perimeter. I am very intrigued by the playmaking ability as they have lots of strong passers in this group.
This is absolutely and unequivocally going to be a fun group to watch this season. I think they have a chance to do something special. No matter what, Patrick is going to rocking this season. Can't wait for next Saturday.