Toledo responded to every Vermont challenge with timely shot making and snapped Vermont's December win streak. Toledo has been a top 20 in the country offense in terms of efficiency, and they really showcased it today. Scoring threats at every position, depth, and incredible point guard play from RayJ Dennis. Every time the Cats tried to go on a run, a Toledo player responded with a big bucket at the offensive end. Despite the loss there are several signs that point to the improvements that Vermont has made over the past month. First off, they gave themselves a chance against another very strong mid major. In some of the earlier matchups against teams like Yale and Iona, the Cats got run out of the gym due to sloppy play and inconsistent effort. After shaking off some early rust, Vermont battled hard and didn't let the game get out of hand. Also, the Cats only turned the ball over 6 times and knocked down 11 three pointers. The low turnovers are big as that was a significant part of the early season struggles. Vermont is playing more together as a unit and they are definitely playing with more confidence. The lack of size and consistent post play is proving to be the most difficult nut to crack so far this season.
Dylan Penn led the Cats with 20 points. He knocked down a few threes which is a bonus and had some tough finishes around the rim. His defense is still lacking and the other teams know it as they are attacking him relentlessly at that end of the floor. However, after a delayed start to the season due to injury, it feels like he is starting to find more comfort on the court. Aaron Deloney chipped in 15 points, knocking down 4/6 from three. He is really on a hot streak from distance, making 13/25 (52%) over his last 4 games. Finn Sullivan chipped in 10 points but struggled from distance finishing 1/6 from three. Robin Duncan continued his strong play finishing with 10 points 7 rebounds, and 4 assists in a team high 38 minutes. He has found something on the offensive end and is making an impact on both ends of the floor. It is clear that this is his team and he is blossoming in his role as the engine of this team.
The Cats have made significant strides and are looking more and more ready for conference play. One more road game against a tough ACC opponent in Miami FL after the holidays and then right into the fire, opening conference play at UMBC and then back home against Bryant. I am hoping to use the holiday break to write a new conference preview now that there is a sizeable sample of games to give a more accurate look at each team before heading into conference play. Happy Holidays!!
Granted Toledo had it going from everywhere…but it seemed to me that UVM did not challenge/ defend the 3 very well. Also, might they attack the rim more and if nothing else, get a greater number of freebies? Would a healthy Nick have made a difference today? That all said, Toledo was a well oiled machine on offense and defense reminding me of some recent Cat teams all too well.
ReplyDeleteToledo made tough shots and was very versatile offensively. They also did a decent job of keeping the ball handlers out of the paint. Nick would certainly be a helpful piece.
DeleteI agree. The atmosphere in general seemed low intensity and Toledo seemed to do whatever it wanted on the offensive side. The one thing I don’t understand is if you’re going to play a small lineup there has to be help. It looks as though uvm is content in trying to play one on one and hope the other team misses from close range. Almost as if Becker doesn’t trust the team can rotate well enough and also position itself to rebound. And even though they scored 72 points the offense is too much dribbling and not enough ball movement. As for the conference, it seems to be much improved which I think is a good thing. Other than say NJIT all of the other teams were competitive in non conference play. Each Maine and UNH beat BC and there were some other notable wins. I think Bryant, UMBC, UVM and Lowell will battle it out for the top 4 spots.
ReplyDeleteWith a team that can shoot the three as well as Toledo, I think it would have been hard to send help. Kind of a pick your poison decision. There was too much dribbling in this game but credit to the Toledo defense for disrupting the driving and cutting. I think the top tier of Vermont, UMBC, UMass Lowell, and Bryant will be very competitive. I am not sure about the rest of the league. Several teams have played pretty weak schedules and I am not sure that BC will be a very impressive win when all is said and done. They just might be bad.
DeleteI think we became accustomed to Davis Shungu, Smith Powell, Mazzulla to say nothing of Lamb TBH Henson this team is actually very young ( other then Finn Robin Dylan and AD all guards .) We are essentially relegated to Robin playing a forward spot. I guess sometimes you have to take a step back to advance , I like Hurley, Smith, Veretto Fiorillo and Alamutu, they will all seem a lot better next year with a year of experience.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. Having the player of the year in the league for six years in a row has spoiled us for sure. This is a very young and inexperienced team. It is going to be more of a collective rather than a team that depends on a star player or two.
DeleteDoes deloney have another year of eligibility?
ReplyDeleteDeloney has another year. We'll see if he uses it at Vermont. I hope he does. Toledo had some dynamic, very impressive players. Looking forward to more reports.
ReplyDeleteIf he leaves this will be an incredibly inexperienced team relying on either top level recruits or a lot of transfers next yr.
DeleteToledo was impressive. Good depth and a threat to score at every position.
DeleteNext years team will be inexperienced no matter what and they are definitely going to have work to do on the recruiting trail to reload.
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