In an incredible championship atmosphere, Vermont battled Bryant to the final buzzer and came out with with their fifth straight win. The game was an all out war, with both teams leaving it all out on the floor. This time it was Bryant that got off to a hot start before Vermont responded with a 13-0 run to retake the lead. From there the game was back and forth with each team responding and counter-punching. Both teams were flying all over the court on defense. In the second half the pace slowed even more and the play became extra physical. Tensions began to rise and player's resolve was tested. Vermont made plays on both sides on the ball and emerged victorious. Vermont's defense was incredible, holding Bryant to 35% shooting including 4-21 from three. The Cats held the Connor Withers and Rafael Pinzon duo to 7-28 shooting from the field including 1-14 from three. The Cats held their own on the boards and dominated the paint, outscoring Bryant 34-20. The energy felt like it was bouncing back and forth between the players and the crowd. In the first meeting, the Cats struggled mightily with turnovers and they did a complete 180 in tonight's game. The Cats only committed 7 turnovers and controlled the tempo of the game throughout. A monster win that really showcased the toughness of this team. They have been through the fire this season and all of that adversity has really galvanized the team during this win streak. They have that mental toughness and belief that has made Vermont teams so tough.
To begin with tonight, Noah Barnett was phenomenal. With Sam Alamutu sidelined in the second half, Barnett stepped up and seized his opportunity. He was all over the court, diving for loose balls, playing tough defense, and dominating the paint. Barnett finished with 5 points and 9 rebounds in 21 minutes and made numerous winning plays down the stretch. He has a nose for the ball and his hustle is contagious. What a clutch performance. TJ Hurley was not to be denied a second time by Bryant and led the Cats with 17 points. He was money down the stretch and fought through a very tough Bulldog defense intent on stopping him. He also played great defense on Withers. Ileri Ayo-Faleye sparked the Cats in the first half with back to back threes and finished with 15 points and 3 blocks. His defense was incredible, switching onto everyone, and really frustrating Bryant star Earl Timberlake. Shamir Bogues shook off his injury from last game and played a team high 38 minutes. Bogues finished with 11 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals in an all out performance. He was a big reason for Pinzon's struggles. Nick Fiorillo finished with 9 points and 9 rebounds in a big time performance in the paint. Alamutu pulled down 8 rebounds before sitting out down the stretch.
Vermont is gaining steam at the right time and will look to continue the momentum against Lowell on Saturday. I will be travelling to Disney World with the family so I will not be posting for that game. I will be cheering from afar!!
P.S. At some point the league really needs to step in and hold Bryant to a higher standard of behavior. The constant technical fouls and tough guy routine has gotten old. Keyshawn Mitchell, for the at least the second time this year, had to be physically restrained and escorted off the court at the end of the game by a Bryant staff member as he continually tried to return to the court to fight. Instead of wearing "Spread Respect" t-shirts, it is time to hold the America East member institutions to a higher standard.
P.P.S. That was an incredibly weak and ineffective crew of referees. So many times they did not make calls with confidence. The one thing a referee crew needs to be is strong, in control, and confident in what they see.
Yea this was an absolutely embarrassing performance by the officials. They let the game get out of control, the calls were inconsistent and frankly many of them were blatantly incorrect. Fiorillo getting a T for someone walking over and shoving him? Also Earl Timberlake is a coward who deserved to watch the end from the bench like he did.
ReplyDeleteThat was a classic UVM hard nose, focused basketball game! It was exciting to watch different players step up defensively especially in the second half when they had a difficult time scoring. Barnett EARNED more playing minutes; at this stage it would be foolish not to give him the chance. Agree that the referees were weak at best. They never should have T up Fiorello just Timberlake. It was blatant aggression. They lost control and were constantly behind the play!
ReplyDeleteAlso, this game is a great example of the effectiveness of the UVM coaching staff… they are finding the solutions in player time and adjusting the offense to meet the personnel!
DeleteI’ve been saying it since Bryant joined the league that their team and fan base are classless. Can’t put my finger on it but I’m not a fan of that program at all. That being said it was a good win and now we have to take care of business and let the chips fall where they may. If it ends up being a championship game in their building I don’t love our chances but so be it. These are clearly the two best teams in the league and shame on us for losing to umbc at home or Binghamton. I was watching the game on mute so I missed what happened with Sammy? And yes the refs were terrible and seemingly most of the bad calls went against the home team.
ReplyDeleteHOW DID THEY DO THAT? Well starting with Ileri hitting back to back 3s fueling a 13-0 run…otherwise down 14-4 starting to look like getting blown out on your home floor. Fantastic rebounding as who goes head to head with Bryant in that aspect of the game? Holding Pinzon to 6-20 after he started with 2 quick 3s. Hurley getting to shoot inside or get to the rim (gotta like his dunks). Limited the turnovers although I still cringe at our casual passing, a recipe for disaster. And fortunately, Bryant struggled at the foul line like we did. But what can you say about NOAH, NOAH, NOAH!?! Let’s get ready for UML and not lose our hard earned position of 2nd place.
ReplyDeleteGood thing Noah is stepping up because Joba is useless.
ReplyDeleteSeen no improvement from Joba in 2 years. He's a liability on the court. He's always going to be a bench player, if he stays.
DeleteHe’s not useless, he just gets taken out after one mistake every game. He is very skilled, you can tell he is playing not to mess up and not playing freely. In my opinion, I believe the coaching staff has put him in bad scenario's, making it hard for him to succeed.
DeleteJoba has the tools . He needs to drink Red Bull before each game .
DeleteI agree, they don’t let him play free, you can tell it has affected his confidence. On offense they have him in the corner the whole time.
DeleteJoba can shoot it. He's got size and skills. Very hard to find at this level. His issues are on defense, quickness and aggression.
DeleteIf you can't play defense, you don't play for Becker. I guess he's not showing it in practice, otherwise he'd be getting more playing time.
DeleteKeeping the score in the 60s, and the 50s even better, is how we have a chance against these quick scoring, high powered offenses like Bryant, UML and UMBC. What a defense last night!
ReplyDeletecould not agree more about the refs. They needed to take control of that game down the stretch, and absolutely turtled.
ReplyDeleteIncredible W! Anyone can beat anyone in this league. Let's not sleep on Lowell or anyone else for that matter. Thank you for the report, Lee. Enjoy Disney! Well deserved.
ReplyDeleteI am hoping Bryants "tough guy" deal is a holdover from Grasso, who brought in Timberlake, who certainly sets the tone for the team. If Martelli is like his Dad, he is a class act and will tone that crap down. I think Grasso perpetrated the idea that Bryant was going to show the AE and its perennial champs who is boss. Hasn't happened yet, and they must be getting a bit frustrated. The unfortunate thing is Timberlake is a really good team player, but clearly a bit of a hothead.
ReplyDeleteTimberlake is in his 5th year (good riddance) with no championships or March Madness for him as of yet. You can assume he will play “to his ability” the rest of the way so we must be prepared.So Bryant had 7 blocks in the 1st half when they average 7 a game. Cats must have adjusted for that somewhat in the 2nd half. I hope TJ can continue to hit from all levels because he becomes so much tougher to keep off the stat sheet…logo 3s are great but I do like the waltz into the lane for an easy pullback jumper or the TJ DUNK. Oh and the other teams have to keep a watch out for Nick who must be licking his chops for 5 championships in his 5 years
ReplyDeletewhich hasn’t been done at UVM.
Correcting my previous post. Timberlake got to the Dance with Memphis. While they lost in the championship game, Memphis got an at-large bid and got to the 2nd round where they lost to Gonzaga.
ReplyDeleteAny idea what the situation was with Sam sitting for much or all of the second half? Injury? Matchup issue?
ReplyDeleteBarnett sat Sam down. He came in the game with purpose and as a result Alamutu sat for a bit. I think it will find a balance…
DeleteSam was getting stuffed a lot underneath the basket and couldn’t find a way to move up to the rim or push the ball out. It was not lost on me that our bench went 5 deep last night going up against a lot of talent and experience. Noah did a great job filling in for Sam. Coaches are feeling more comfortable with the younger players! I am not giving up on Joba yet. The talent is there but just hasn’t been unleashed yet. He and Noah will make great bookends or subs for each other!
DeleteGreat win for Vermont. Terrific defense and rebounding slowed Bryant's high scoring offense. And it looks like they may have found the 3rd big they desperately need.
ReplyDeleteI am no fan of Bryant but I didn't see much tough guy stuff going on in this game. No cheap fouls. No fights. A little frustration at the end. No big deal. Timberlake has never been a bad apple as far as fighting. Withers is just a whiner and he seemed well behaved in this one. I welcome anything that throws them off their game. Now tell me why Bryant hit the portal home run in the AE with Evans while Vermont struck out with Odom.
Jay Young would have been a huge add, but he needed to keep his incessant need to change venues in tact. Plus a little thing like NIL. As far as Shy goes, I don’t fault anyone. His recruitment had the promise of making a big difference for us. I just hope he gets healthy for next year.
DeleteJust looking at results. Is there any indication Vermont tried to recruit Evans?
DeleteWOW, WOW, WOW!
ReplyDeleteRemember the days, not too long ago, where the Cats weren’t doing anything right (at least not enough to win games).
Now, like today, they are doing it all right!
What are you going to pick on…Sean
making a foul as soon as he gets in the game? The Cats are now a force where they will be favored in any game except one where they may have to go to Bryant and if they lose to any team other than Bryant, it would be an upset. This one was a real fun one to watch. If Cats win out, and Bryant loses 2 out of 3, possible as they go on the road against UML and Maine, Cats will win the league. If Cats tie for the conference at the end of the season, it’s too earlyto know who would have the tiebreaker but that remains a possibility.
But we can’t get ahead of ourselves. Great to see Maine lose in the final seconds today, but we too have been upset this year. Then again we are a greatly transformed team, not having to rely on TJ taking over.
My post above is referring to the shellacking of UML from start to finish, leading by 15 pts at halftime and pushing it to 30 pts for Cats largest lead!
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to believe that it is the same team...and credit goes to Becker and staff for instilling the confidence in what must have been a confused group. No more- dig in and play Catamount D and the O will come, and it has. Sammy played like he didn't want to give Noah too much of his time: 14 pts, 12 Reb. and 5 assists. And Shamir seems to be all the way back- I had almost forgotten how good he is when healthy. All of them playing great and together.
DeleteThe coaching staff is a dedicated bunch with a knack for blending talent (or even a lack of talent) to make a team work. They are playing as a unit and keyed into each other's rhythms. Barnett has had a very positive impact lately and is assuredly pressing others for their time. That's good! The offense is vastly different than the earlier games. They are outscoring opponents in the paint and pressing the center. That is the only sure method for opening up the three-ball. Bogues, Hurley, and Alamutu are driving the paint with success. They are not out of the woods yet, but they can certainly help themselves by not easing up for the last 3 games. Bryant has to beat UML and Maine at home. Who knows. The Cats need to play like they want it, and it might just happen. Go Cats!
DeleteShamir showed his moves for sure! He got some easy pts all credit to him. He’s back and you can see why he is POY potential but not this year given injuries.
ReplyDeleteBut he could still be MVP in the playoffs!
I agree Shamir plays tremendous defense and clutch offense ‘ He is like the Timex watch- “ Takes a Licking but keeps on Ticking “
DeleteThe league needs to do something about the officiating asap or the league risks becoming a farce. The way they handed Bryant a win against Lowell last night was so blatant and wrong
ReplyDeleteI am glad you mentioned the UML/Bryant game. I switched over to it midway thru the first half of the UVM game and watched the last 2 minutes. I urge all fans to watch the last minute, I won't even describe what happened, but suffice it to say that UML won the game ....period, no doubt. Except one ref decided he was going to overturn the outcome. That ref - and the entire crew for not having the courage to overturn a blatant injustice- should not be allowed to ref any AE games, ever. Watch it!
DeleteAs far as last night’s NJIT game, it looked worrisome when the 6 min scoring drought continued at the start of the 2nd half. What was it? A 15-0 run for NJIT. And especially problematic with TJ having an off night. But, SHAMIR to the rescue with his career high 22 pts, scoring in the paint at will it seemed.
ReplyDeleteThe turnovers in the 1st half became nonexistent in the 2nd half. Phew. Now for Bryant to lose to Maine seeing how they stole one from UML. But Cats need to keep the streak going to get to the Dance pretty much…don’t like the idea of having to play Bryant on their court but we have beaten them there.🤞🤞🤞
Horrible call by the referee! Bryant lost that game. There was no foul!
ReplyDeletePAYBACK to UMBC! Great to see Cats not miss a beat after Shamir went down.
ReplyDeleteShamir we need you though for the playoffs and any potential meetup with Bryant. Splendid game TJ, and Sam is now the 5th leading rebounder in AE!
Any update on Shamir?
ReplyDelete