University of Vermont Athletics

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The 2021-22 season will mark the 11th season on the Vermont men's basketball staff for former Catamount Kyle Cieplicki '08. He was promoted to associate head coach in May of 2015 after serving as an assistant coach since 2011. He started his coaching career at Vermont as the team’s director of operations for one year.

In 10 seasons at the University of Vermont, Cieplicki has helped the Catamounts to nine 20-win seasons, eight postseason berths (NCAA three times, NIT twice, CBI – three times), won four America East Tournament titles (2012, 2017, 2019, and 2020), six America East regular season crowns (2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021) and an NCAA Tournament win (2012).

Despite a shortened 2020-21 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Green and Gold won 10 conference games and earned a share of the America East regular season championship. Ryan Davis was named America East Player of the Year as Vermont became the fifth program in NCAA history honored with five straight conference Player of the Year awards. Davis also earned NABC and USWBA All-District honors. 

The Cats have finished in the top three of the America East standings in each of the last 13 seasons and one of three programs to accomplish the feat – Gonzaga (WCC) and Kansas (Big XII).

Prior to 2020-21 when UVM did not play 20 games,  the Catamounts are one of seven programs with at least 12 straight 20-wins seasons – Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, and Saint Mary’s.

He has helped Vermont to seven out of the last 10 America East Championship games. During his tenure, the Catamounts have a 229-96 overall record and a 131-27 mark in America East play at Vermont.
 
The 2019-20 Cats became the first team in league history to win four consecutive outright America East regular season titles and received votes in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll eight times. UVM finished the campaign with a 26-7 overall record and 14-2 mark in league play. Vermont took down St. John’s for its first win over a high-major program since 2009. The Green and Gold swept the Atlantic 10 for the second year in a row with wins over St. Bonaventure and George Washington. Vermont went on a 12-game conference winning streak which was the fourth-longest streak of its kind in the nation. The Cats earned a record-setting eighth America East Championship, breaking a tie with Northeastern for the most in league history. UVM ranked in the top five nationally in scoring defense (59.5 ppg allowed) and field-goal percentage defense (38.0%).

In 2018-19, UVM captured its ninth America East regular season championship and returned to the NCAA Tournament for the seventh time. The Cats posted a 27-7 overall record and went 14-2 in conference play. The Green and Gold swept three conferences during the non-league slate, including the first ever against Atlantic 10.

He helped UVM to a 27-8 record in 2017-18, its second-highest single season win total, trailing only last year's historic 29-win campaign. Vermont posted a 15-1 league record and captured its eighth America East regular season crown in school history. 
 
The Cats were on the national radar and received votes in the Associated Press (AP) Top-25 Poll three times. UVM extended its record-setting conference winning streak to 31 games. Vermont also logged the third-longest winning streak in program history at 15 games. The Green and Gold held the nation's longest overall winning streak for the second straight season. The Catamounts were consistently among the top mid-major programs in the country, ranking in the top-10 throughout the season in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25 poll and the MidMajorMadness.com Weekly Power Rankings.

The 2016-17 season was a historical run for the Catamounts. UVM set the program record and conference record for most victories (29) and were the only America East team to record a 16-0 undefeated conference season in the league's history. UVM also became the first team ever to sweep the league's major awards – John Becker (Coach of the Year), Trae Bell-Haynes (Player of the Year), Anthony Lamb (Rookie of the Year), Dre Wills (Defensive Player of the Year), and Darren Payen (Sixth Man of the Year).
 
In the polls, the Catamounts received votes in the Associated Press (AP) Top-25 poll for seven straight weeks, climbed into the top-10 of the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25 and MidMajorMadness.com Power Rankings, and finished the season with 12 votes in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll.

Cieplicki was the first three-year captain in the history of the Vermont men's basketball team. He stepped into the starting lineup as a sophomore and started 82 of 89 games over his final three seasons. He helped lead Vermont to the America East Championship Game three times and an NCAA Tournament appearance as a freshman and the team's first-ever postseason NIT invite as a junior.

Cieplicki graduated from Vermont in 2008 with a dual degree in English and sociology.

Updated March 2021