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BURLINGTON, Vt. – Freshman Cam Ward came off the bench to score a career-high 19 points and sophomore Dre Wills added 11 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and six steals to lead the Vermont Catamounts to an 81-69 victory over Hartford in the America East opener for both teams at Patrick Gymnasium on Wednesday night.
 
Vermont, the defending America East Regular Season Champion, improves to 4-3 overall and opens the America East slate with a 1-0 mark. Hartford drops to 5-3 on the year and 0-1 in the conference.
 
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Ward, who scored 12 points in 12 minutes in the first half, went 5-for-8 from the field and 7-for-8 from the foul line. Hector Harold added 12 points and Trae Bell-Haynes chipped in nine points, five assists and four rebounds for the Catamounts.
 
Mark Nwakamma and Taylor Dyson paced the Hawks with 19 points each before both fouled out. Yolonzo Moore II added 14 points.
 
Vermont began the game with a 12-6 lead at the 13:14 mark. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Corban Wroe and Dyson fueled an 8-1 run by the Hawks to push them in front, 14-13 with 11:37 left in the half.
 
The Catamounts answered with back-to-back three's from Brandon Hatton and Ward to ignite a 14-4 run and push them back in front by nine, 27-18, with 5:24 left in the half.
 
Hartford climbed back within three at the 2:25 mark, but Vermont rattled off six straight points to close the half and took a 36-27 lead into the break.
 
The Catamounts extended the run to 17-2, outscoring Hartford 11-2 to start the second half. UVM led 47-29, with 16:14 showing on the clock.
 
UVM maintained its double-digit lead until the final 30 seconds when Dyson hit two three's to close the gap to eight. Vermont went 4-for-4 from the line in the final seconds to secure the victory.
 
Hartford finished the game shooting 48.9 percent from the field, while UVM shot 57.4 percent from the floor for the game. The Catamounts forced the Hawks into 20 turnovers, which resulted in 24 points for UVM.
 
Vermont continues its four-game homestand hosting Harvard on Saturday (Dec. 6) at 7 p.m.
 
Tickets can be purchased online at UVMathletics.com, via the phone at 802-656-4410, in person at the UVM Athletic Ticket Office (M-F: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.) and in person one hour before tipoff in the Patrick Gymnasium Lobby.
 
The game will be broadcast on ESPN 101.3 FM (online: 1013ESPN.com). It will also be streamed online for free in HD via CatamounTV.com.
 
NOTES: UVM out scored Hartford 41-26 in the paint … The Catamounts had a 15-0 edge in fast break points … Vermont is 14-2 in the last 16 America East openers and 3-1 under John Becker … UVM opened the league slate at home for the first time since the 2009-10 season … Vermont improved to 42-23 against Hartford all-time and has won 25 of the last 27 meetings … John Becker is 7-1 against the Hawks … Entering the game, four of the last five meetings between Vermont and Hartford were decided by seven points or less … UVM is 81-4 since 2000-01 when scoring 80-plus points … The Catamounts are 3-0 at home this season and 33-11 overall (23-2 in America East) since John Becker took over the program (2011-12).