MEN'S BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK
Vermont (14-5, 4-0) and New Hampshire (11-6, 2-1) will add another chapter to the twin state rivalry on Monday (Jan. 16) in Durham, N.H. with a 1 p.m. tip-off. All UVM men's basketball games can be heard on ESPN 101.3 FM and online at 1013ESPN.com with Sam Hyman on the call. 

CATS ON ESPN3
Fans can watch Monday's conference showdown on ESPN3 and the watchESPN app by logging in with your cable provider.
 
RELATED LINKS
New Hampshire: Video | Live Stats | Audio 
Game Notes: Vermont (.pdf) | New Hampshire (.pdf)
 
SETTING THE SCENE
Fresh off an 81-72 win over UMBC in a battle of the top two teams in the America East standings, Monday will feature the top two teams in the America East preseason poll. Vermont was picked as the preseason frontrunner while New Hampshire followed in second place with three first-place votes. The Cats enter the twin state rivalry on a six-game winning streak and looking to start the conference slate 5-0 for the first time since 2009-10.
 
UVM has dominated America East play with a conference-best +17.5 scoring margin which is more than double compared to Stony Brook (+8.3) in second place. The green and gold are the league leader in scoring offense (80.8 ppg), field goal percentage (55.4%), defensive field-goal percentage (41.6%), three-point percentage (46.8%), and blocks (23). Trae Bell-Haynes has dropped 14.0 points per game against conference foes and ranks eighth in field goal percentage (55.3%) behind teammate and America East leader Darren Payen (95.0%). Kurt Steidl has drained the fourth-most three-pointers in league play (10) and sits tied for seventh with six steals.

NEW ENGLAND'S FINEST
A total of eight programs in the New England region have tallied double-digit wins this season, but the Catamounts are the team with 14 wins under their belt. Providence and Northeastern follow with 12 victories on the docket, New Hampshire and UMass trail with 11 wins while Boston University, Brown, and Rhode Island have posted 10 victories.
 
NCAA RPI RANKINGS
Friday night's win allowed the Cats to jump nine spots to No. 64 in the NCAA RPI rankings. UVM is ahead of powers Marquette (66), Tennessee (69), Providence (70), Northeastern (74), Michigan (80), Wichita State (83), UMass (84), Auburn (85), Miami (86), Georgetown (89), Texas A&M (90), and Ohio State (93).

BEST 19-GAME STARTS
The 14-5 record this season is tied for the third-best record in program history through 19 games, which has equaled postseason success in the past. The Cats posted a 14-5 record in 2009-10 and 2003-04, both seasons resulted in NCAA Tournament berths, and 15-4 marks in 2010-11 (NIT berth) and 2001-02. The best 19-game start came in 2004-05 at 16-3 with a berth to the NCAA Tournament and a first round upset over No. 4 seed Syracuse.
 
SEND IN THE REINFORCEMENTS
Over the last six games, all Vermont wins, the Vermont bench has come alive by averaging 36.8 points per game. Over the first 13 games of the season, the Vermont bench averaged just 17.6 points per game.
 
TWIN STATE TALES
Vermont has seen some memorable outings against New Hampshire in the last three seasons. On January 27, 2016, head coach John Becker recorded his 100th-career victory in a 66-50 win in Durham. On March 8, 2014, Brian Voelkel recorded the first triple-double in the history of the America East Tournament with 10 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 77-60 win over UNH in the quarterfinals. Earlier in the year against the Wildcats, Voelkel became UVM's all-time leading rebounder in a 57-40 win in Burlington. On February 29, 2014, Candon Rusin scored his 1000th-career point in a 79-44 rout at New Hampshire.
LAST TIME OUT | UMBC Highlights
The Catamounts won the battle for first place with an 81-72 conference win over UMBC on Friday night. The victory extended UVM's season-long winning streak to six games and handed UMBC its 20th-consecutive defeat in the head-to-head series. The green and gold shared the wealth as six players scored at least eight points. Trae Bell-Haynes poured in a team-high 20 points with a pair of three-pointers and went a perfect 8-of-8 from the charity stripe. Drew Urquhart followed in double figures with 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Kurt Steidl finished the night only one rebound shy of a double-double with 11 points and nine boards. Steidl also made history by becoming the sixth player in program history to make 200-career three-pointers. Payton Henson added nine points while Josh Hearlihy and Darren Payen capped off a balanced scoring attack with eight points apiece.
 
SCOUTING NEW HAMPSHIRE
New Hampshire comes into Monday's twin state bash with a 7-3 record in its last 10 games and 11-6 record on the year. The Wildcats have one of the top defenses in the country. UNH is holding its opponents to 63.6 point per game which is the 27th-best average in Division I. New Hampshire is grabbing 12.0 defensive rebounds off the glass - good enough for 11th in the nation and own the 26th-best rebounding margin (+7.1). UNH's scoring attack is led by Jalen Smith and Tanner Leissner. Smith has scored double figures in nine straight games and has only failed to post double digits three times. The senior ranks seventh in the league with a 49.4% shooting percentage and eighth in scoring (15.5 ppg). Leissner follows at 15.2 points per game and rates as one of the top rebounders in the conference at 7.8 rebounds per game.

SERIES HISTORY
Vermont leads the all-time series with UNH 98-48 which dates back to 1906. Since the 2001-2002 season, Vermont is 32-6 against the Wildcats. The Catamounts have also won 13 of the last 17 meetings. At the helm of UVM, John Becker is 10-2 in his career versus New Hampshire. The America East Tournament has played host to a 'Cat fight in two out of the last three seasons. 

WHO'S NEXT
Vermont returns home on Thursday (Jan. 18) to host UMass Lowell at 7 p.m. Single game tickets are available at UVMathletics.com/Tickets or at the Patrick Gym Box Office on game day. All UVM men's basketball games can be heard on ESPN 101.3 FM and online at 1013ESPN.com with Sam Hyman on the call. For the first time this season, UVM will be streaming on ESPN3 and the watchESPN app from Patrick Gym.

Canon Solutions America is the presenting sponsor of the 2016-17 men's basketball season.