MEN'S BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK
Vermont (19-5, 9-0) will battle America East rival Albany (18-7, 6-4) on Thursday (Feb. 8) in the Empire State. The opening tip is set for 7 p.m. on the hardwood of SEFCU Arena. Tickets are available for purchase at UAlbanySports.com.. All Vermont regular season games can be heard on 101.3 ESPN FM and online at 1013ESPN.com with Sam Hyman on the call.
 
TELEVISION COVERAGE
Thursday's meeting of the top two America East preseason picks will be nationally televised on ESPNU. ESPNU is located on DirecTV channel 208, DirecTV Video on Demand channel 1208, and Dish Network channel 141. For full cable channel listings, contact your local cable provider. Fans also watch the game on ESPN3 and the watchESPN app by logging in with your television provider.
 
RELATED LINKS
Albany: Video | Audio | Live Stats | Tickets
CatamounTV: Albany Preview | UMBC Highlights
Polls: Associated Press | Mid-MajorMadness.com | CollegeInsider.com
Game Notes: Vermont | Albany
 
LAST TIME OUT | UMBC Highlights
UMBC unveiled its brand new 5,000-seat Event Center, but Vermont earned the first win on the new floor with an 81-53 victory last Saturday. The Catamounts shot an impressive 65.9% (29-for-44) from the floor to reach the win column for the 12th straight time. Drew Urquhart scored a team-high 18 points to lead three Catamounts in double figures. Urquhart was 8-of-10 from the field with eight rebounds and four assists. Payton Henson followed with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting and matched Urquhart with eight boards and four assists. Trae Bell-Haynes also netted 16 points and recorded a pair of steals.
 
CATS IN THE POLLS
Vermont received one vote in this week's Associated Press Top-25 Poll for the second time this season after earning a vote back on Nov. 27. In the Mid-MajorMadness.com Power Rankings, the Catamounts stayed at No. 7 for the second straight week. UVM also cracked the top-10 in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top-25 at No. 10.

DECADE OF EXCELLENCE
With one more win, the Catamounts will record their 10th straight season with at least 20 victories. Currently, UVM is one of 12 Division I programs with nine straight 20-win seasons. 

REMAINING UNBEATEN TEAMS IN LEAGUE PLAY
The Catamounts are one of 12 Division I teams remaining without a loss during conference play. 
 
STREAKY CLEAN
UVM will try to extend a trio of streaks on Thursday night. The Cats have won 30 straight regular season conference games, the longest active regular season conference winning streak in the country. Vermont's 12-game overall winning streak is the fifth-longest active streak and the Green and Gold are tied for third in the nation with a seven-game road winning streak.  
 
SCOUTING ALBANY
The Great Danes have won four out of their last five contests as the only loss came at UVM on Jan. 24. In conference play, Albany leads the league with 3.9 blocks per game and ranks second behind Vermont in scoring margin (+6.4), scoring defense (63.2 ppg allowed), and field-goal percentage defense (.420). Reigning America East Player of the Week Joe Cremo is coming off a career-high 31 points against UNH on Saturday. The junior guard sits fourth in America East with a 17.2 scoring average against conference rivals. Greig Stire has collected 8.5 boards per game against league foes, the second highest average behind New Hampshire's Iba Camara.

INSIDE THE SERIES
The Catamount will try to reach the win column for the fifth straight time against the Great Danes and hold a 28-14 edge over their rival. In six out of the last 10 meetings, the outcome has been decided by 10 points or less. UVM beat Albany 61-50 at Patrick Gym on Jan. 24 in a rematch of last year's America East title game.  
 
WHO'S NEXT
Vermont will return to Catamount Country and play host to UMass Lowell on Sunday (Feb. 11).  The opening tip is set for 2 p.m. Single game tickets are available for purchase at UVMathletics.com/Tickets or at the Patrick Gymnasium Box Office on gameday. Fans can watch the America East matchup on ESPN3 and the watchESPN app by logging in with your television provider. All Vermont regular season games can be heard on 101.3 ESPN FM and online at 1013ESPN.com with Sam Hyman on the call.
 
Canon Solutions America is the presenting sponsor of the 2017-18 Vermont men's basketball season