MEN'S BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK
Vermont (4-1) will spend the weekend in Uncasville, Connecticut for the Air Force Reserve Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament at Mohegan Sun Arena. UVM will face Central Connecticut State (0-5) on Saturday night (Nov. 23) at 7:30 p.m. in the Springfield bracket of the tournament. The Cats will face either Columbia (1-4) or Rider (2-2) on Sunday night (Nov. 24).
 
If the Green and Gold win on Saturday, then the championship game will get underway at 8:30 p.m. on Sunday. In the result of a loss on Saturday, the Catamounts will play in the consolation game at 6 p.m. on Sunday. Fans can purchase tickets through Ticketmaster.com.
 
TELEVISION AND RADIO COVERAGE
The Springfield bracket will be streamed in its entirety on ESPN3 and the ESPN app by logging in with your television provider. Fans can also listen live on the Vermont Sports Network, from Learfield IMG College, on 101.3 The Game or online at Catamounts All-Access with Jake Marsh on the call.
 
RELATED LINKS
CCSU: Video | Live Stats | Audio | Tickets
Columbia/Rider: Video | Live Stats | Audio | Tickets
Game Notes: Vermont | CCSU
Reception: Details and Registration
 
PREGAME RECEPTION
All Vermont fans are invited to gather in advance of the game at Game On for a pregame reception from 5-6:30 p.m. hosted by the UVM Alumni Association. Details and registration can be found at alumni.uvm.edu.
 
THIRD TIME IN THE HALL OF FAME TIP-OFF
This weekend marks the third time the Catamounts have played in the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament. The Cats played in the tournament back in 2011, Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker's first season at the helm, and again in 2015. In 2011, UVM posted an 84-75 win over Marist but dropped an 80-75 decision to LIU Brooklyn in the championship game. The Catamounts also faced South Florida in the season opener and Old Dominion in a pair of road games associated with the tournament setup. Four years later, Vermont beat Niagara 85-67 but fell to Buffalo 77-71 in the finale. The Green and Gold also took on Purdue and Florida as a part of the campus site games.
 
LAMB MAKES HISTORY AGAINST THE DEFENDING CHAMPS
Anthony Lamb's 30-point effort at No. 7 Virginia on Tuesday was only the 11th time a player dropped 30 points on a Tony Bennett-coached UVA team. From the prior 11 times, Lamb became just the fourth player to reach the 30-point plateau at JPJ Arena.
 
SCOUTING THE FIELD
Central Connecticut State
The Blue Devils have struggled to begin the season with five straight setbacks. CCSU is coming off its best offensive showing of the season with 63 points in a 77-63 loss to New Hampshire on Tuesday night. Greg Outlaw has a team-high 9.6 points per game and 2.6 assists per game while forward Stephane Ayangma averages a team-high 5.4 boards. CCSU and UVM have played one mutual opponent this season – St. John's. The Blue Devils fell 87-57 on Nov. 9 while the Cats beat the Red Storm 70-68 last Saturday. The Blue Devils were picked 10th in the Northeast Conference Preseason Poll.
 
Columbia
The Lions have started the year at 1-4 with a 75-63 win over Binghamton. Columbia averages 61.2 points per game as senior Mike Smith paces the offense with a 20.0 scoring average. Smith also led the Lions last year in scoring (15.8 ppg) and distributed 5.0 assists per game. Ike Nweke, a 6-7 forward, is Columbia's asset on the glass with 5.6 boards per game. Columbia visited St. John's on Wednesday and fell to the Red Storm 82-63. Prior to crosstown matchup with SJU, the Lions suffered a 60-42 loss at Virginia last weekend. Coming into the season, the Ivy League's coaches picked Columbia at No. 5 in the preseason rankings.
 
Rider
The Broncs enter the weekend at 2-2 on the year with wins over Coppin State (W, 91-84) and Delaware State (W, 81-54). Rider suffered its two losses to Arizona State (L, 95-55) and UMass (L, 82-72). Tyere Marshall is a 6-9 center averaging 16.3 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. Senior Stevie Jordan has posted 13.5 points per game and a team-high 5.0 assists as a guard for the Broncs. The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Preseason Poll tabbed Rider at No. 2 and listed Jordan on the Preseason All-MAAC First Team. Rider went 16-15 (11-7 MAAC) a season ago and return all five starters from last year's team.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
The Cats and Blue Devils will square off for the first time since Dec. 30, 2007. UVM owns a commanding 11-2 edge over CCSU and have won the last nine meetings.
 
Vermont has beat Columbia in all three head-to-head matchups, but the regional foes have not faced each other since Nov. 27, 1998. The Cats' three victories have been decided by a combined eight points – a 67-66 win back in 1998, a 63-61 decision on Dec. 6, 1980, and an 82-78 outcome on Dec. 7, 1974.
 
If Rider and UVM meet on Sunday, it would set up the first ever contest between the two programs. In the last three seasons, the Green and Gold have topped their last six MAAC opponents.
 
National Life Group is the presenting sponsor of the 2019-20 Vermont men's basketball season