FINAL SCORE: Vermont 80, Stony Brook 67
STONY BROOK, N.Y. – A strong second half was the difference for the Catamounts as Vermont (14-4, 6-0 AE) took an 80-67 victory over Stony Brook (12-7, 4-2 AE) on Wednesday night at Island Federal Arena. The Catamounts move to 6-0 in league play for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign.
 
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COACH'S QUOTE
"It was another great road win," Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker said. "I thought we were on our heels for the first 10 minutes and our second unit came in to give us some life. The second half we played well and made our run with good defense leading to good offense. Eric Beckett was great tonight and gave us a huge spark. He has stayed ready and took advantage of his opportunity tonight. I'm really proud of him and who he is."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Seawolves doubled up the Catamounts in the early minutes of the first half, grabbing a 16-8 lead with 12:17 left in the frame. Jahlil Jenkins led Stony Brook in the early attack with eight points. Ryan Davis had six points for Vermont.  
• SBU maintained its lead over the Catamounts, but UVM began to chip away when Justin Mazzulla drilled a three to make the score 24-19 with 6:16 left in the half. Mazzulla's triple fueled a 13-4 run, that gave Vermont its first lead of the evening. Beckett drilled a corner three to cut the deficit to one and Davis made a layup to put the Cats up 29-28 with 2:07 left in the half. Anthony Roberts briefly put the Seawolves back in front, but Beckett answered by sinking his second triple of the night to give the Cats a 34-31 halftime lead.
• Both teams came out shooting in the second half, with Stony Brook taking back the lead in the early minutes. Down 42-39 with 16:56 to play, Vermont rattled off a 14-2 in a little over three minutes for a 53-44 lead. The Catamounts were 4-for-4 from deep, with triples from Davis, Ben Shungu, Finn Sullivan, and Nick Fiorillo.
• Beckett gave Vermont its first double-digit lead of the night when he drilled his third trey with 7:53 remaining to go up 69-59. The Catamounts maintained their lead down the stretch, and Davis threw down in the final minutes to officially ice the game.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• UVM registered 80 points in a win for the sixth-straight game. The six-game winning streak of scoring 80-plus points is the longest in program history. Vermont had only scored 80-plus points in four-straight wins prior to its active streak.
• Vermont continued its hot shooting, making 54.7% (29-of-53) of its field goal attempts and 40.0% (12-of-30) from long range. The Catamounts have shot at least 50.0% from the field and 40.0% from deep in all six America East wins.
• Shungu registered double figures for the second-consecutive game with a 21-point outing. Nineteen of Shungu's 21 points came in the second half. The graduate student hit 8-of-14 attempts from the field and sank a trio of three pointers. Shungu pulled in three rebounds, registered one block, and dished out a team-high six assists.
• Davis racked up 20 points on an efficient 7-for-10 shooting night. The senior drilled one triple, and cashed in five free throws. Davis also pulled in five rebounds for the Catamounts.
• Beckett registered a career-high 13 points, which included three triples. The junior was 5-for-7 from the field in 13 minutes of play. Beckett also recorded one steal on defense.
• With today's win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to COTS, the Committee on Temporary Shelter, as part of the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative. A special thank you to Vermont Mutual Insurance for their support. Vermont Mutual Insurance, protecting Vermonters since 1828.

UP NEXT
Vermont returns to Patrick Gym on Saturday (Jan. 29) when it hosts Maine at 2 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase at UVMathletics.com/Tickets. Saturday's game will broadcast live on ESPN 3 with Rob Ryan and Bernie Cieplicki on the call. Fans can listen for free on the Vermont Sports Network, from Learfield IMG College on The Game, which will air on 97.1 FM in Burlington, 105.9 FM in Plattsburgh, and 960 AM around the rest of the region. The radio broadcast is also available online at Catamounts All-Access with Brian McLaughlin on the call.
 
Key Motors of South Burlington is the presenting sponsor of Vermont men's basketball