FINAL SCORE: Vermont 73, Colgate 72
HAMILTON, N.Y. – Four Catamounts reached double figures and the perimeter defense stood strong as Vermont (6-7) defeated Colgate (6-6) 73-72 on Saturday afternoon at Reid Athletic Center. UVM extended its winning streak to four games with the road victory. Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker captured his 263rd win at Vermont, one away from tying Tom Brennan's program record.
 
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COACH'S QUOTE
"Great win today," said Becker. "Gutsy effort by the guys. Robin was terrific again. Matt and TJ came up big in the second half. It's a great way to end another week on the road. Our guys are incredible."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Catamounts and Raiders exchanged early baskets, but strong defense kept the non-conference foes in single digits for a bit. Vermont made 4-of-11 field goals, and Colgate sank 4-of-10 from the floor in the first 7:21 for a 9-9 tie.
• Chandler Baker sank a corner three before the 12-minute mark to pull Colgate ahead 12-9, but Finn Sullivan answered on the following possession with three straight free throws to tie.
• Colgate would quickly pull ahead by four before a Robin Duncan jumper that knotted the game at 16-16 with 9:13 left in the half. Aaron Deloney added a triple on Vermont's next possession to take a 19-16 lead.
• The Raiders would rally back and take another three-point lead minutes later, but UVM would answer with a 15-6 run to take a 34-28 lead with 2:43 left in the half. Vermont scored on three-straight trips to the Colgate basket near the end of the run, including a corner three by Kam Gibson for the six-point lead. Duncan fueled the UVM surge with seven points to help the Cats bring a 37-30 lead in to the locker room.
• Vermont took its first double-digit lead of the afternoon 6:16 into the second half when Matt Veretto's corner three gave the Catamounts a 49-39 lead. Colgate responded with five quick points, before a triple from TJ Hurley that put UVM up 52-44 with 12:21 remaining. Hurley's trey sparked a run of three-straight makes for the reigning America East Rookie of the Week.
• With the Catamounts taking another 10-point lead, up 56-46 with 10:20 remaining, the Raiders responded by posting a 12-3 run to pull back to within one possession. Colgate made 5-of-6 field goal attempts in the 4:58 run as Vermont remained in front 59-58 with 5:22 remaining.
• Colgate had a chance to tie the game minutes later when Tucker Richardson missed the second of two free throws to trail 69-68 with 1:04 remaining. The Raiders came up with the offensive rebound, but the Catamounts forced a turnover and went back up the court.
• Veretto put Vermont back up by three on that possession when he crashed the offensive glass, came down with the rebound, and converted the putback for the 71-68 lead. Deloney sank free throws in the final seconds and Oliver Lynch-Daniels made a late three-pointer to cut the deficit to one.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Vermont made 28-of-59 (47.5%) of their field goals and 12-of-29 (41.4%) from three-point land. Colgate was 28-for-56 (50.0%) from the field and 3-for-13 (23.1%) from beyond the arc. The Catamounts held the Raiders to their fewest three-pointers and lowest percentage from deep of the season.
• Duncan led the UVM attack with 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the floor. The fifth-year senior sank one three-pointer on the day. Duncan flirted with a double-double, pulling in a team-high nine rebounds. He also added five assists and two steals to his stat line.
• Veretto tallied a season-high 14 points, sinking 4-of-9 attempts from beyond the arc. The graduate student came down with six rebounds and recorded Vermont's lone lock of the afternoon.
• Deloney and Hurley were also in double figures, scoring 13 points and 12 points, respectively. Deloney made 3-of-7 attempts from long range, while Hurley was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field and 2-for-2 from deep.
• 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. Since the campaign's inauguration in 2017, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group has donated over $72,000 to local non-profits.

UP NEXT
The Catamounts return to action on Tuesday (Dec. 20) when the host Toledo at Patrick Gym. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. ET. Tickets are available for purchase at UVMathletics.com/Tickets or by visiting the Patrick Gym Box Office on gameday. The non-conference matchup will broadcast live on ESPN+ with Rob Ryan and Bernie Cieplicki on the call. Fans can listen to the action for free on the Vermont Sports Network, from Learfield 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 via the Varsity Network App with Brian McLaughlin on the call.
 
McGee Automotive Group is the presenting sponsor of Vermont men's basketball