MEN'S BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK
Vermont (6-8) begins America East play on Sunday (Jan. 1) when it visits conference rival UMBC (9-5) in Baltimore, Md. Tip-off for the 2022 America East Title Game rematch is slated for 1 p.m. at Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Sunday's conference opener will broadcast live on
ESPN+ with Rick Moreland and Gary Stein on the call. The voice of the Catamounts, Brian McLaughlin, will have the call 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 .
RELATED LINKS
Watch | Listen | Live Stats | Tickets
Game Notes: Vermont | UMBC
SCOUTING THE RETRIEVERS
UMBC enters Sunday's matchup with wins in six of its last seven games, suffering an 80-64 loss to Maryland on Thursday night in College Park. The Retrievers have the second-highest rated offense in the conference based on adjusted offensive efficiency (104.3). UMBC relies heavily on the three-ball, scoring 39.8% of their points from deep, which is the 17th-highest rate in the country. Matteo Picarelli leads the attack from long range, making 48.1% (37-for-77) of his three-point attempts. The guard is third on the team in scoring average (11.3 ppg), but has the 11th-highest offensive rating in the country (136.4), per KenPom. Colton Lawrence averages a team-high 13.7 points per game. The Retrievers were picked No. 5 in the America East Preseason Poll.
INSIDE THE SERIES
Vermont and UMBC meet for the 49th time in series history on New Year's Day. The Catamounts and Retrievers last met in the 2022 America East Championship Game, which saw Vermont clinch its ninth conference title. The America East foes have battled in the conference tournament in four of the last five seasons, includes three championship game appearances. Vermont is 16-4 when visiting UMBC.
LOOKING BACK AT LAST YEAR'S CHAMPIONSHIP
Ryan Davis (20 points) and
Ben Shungu (19 points) led the Catamounts in an 82-43 victory over the Retrievers. Vermont's margin of victory over UMBC was the largest in a Division I conference championship game since 1989.
Finn Sullivan had 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting, and was named to the America East All-Tournament Team along with Davis and Shungu. Shungu was named the Most Outstanding Player of the America East Tournament.
CLIMBING THE ALL-TIME LIST
John Becker can tie Tom Brennan for the most wins in program history (264) with a victory over UMBC on Sunday. Becker has recorded 148 of his wins in league play.
CONFERENCE OPENERS
The Catamounts are 21-22 all-time in conference openers and are 10-11 on the road. Vermont is 8-3 in league openers under
John Becker's guidance. UVM is 1-0 against UMBC in the first game of conference play.
PRESEASON FAVORITES
UVM is the America East preseason favorite for the sixth time in the last seven seasons. Vermont sits atop the preseason poll for the eighth time under
John Becker.
Finn Sullivan and
Dylan Penn were named to the Preseason All-Conference Team.
AMERICA EAST DOMINANCE
Vermont has won all nine of its America East Championships in the last 20 seasons, and have earned a league-best 259 wins during that stretch. The Cats have also earned 11 regular season titles in the last 20 seasons.
McGee Automotive Group is the presenting sponsor of Vermont men's basketball
