FINAL SCORE: Vermont 85, Catholic 59
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Ten different Catamounts registered points, including three in double figures, as Vermont defeated Catholic 85-59 in an exhibition contest on Saturday afternoon at Patrick Gym.
 
RELATED LINKS
Photos
 
COACH'S QUOTE
"It's good to be back at it in a really, really good exhibition game against a really well coached Catholic team," Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker said. "I thought they were really good and put a lot of pressure on our defense. We got some good contribution. I thought Matt (Veretto) and AD (Aaron Deloney) were really good, which is what we're going to need night in and night out. TJ Long came in off the bench and gave us a scoring punch. I thought Jace Roquemore did a really nice job running the point and really getting us into our offense. He did a really nice job. And I thought Noah Barnett really did a good job of coming in and playing hard getting us extra possessions for his first game. I thought he was pretty impressive."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Catamounts and Cardinals exchanged baskets in the early minutes of the game, with Vermont taking an 11-8 lead into the first media timeout. Deloney led the early scoring with six points, sinking his first two attempts from the field and knocking down a pair of free throws.
• UVM quickly distanced itself with a 17-0 run over the next 4:30 to take 28-8 lead with 10:49 left in the half. Five different Catamounts contributed to the attack as Vermont shot 7-for-9 from the field during the run.
• Defense took over for the remainder of the half with both teams holding each other's offense to under 50.0% shooting. Deloney had seven points for the Catamounts in the final minutes as Vermont took a 42-20 lead into the break.
• Veretto led the UVM offense early in the second half with six points as the Cats knocked down eight of its first 14 attempts from the field. Long tallied five points, including a trey that put Vermont up 56-34 with 12:53 remaining.
• Long's offense continued as he led the Cats with nine points over the next 10:12 to extend the UVM lead to 80-55 with 2:41 left in the game. Roquemore had five points as Vermont made eight of its 12 field goal attempts during that stretch.
• Jackson Skipper capped off the afternoon with a dunk in the final minute to put give the Catamounts the 85-59 advantage.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Vermont made 56.6% (30-for-53) of its field goal attempts and 40.7% (11-for-27) of its attempts from long range.
• Long poured in a game-high 17 points on 6-for-11 shooting. The guard was 3-for-8 from deep and scored 12 of his points in the second half.
• Deloney and Veretto also reached double figures, scoring 15 points and 14 points, respectively. Deloney was 5-for-6 from the field and a perfect 2-for-2 from three-point land. Veretto was 6-for-10 from the floor and 2-for-6 from beyond the arc.
• With the win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to King Street Center as part of the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative. Since its inauguration in 2017, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group has donated over $80,000 to local non-profits through the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative.

UP NEXT
UVM wraps up its preseason exhibitions against crosstown foe Saint Michael's on Wednesday Nov. 1. The game tips off at 7 p.m. ET at Patrick Gym Tickets are available for purchase at UVMathletics.com/Tickets or by visiting the Patrick Gym Box Office on gameday. The final exhibition will not have a video broadcast available. Fans can listen to the game 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 Family is the presenting sponsor of Vermont men's basketball