FINAL SCORE: #1 Vermont 75, #8 UAlbany 72
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Top-seeded Vermont (26-6, 15-1 AE) battled back from a double-digit deficit for the fifth time this season to defeat eighth-seeded UAlbany (13-19, 5-11 AE) 75-72 on Saturday afternoon in the Jersey Mike's America East Quarterfinals.
 
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COACH'S QUOTE
"Another incredible, gutsy performance by our group tonight," Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker said. "Credit UAlbany, they played really, really well and you know, had us on the ropes there until another TJ Long miraculous three to kind of get us a lead again. He's been incredible in the clutch this year. I think it's the fifth time we've come back from double digit deficits to win games. Really just a resilient group of tough kids that never give in."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Aaron Deloney's fadeaway jumper got the scoring started for the afternoon, but the Great Danes answered with back-to-back three pointers from Marcus Fillien and Sebastian Thomas to take a 6-2 lead.
• Thomas scored seven of UAlbany's first 10 points as the Great Danes led by five entering the first media timeout.
• Shamir Bogues sparked a 7-3 run for the Catamounts when he tipped a pass by a UAlbany player, chased it down and finished at the rim. Ileri Ayo-Faleye had a strong finish at the basket and Deloney sank three free throws to cut the UVM deficit to 13-12 with 14:12 left in the opening half.
• The Great Danes countered with an 11-2 run to take a double-digit lead, up 24-14 with 11:04 remaining in the first half. During the run was a lengthy three pointer, released milliseconds before the shot clock by Thomas.
• Long knocked down his first triple of the afternoon when Deloney found him in the corner to cut the deficit to single digits.
• A scramble in the offensive end for the Catamounts led to a three-point play by Deloney minutes later. The graduate student grabbed an offensive rebound and drove to the rim for the score while getting fouled. Deloney sank the ensuing free throw as the Cats trailed 24-20 with 9:27 left in the half.
• Long's and Deloney's points factored into a 10-0 UVM run that tied the game at 24-24 with 6:38 to go in the first frame.
• Aaron Reddish answered with a three-point play to put the Great Danes back in front.
• Nick Fiorillo's dunk helped the Catamounts chip away at the lead and Long tied the game with a driving layup that made the score 30-30 with 3:57 remaining in the half.
• Ny'Mire Little knocked down a triple to retake the lead for UAlbany, and Amar'e Marshall scored on back-to-back possession as the lead stretched to seven points with 0:58 left on the clock.
• Fiorillo made one free throw with 0:02 remaining for a halftime score of 37-31 in favor of UAlbany.
• The Catamounts began to chip away in the opening minutes of the second half, but Thomas and the Great Danes continued to maintain their lead. Thomas hit a jumper with 16:33 to go for a 44-38 UAlbany lead.
• Long answered with a three pointer from long range to spark seven straight points for the Catamounts. Deloney finished a layup to give Vermont its first lead of the day, up 45-44 with 15:06 remaining.
• Thomas quickly answered with a three pointer, to reach 18 points on the day and put UAlbany back in front.
• Long sank two free throws and Ayo-Faleye made a layup to retake the lead for the Catamounts.
• Muneer Newton's dunk tied the game at 49-49 with 11:48 left as the conference foes traded blows over the next two minutes.
• Bogues intercepted a pass with about 10:43 left and sent Jace Roquemore on a fastbreak, leading to a slam dunk and a 55-51 lead. Roquemore answered a Marshall jumper minutes later with a triple to put UVM up 58-53 with 8:43 to go. The five-point lead was Vermont's largest of the day.
• The Great Danes responded by making their next four field goal attempts to retake the lead, up 62-60 with 6:30 remaining.
• Deloney tied the game with two free throws, but Thomas charged down the floor and converted on a driving layup for his 25th point of the game and a 64-62 lead.
• Ayo-Faleye's putback tied the game at 64-64 and Long finished a layup and drew the foul to put Vermont up 67-64 with 3:29 to go.
• Thomas scored six straight points for the Great Danes, including four from the free throw line to take a 70-67 lead with 2:12 left. Bogues made two free throws on the following possession to pull the Catamounts to within one point.
• Becker used a timeout with 0:40 to go and the ball in the attacking half. Bogues initiated the ball movement as passes circled the arc and found Long alone in the far corner. Fiorillo's pass was quickly released by Long who cashed in his third trey of the night to give Vermont a 72-70 lead with 0:30 remaining.
• On the following possession, Ayo-Faleye made a huge play on the defensive end to win the ball back and draw a foul. The UVM forward sank one free throw to put the Catamounts up 73-70 with 0:15 remaining.
• Alamutu won the ball back for Vermont on the next possession and was fouled with 0:02 left. UVM intentionally fouled Little with 0:01 after a pair of misses from Alamutu. The Great Dane made two free throws.
• The ball was inbounded to Long who put the finishing touches on the game with a pair of free throws in the last second.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• The Catamounts trailed by as many as 10 points with 11:04 left in the first half. UVM was behind for 28:49 of the 40 minutes played, and led for only 6:37.
• Vermont improves to 9-4 this season when trailing at the half.
• UVM improves to 12-0 as the No. 1 seed in the quarterfinals. 
• Long scored a team-high 20 points. He made 3-of-8 attempts from beyond the arc and was 7-for-8 from the free throw line.
• Deloney had 17 points on 4-for-9 shooting, including a 9-for-10 clip at the line. He also tallied three assists.
• Bogues was an efficient 7-for-14 from the field en route to a 16-point outing. The America East Newcomer of the Year had a team-high five assists and season-high five steals.
• Ayo-Faleye led the Catamounts in rebounding with seven boards. He also registered two blocks.
• With the win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to Vermont Children's Trust Foundation as part of the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative. Since its inauguration in 2017, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group has donated over $94,000 to local non-profits through the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative.

UP NEXT
Vermont will host No. 4 New Hampshire in the semifinal round of the Jersey Mike's America East Playoffs on Tuesday (Mar. 12) at Patrick Gym. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. ET. The matchup between the Catamounts and Wildcats will broadcast live on ESPN 2, with streaming available on ESPN+. 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.
 
AMERICA EAST SEMIFINAL TICKET INFO | Release
Season ticket holders can purchase their regular season seats for the semifinal through their online ticket account, by calling the UVM Ticket Office at (802) 656-4410, or in person at the UVM Ticket Office. Season ticket holders can purchase their regular season seats for the semifinal game until Sunday (Mar. 10) at 11:59 p.m. Please contact the UVM Ticket Office at Athletic.Tickets@uvm.edu or 802-656-4410 with any questions regarding your online account or the playoff ticket claim process.
 
Sales to the GENERAL PUBLIC will begin on Monday (Mar. 11) at 1 p.m. in-person at the Patrick Gym ticket office and online at UVMathletics.com/Tickets. Phone orders will not be taken until all in-person customers have been assisted.

SEMIFINAL TICKET PRICES
Courtside: $35
Padded Reserve: $20
Reserved: $18
Reserved Youth (12 and under): $14
UVM Students: Free

McGee Automotive Family is the presenting sponsor of Vermont men's basketball