FINAL SCORE: #2 Vermont 63, #3 NJIT 54
BURLINGTON, Vt. – For the eighth time in the past 10 seasons, two-seeded Vermont (22-11, 12-4 AE) has advanced to the Air Force Reserve America East Championship game, defeating No. 3 NJIT (16-17, 10-6 AE) 63-54 in the semifinal round on Tuesday night from Patrick Gymnasium. The Catamounts advance to the title game for the 11th time in 15 seasons under Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker.

RELATD LINKS
Box Score
CatamounTV: ESPN Postgame Hit
Postgame Press Conferences: Coach Becker | Hurley & Long
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• An offensive foul on Melvyn Ebonkoli on the very first possession of the game resulted in the Catamounts collecting the first points of the contest on the other end, seeing Noah Barnett find Gus Yalden in the paint who made his first layup attempt, gaining the 2-0 lead 34 seconds into the game.
• Barnett and Yalden each scored a basket before the first media timeout with 15:16 on the clock in the first half as the Catamounts took advantage of a pair of NJIT turnovers, gaining a 6-0 lead almost five minutes into opening tip-off.
• TJ Long entered the game after the media timeout, immediately swishing a three pointer with 15 minutes remaining in the first half giving UVM a 9-0 lead.
• After NJIT's first bucket of the contest, Sean Blake orchestrated a 5-0 scoring run all by himself, drilling a three-pointer and making a layup, forcing the Highlanders to take a short timeout with 13:23 on the clock in the opening half. The Catamounts led 14-2.
• By the second media timeout in the first half, the Catamounts maintained a double-digit lead, holding a 20-10 advantage as both teams went back-and-forth with 7:40 showing on the clock.
• For the next four minutes, the Catamounts went cold from three-point range, missing four consecutive three-pointers, allowing the Highlanders to close the deficit to single digits, seeing UVM lead 22-14 by the third media timeout of the opening frame with 3:22 remaining in the half.
• TJ Hurley and Blake capped of the scoring in the first half for the Catamounts, each drilling a mid-range jump shot as Vermont entered halftime with a 26-18 lead, one point shy of tying their season best points allowed in an opening half.
• NJIT opened the second half orchestrating a 6-0 scoring run to come within two points, 26-24, getting baskets from three different Highlanders, forcing Vermont to take a short timeout with 17:51 of regulation remaining.
• Before a media timeout with 15:18 on the clock in the second half, the Highlanders gained their first lead of the game with 16:06 on the clock in the second half when Sebastian Robinson cashed in on his second three-pointer of the game, propelling NJIT in front 29-28.
• Coming out of that media timeout, Vermont exploded on a 10-4 scoring run led by TJ Long with eight points and a tough layup from Momo Nkugwa, earning UVM the lead back, 38-33, with 11:58 of play left on the clock.
• A Barnett three-pointer from the corner in front of the Vermont bench electrified the Patrick Gymnasium crowd with 9:11 on the clock, seeing the Catamounts gain a five-point advantage, 42-37.
• Before the second media timeout of the final half with 7:54 to play, Yalden executed on a right-handed hook shot, extending the Catamount lead to 44-37.
• Vermont forced NJIT to take a short timeout and regroup with 5:36 of regulation remaining after dialing up a 9-2 scoring run highlighted by Hurley drilling a three-pointer and Barnett slamming home an emphatic put-back dunk as UVM gained a 53-39 lead. Lucas Mari contributed four points in the Catamount scoring run.
• The Highlanders finished the game on a 15-10 scoring run, but the damage was already done as the Catamounts walked away with the 63-54 semifinal win from Patrick Gymnasium.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Hurley and Blake each scored a team-high 14 points.
• Hurley, Blake, Long, and Mari all recorded a team-high five rebounds.
• Barnett and Blake each registered a team-high two assists.
• Yalden and Mari each tallied a game-high two blocks.
• Long recorded a career high five steals against NJIT to go along with 11 points off the bench.
• Four different Catamounts ended with double-digit points on Tuesday night.
• UVM out-rebounded NJIT 35-34.
• The Catamounts got 18 points from the bench compared to the Highlanders' 12.
• Vermont collected four blocks to NJIT's two and secured eight steals to the Highlanders' seven.
• The Catamounts scored 24 points in the paint to NJIT's 18.
• The Catamounts had the better shooting night, shooting 41.8% (23-of-55) from the field, while the Highlanders made 36.2% (21-of-58) of their attempts.

UP NEXT
Two-seeded Vermont (22-11, 12-4 AE) will travel to No. 1 UMBC (23-8, 14-2 AE) for the 2026 Air Force Reserve America East Championship Game, making their eighth Championship appearance in the last 10 seasons on Saturday (Mar. 14) at Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena. Tip-off is slated for 11 a.m. E.T. The championship game will be nationally televised on ESPN2. Westwood One will broadcast the game on the radio around the country. Local 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.
 
Vermont Federal Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of 2025-26 Vermont Men's Basketball Season