Winners of three straight, Vermont returns to action on Tuesday night when it travels to face Boston U (13-11, 8-4 America East) at 7 p.m. in a game that will be televised on Comcast Sportsnet New England and also shown on ESPN Full Court and ESPN360.com. The game will feature the two teams that were picked first and second in the America East Preseason Poll.
The Cats (17-8, 8-3 America East) have won three straight in the series, including 78-58 in the first meeting this season. Check www.UVMathletics.com later day for a video preview for the game. CSNNE is channel 40 for Comcast subscribers in northern Vermont. CSNNE is also located on channel 435 on DISH Network and channel 630 on DirecTV. The game can be heard live on 96.7 DOT FM, The Zone 960 AM and WSTJ 1320 AM (Randolph), and on the Internet at SportsJuice.com.
LAST TIME OUT: Sophomore Garvey Young recorded his first career double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds to pace four Cats in double figures, as Vermont topped UMBC on the road on Friday afternoon, 79-60. Seniors Marqus Blakely and Maurice Joseph each added 13 points, while junior Evan Fjeld chipped in with 11. The Cats led by as many as 24 in the contest in a game that they never trailed. Vermont led by as many as 18 in the first half and would take a 37-27 lead into the break after shooting 52 percent from the floor and holding a 19-9 rebounding edge.
BOSTON U:The Terriers are 13-11 overall and 8-4 in America East action. The America East Preseason favorite, Boston University has won two in a row heading into Tuesday. John Holland leads the conference in scoring with 18.8 points per game, as the Terriers have four players that average double figures. Corey Lowe adds 15.4 points per contest and is second in the league in assists, with 4.7 per game. A perimeter-oriented team, 41 percent of Boston University's shots this season have been three-pointers. Boston University holds a 51-40 edge in the all-time series, but the Catamounts have won seven of the last eight including a season-sweep last year and a 78-58 win on ESPNU this season.
LAST MEETING WITH BU: Sophomore Garvey Young and senior Maurice Joseph led four Cats in double figures with 14 points each, as Vermont cruised to a 78-58 win over Boston University on January 17. Young and Joseph were also big on the boards for Vermont, pulling down 15 combined. Vermont held the Terriers to only 14 first half points and led by as many as 32 in the game. The 14 first half points for BU were the fewest given up in a half by a Catamount squad since Vermont held Cornell to 14 in the first half of a 73-60 win on December 5, 2003.
HOME COURT ADVANTAGE: Playing approximately 40 miles from his hometown of Washington, D.C., sophomore Garvey Young posted the best game of his Catamount career at UMBC on Friday with new career highs for both points (20) and rebounds (10). Young made the first five shots he took from the floor and finished the game 6-for-13 overall and 3-for-5 from three on his way to earning his first career double-double. His old career high for points was 19 against Dartmouth last season, while his previous rebounding high of nine came at Marist earlier this season. Also playing close to home, freshman Brendan Bald added nine points off the bench in 19 minutes of action.
POINTS IN A HURRY: Vermont scored a total of 11 points with only two seconds running off the game clock on Friday thanks to a pair of technical fouls called on UMBC. Leading 47-37 with 12:54 left in the game, Garvey Young was fouled and went to the line and made the first of two. Marqus Blakely got the rebound on the second shot and put it right back in and was fouled. Blakely finished the three-point play and then the Retrievers were immediately called for a technical, as Maurice Joseph stepped to the line and made a pair. With the game winding down, Brendan Bald made a lay-up and was fouled. Before he could shoot his free throw UMBC was called for another technical, so Bald stepped to the line and knocked down three in a row.
CLEANING THE GLASS: Vermont held a 42-22 rebounding edge in its win over UMBC on Friday, as it is now 15-2 this year when controlling the glass. The Cats have held a double-digit rebounding advantage seven times this season, as the +20 margin against the Retrievers was only the second highest differential this season (+24 at Marist). In league games only, Vermont has the top rebounding advantage in the conference at +7.5 per game.
QUICK TURNAROUND: Vermont defeated Maine at home on Wednesday night, then due to forecasted snow in the Mid-Atlantic area its scheduled flight for Friday to Baltimore was cancelled on Thursday. The Cats then took a bus to UMBC, leaving at Thursday at 4:30 p.m. While at practice on Friday morning at UMBC around 10:30 a.m., the game was bumped up a day and Vermont found out it would play at 3 p.m. that afternoon to try and beat the storm that ended up hitting the area.
ROAD WARRIORS:This season 14 of the Catamounts' first 17 games took place on the road, as UVM has won nine of its last 11 away from Patrick Gym and has 10 road wins overall, which are tied for the most in the nation with Morgan State. During the 2006-07 season Vermont led the nation in wins away from home (road + neutral), as it went 16-4.
MOVING UP THE LIST: With 13 points at UMBC, Marqus Blakely moved up to sixth all-time in scoring at Vermont, passing Mike Evelti '82. With 1,704 points for his career, he is only 40 shy of passing Tony Orciari '01 for the fifth spot in Catamount history. Blakely also ranks second in scoring among active players in the America East and first in rebounds.
ONE OF A KIND: Senior Marqus Blakely, the reigning two-time America East Player and Defensive Player of the Year, is having another big season as he leads Vermont is points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals. Blakely is the only player in the nation to lead his team in all five categories this year. The Metuchen, N.J. native also ranks among the top five in the America East in each of the five major statistical categories and is the only player in the country to accomplish the feat. Blakely is also the only active player in the nation with over 1,500 career points, 900 rebounds, 200 assists, 200 blocks and 200 steals.
FOUR SCORE: For the fifth time this season four Catamounts reached double figures in the same game against UMBC. Garvey Young led the way with 20 points, while Maurice Joseph and Marqus Blakely each tallied 13 and Evan Fjeld added 11. Vermont has won 25 of its last 30 when four or more players have topped double digits.
LEAGUE PLAY: Vermont has been the top team in America East over the last seven-plus years in terms of wins, as the Catamounts are 107-36 in regular season league play. Boston University is second at 102-42. During the time frame Vermont has won three America East Championships and four regular season crowns.
AROUND THE RIM: Each of Vermont's last four victories over Boston University have been by double digits, while the last two the Cats have won by 20 and 28 respectively. Marqus Blakely did not attempt a shot in the first half against UMBC on Friday. Freshman Ben Crenca pulled down a career-high seven rebounds in the Cats' last time out. Blakely is the only two-time conference play of the year in the nation to return this season.
WHO'S NEXT: Vermont returns home on Sunday to face New Hampshire at 2 p.m. Sunday will mark the annual Pink Zone game in support of breast cancer awareness presented by Green Mountain Coffee.
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