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BURLINGTON, Vt. - The Vermont men's basketball team hosts Albany to round out the first half of conference play on Wednesday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Patrick Gymnasium. Vermont returns to Patrick Gymnasium to host the Albany on Thursday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online via UVMathletics.com, in person at the UVM Athletic Ticket Office (M-F: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.), via the phone at 802-656-4410, or in person one hour before tipoff in the Patrick Gymnasium Lobby.
A.J. Kanell will have the call on ESPN 101.3 FM (online: 1013ESPN.com) and the game will be streamed online for free in HD via CatamounTV.com.
RELATED LINKS
Game Coverage - Live Stats | Live Audio | Live Video
Game Notes (.pdf)
The Catamounts improved to 11-9 overall and 6-1 in league play with a 61-50 win at UMass Lowell on Sunday. Albany remained unbeaten in conference play with a 69-55 victory over UMBC on Sunday. The Great Danes, who have won seven straight and 10 of their last 11 games, enter the contest with a record of 12-7 overall and are 7-0 in America East.
LAST TIME OUT - Vermont 61, UMass Lowell 50
Dre Wills set a new career-high for the second straight game with a team-high 20 points to lead four Catamounts in double figures as Vermont pulled away from UMass Lowell to post a 61-50 victory at the Tsongas Center on Monday ... Wills was 6-for-7 from the field, 8-for-10 from the foul line and added four rebounds and three steals ... Ethan O'Day added 13 points, while Kurt Steidl and Hector Harold chipped in 10 points each ... The Catamounts led by four with 3:28 left in the game and secured the win with a 7-for-8 effort from the foul line and held the Riverhawks to two points over the final 3:05 of the game.
ABOUT ALBANY
Albany remained unbeaten in conference play with a 69-55 victory over UMBC on Sunday ... The Great Danes enter the contest with a record of 12-7 overall and are 7-0 in America East ... Albany has won seven straight and 10 of its last 11 games ... The Great Danes are playing without their leading scorer Peter Hooley (14.5 ppg) who returned home to Australia to be with his mother who is battling colon cancer ... Sam Rowley and Evan Singletary are averaging 13.4 and 12.5 points per game, respectively ... Rowley is among the league leaders in rebounding at 7.1 caroms per contest, while Singletary has drained 35 3-pointers and is averaging 2.7 assists per game ... Albany is averaged 65.6 points per game, while giving up 62.1 to opponents ... The Great Danes are shooting 43.7 percent from the floor, 35.9 percent from 3-point range and 78.0 percent from the foul line ... Albany is out rebounding opponents 32.6 to 29.6 on the year.
THE SERIES
Wednesday marks the 33rd meeting between the two schools ... Vermont owns a 22-10 advantage against Albany in the series ... The Catamounts are 6-2 against the Great Danes under John Becker over the last two years ... Albany's two wins during that stretch were during the America East Tournament, the Great Danes defeated UVM in the America East Championship Game at Patrick Gymnasium in 2013 and topped the top-seeded Catamounts in the America East Semifinals at SEFCU Arena, the Great Danes home floor, in 2014.
MAGIC NUMBERS
- Vermont is 36-3 since the 2012-13 season when holding opponents under 60 pts ... UVM held Yale to 57 & St. Louis to 58 pts
- UVM is 81-4 since 2000-01 when scoring 80+ points (last loss: at #6 Duke - 11/24/13 - L, 91-90)
- Vermont is 7-2 when Dre Wills scores 10+ pts in his career
- The Catamounts are 7-1 when Ethan O'Day shoots 61% from the field
DO IT ALL DRE
Dre Wills has been doing a little of everything for the Catamounts in his second season ... As a freshman, Wills played in 19 games, averaged 6.6 minutes per game, 2.3 points, 1.9 rebounds, 0.3 assists ... This season he is the team's top defender, ranks third on the team in scoring (9.1 ppg) and leads the team in rebounding (5.1 rpg), assists (2.5 apg) and steals (44) ... In league play, Wills is averaging 12.1 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.3 apg, 4.2 spg, and is shooting 61.5 FG% ... Vermont is 8-2 when Wills scores 10 or more points in his career (7-2 this season, 1-0 last year).
What a Difference a Year Makes - Dre Wills
Fr - 19 gp/0 gs | 6.6 mpg | 2.3 ppg | 1.9 rpg | 0.3 apg
So - 20 gp/20 gs | 27.4 mpg | 9.5 ppg | 4.4 rpg | 2.5 apg
NCAA NUMBERS
Vermont ranks 35th in scoring defense (59.6 ppg) ... Is 50th in field goal percentage defense (39.5%) ... Dre Wills is 17th in the country in steals (44) and 22nd in steals per game (2.2) ... Ethan O'Day ranks 46th in blocks (40) and 50th in blocks per game (2.0).
LEAGUE LEADERS
The Catamounts lead America East in six statistical categories (see list below) ... Ethan O'Day (56.5%) and Dre Wills (55.8%) rank 1-2 in field goal percentage ... Wills also leads America East in steals (2.2 pg).
WHO'S NEXT
Vermont begins the second round of conference play at Hartford on Saturday (Jan. 31) ... Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Chase Arena ... The game can be heard on ESPN 101.3 FM (online: 1013ESPN.com) with A.J. Kanell calling the action ... The game will also be streamed for free via AmericaEast.tv.
