MEN'S BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK
Top-seeded Vermont (25-6, 15-1) will host eighth-seeded Maine (6-25, 3-13) on Saturday (March 3) in the quarterfinal round of the America East Tournament. The opening tip is set for 7 p.m. All Vermont regular season games can be heard on 101.3 ESPN FM and online at 1013ESPN.com with Sam Hyman on the call..
 
CATS ON E3
Fans can watch the quarterfinal matchup on ESPN3 and the watchESPN app by logging in with your television provider.
 
RELATED LINKS
Maine: Video | Audio | Live Stats
CatamounTV: Maine Preview | Maine Highlights (2/27/18)
Game Notes: Vermont | Maine
America East: Playoff Central
 
GOLD OUT
Saturday's primetime playoff game with the Black Bears is a Gold Out. The first 2,000 fans in attendance will receive a free 'Defend The Throne' gold t-shirt.
 
LAST TIME OUT | Maine Highlights
UVM polished off the regular season with a 74-62 win at Maine on Tuesday night. The Cats used a balanced scoring attack as four starters racked up double figures. Trae Bell-Haynes notched a team-high 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting and collected seven rebounds. Ernie Duncan and Drew Urquhart tallied 14 points apiece. The pair combined for boards and seven assists. Payton Henson added an even dozen in the scoring column and finished a rebound shy of a double-double.
 
AMERICA EAST AWARDS
Vermont had six players and its head coach earn All-America East honors on Thursday. The Catamounts had three major award winners – John Becker (Co-Coach of the Year), Bell-Haynes (Player of the Year, First Team All-Conference), and Cam Ward (Sixth Man of the Year). Duncan was named to the All-Conference Second Team and All-Defensive Team. Urquhart joined Duncan on the All-Conference Team and Henson garnered Third Team All-Conference honors. Stef Smith landed on the All-Rookie Team. 
 
MOST WINS BY A GRADUATING CLASS
The win at Maine also gave UVM's senior class (Trae Bell-Haynes, Payton Henson, Nate Rohrer, Drew Urquhart, David Urso, and Cam Ward) their 97th career victory – the most by a graduating class in school history.

CHASING NORTHEASTERN
The Catamounts begin their title defense on Saturday in hopes of capturing a seventh America East Championship. With one more tournament crown, UVM would tie Northeastern for the most in the history of the conference. Northeastern won the tournament championship in 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, and 1991 before moving to the Colonial Athletic Association after the 2004-05 season. 
 
SCOUTING MAINE
The Black Bears earned the No. 8 seed in the tournament after finishing the conference slate with a 3-13 record. Aaron Calixte joined Henson on the America East All-Conference Third Team after leading the Black Bears in nearly every offensive statistical category. During the regular season, Calixte averaged 19.0 points per game and shot 55.6% (15-for-27) against the Catamounts. In two games against UVM, Andrew Fleming posted 12.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per contest. In his two-year career, Fleming is averaging 13.8 points and 4.8 boards against the Green and Gold. Ilker Er also came close to averaging double figures against the Cats this season. Er scored 9.0 points and logged 15.5 minutes per game.

INSIDE THE SERIES
Vermont has a chance to even the all-time series with a win on Saturday as Maine holds a slight 70-69 edge. The Green and Gold have made a valiant effort to tie the head-to-head record by winning 13 in a row over the Black Bears. In the America East Tournament, UVM is a perfect 4-0 against Maine. In the regular season, the Cats swept the Black Bears with an 83-62 victory at Patrick Gym on Jan. 15 and Tuesday's 74-62 win in Bangor.
 
ENTRANCE TO THE GAME
To comply with the America East Tournament policies, fans will not be admitted to the building from the outside stairway in the parking lot between Patrick Gym and Gutterson Fieldhouse.  Fans who park on this side of the building may enter through the loading dock area and go up the stairs to the gym. There is an elevator down the hallway that can bring fans upstairs to the Patrick Gym lobby (right next to the ticket counter).
 
PARKING
For the convenience of our fans attending men's basketball games at Patrick Gym, a shuttle will run constantly from the Jeffords parking lot (also known as the water tower lot) to the front of Patrick Gym. By taking the shuttle, fans can get back to their vehicle and on the road without sitting in as much traffic.
 
Fans with a disabled parking placard or a Victory Club VIP parking pass should have these out and ready when approaching the parking lot while on Spear Street for both your convenience as well as the efficiency of the UVM Police, security and Transportation and Parking staff members. You may be directed to a different entrance (turning off Spear Street into the parking area) once all other parking areas at Patrick are full but you will be able to access your respective parking area. Please be sure to note parking signs to know when the Gutterson parking garage is full and all remaining traffic is being directed to the Jeffords lot.
 
AMERICA EAST SEMIFINAL
If Vermont can advance to the semifinal round of the America East Tournament, the Cats will host the lowest remaining seed on Tuesday (March 7) at 7 p.m. Visit UVMathletics.com for ticket and game information.
 
Canon Solutions America is the presenting sponsor of the 2017-18 Vermont men's basketball season