FINAL SCORE: Vermont 80, UMBC 71
CATONSVILLE, Md. – The UVM men's basketball team earned at least a share of the America East regular season crown for the fifth consecutive season with an 80-71 win at UMBC on Thursday night. The Catamounts extended their winning streak to eight games and stand at 10-3. The Retrievers fall to 12-5 overall and 9-4 in the conference standings.
 
RELATED LINKS
Box Score: Web | PDF
 
COACH'S QUOTE
"This was probably the most physical game we've played all year on both ends of the floor," Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker said. "It was a really good win against a really good team. We really made the plays down the stretch. We want that No. 1 seed and we know we have to win tomorrow to do it because they own the tiebreak."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Catamounts found their offensive rhythm early with a 12-2 start, including nine straight points, in the opening five minutes. Stef Smith drained a pair of deep treys plus Ryan Davis threw down a dunk and hit a tough hook shot in the paint.
• Later in the half, UMBC's defense held UVM scoreless for four minutes to draw within 17-12. Ben Shungu stopped the run with a corner three but the Retrievers continued their comeback with two three-pointers and tied the game at 20-20 at the six-minute mark after putting together a 14-3 run.
• After UMBC grabbed its first lead of the night with back-to-back triples from Darnell Rogers, the Catamounts netted eight unanswered points with a bucket from Davis, another long-distance shot from Smith, and a left-wing three-pointer from Isaiah Powell as the Green and Gold led 30-25 by the final media timeout of the first half.
• In the final four minutes of the period, the Retrievers scored six of the last eight points but the Cats went into the locker room with a slim 32-31 lead.
• The rivals swapped buckets for eight minutes to begin the second half as Vermont held a 52-47 edge at the 12-minute media timeout.
• UVM's defense held UMBC without a field goal for almost four minutes and stretched its advantage to a seven-point margin twice.
• The Green and Gold padded their lead to 63-53 with seven minutes to play but an 8-0 run in two minutes brought the Retrievers back within 63-61.
• As the outcome came down the final minutes, UVM built a double-digit lead once again, 74-64, after putting together an 11-3 spree with 1:45 left on the clock. UMBC trimmed the deficit to 76-70 at the 1:06 mark but Shungu netted four points down the stretch to secure the win. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Davis poured in a team-high 21 points and logged his sixth 20-point performance of the year. He shot 9-of-17 from the floor and six rebounds.   
• Smith added 20 points and was hot from outside after shooting 6-of-7 from three-point land. The 6-2 gaurd shot 6-of-9 on the night and tallied four rebounds.  
• Shungu matched his senior classmate with 20 points. He had a solid shooting night after hitting 7-of-10 shots with eight boards and two assists.
• UVM is the first team in league history to win five straight regular season conference crowns.
• When the Cats Win, the Community Wins. With each Catamount win, Vermont Mutual Insurance donates $100 to the Vermont Foodbank. For 2020 they donated $15,000 to Spectrum Youth and Family Services. A special thank you to Vermont Mutual Insurance for their support. Vermont Mutual Insurance, protecting Vermonters since 1828.

WHO'S NEXT
Vermont and UMBC will wrap up the regular season on Friday (Feb. 19) at 5 p.m. The winner will be the top overall seed in the upcoming America East Tournament and will clinch home-court advantage. All of the action will be streamed on ESPN3 and the ESPN app by logging in with your television provider. Fans can also listen live on the Vermont Sports Network, from Learfield IMG College, on 101.3 The Game or online at Catamounts All-Access with Brian McLaughlin on the call.
 
Key Motors of South Burlington is the presenting sponsor of the 2020-21 Vermont men's basketball season