FINAL SCORE: Vermont 78, UMass Lowell 67
LOWELL, Mass. – Vermont (18-4, 10-0 AE) held off a late run to defeat UMass Lowell (11-10, 3-6 AE) 78-67 on Saturday afternoon at Costello Athletic Center. The Catamounts extend their winning streak to 12 straight games.
 
RELATED LINKS
Box Score: Web | PDF
 
COACH'S QUOTE
"Another gritty road win for us today," Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker said. "We played really well for the most part. I thought we had a stretch in each half that hurt us after taking nice leads. We will go back to the tape and clean those things up. Justin (Mazzulla) made the shot wee needed off a great pass by Isaiah (Powell). Road wins are hard but we made the plays we needed late."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The River Hawks took the game's first lead, but UVM responded with a 17-0 run over 4:33 to take a 19-5 lead with 13:13 left in the opening half. Ben Shungu fueled the Vermont run with seven points in the early minutes. The Catamounts made 6-of-8 shots during the run, including 3-of-4 attempts from beyond the arc. UVM's lead stretched to as large as 16 points with 12:08 left on the clock.
• UMass Lowell began to chip away at the Vermont lead with a 9-0 run. John Hall had four points for the River Hawks who cut the deficit to 23-16 with 9:00 remaining in the first frame. The Catamounts extended their lead back up to 14 points over the next 5:04, but the River Hawks countered with eight points down the stretch by Max Brooks to cut the deficit. Shungu and Ryan Davis hit back-to-back triples to remain in front with a 38-28 halftime lead.
• Vermont hit four of its first five field goal attempts to open the second half and extend its lead to 48-30 with 15:57 left on the clock. UVM's lead hovered around 18 points until Aaron Deloney's driving layup with 6:35 remaining that gave the Catamounts their first 20-point lead of the afternoon. Shungu followed it up with a trey on the next possession to put UVM up 69-48.
• The River Hawks rattled off a 17-0 run in a span of 4:11 with Kalil Thomas hitting a trio of threes to cut the UVM lead to 69-65 with 1:51 remaining. Vermont stopped the run when Isaiah Powell found Justin Mazzulla at the wing where he drilled a three-pointer with 1:15 left in regulation. Davis recorded two blocks in the final minute to secure the Catamount victory.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Vermont was 29-for-53 (54.7%) from the field and 10-for-22 (45.5%) from long range on the afternoon.
• Shungu had a game-high 24 points on 9-of-15 shooting. The UVM guard was 4-for-5 from long range and cashed in a pair of free throws. Shungu also dished out a pair of assists in a team-high 34 minutes played.
• Davis also racked up 20 points on an efficient 8-of-11 shooting from the floor. The senior sank two triples and pulled in a game-high eight rebounds.
• Powell recorded his 10th double-figure scoring game of the season with 12 points. The Vermont forward made 4-of-9 shots from the field and 2-of-3 three-point attempts.
• Mazzulla was also in double figures for the third time in the last four games with an 11-point outing. The guard was 4-for-5 from the field, including his run-stopping triple in the second half.
• With today's win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to COTS, the Committee on Temporary Shelter, as part of the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative. A special thank you to Vermont Mutual Insurance for their support. Vermont Mutual Insurance, protecting Vermonters since 1828.

UP NEXT
The Catamounts return to Patrick Gym for its first meeting with Binghamton on Wednesday (Feb. 9). Tickets for the 7 p.m. tip are available for purchase at UVMathletics.com/Tickets. Wednesday's game will broadcast live on ESPN+ with Rob Ryan and Bernie Cieplicki on the call. Fans can listen for free on the Vermont Sports Network, from Learfield IMG College 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 online at Catamounts All-Access with Brian McLaughlin on the call.
 
Key Motors of South Burlington is the presenting sponsor of Vermont men's basketball