WOMEN'S BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK
Vermont (12-6, 4-2 AE) will face NJIT (9-9, 4-2 AE) on Saturday (Jan. 21) night in another crucial America East road battle. The game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN3. Ryan Zimmerman will be on the radio call for the Catamounts on WVMT.
 
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AMERICA EAST PLAY
The Catamounts have earned four straight victories with a critical win over Maine at The Pit and over Bryant on the road, as well as two home wins versus New Hampshire and UMass Lowell to improve to 4-2 in the America East. Vermont is one of three teams in the America East with an overall record above .500 coming in at 12-6. UAlbany leads the conference at 13-8 and 7-0 in conference play followed by Maine who comes in at 8-9 after falling to Vermont for their first loss in America East play falling to 4-1 in the conference. Vermont is currently third behind Maine followed by UMBC and NJIT who are the other two teams with a 4-2 record in conference play. Binghamton, who is the only other team above .500 coming in at 10-9 with a 3-3 record in the conference, round out the top six teams in the America East. 
 
AMONG THE AMERICA EAST LEADERS
The Catamounts are second in the conference in scoring with 61.7 per game and first in points allowed and scoring margin, giving up just 55.4 points per game with a plus 6.3 scoring margin. Vermont is third in team field goal percentage (42.5 percent) and lead the conference in opponent field goal percentage (37.9 percent). UVM also ranks first in the conference in three point percentage converting 37.5 percent of their chances behind the arc, with the next closest team being UAlbany coming in at 35.6 percent. Vermont has the least turnovers in the conference with 14.4 per game and their 0.50 margin is second, while their assist to turnover ratio is first in the America East. The Catamounts have three of the top 12 scorers in the conference and are led by Utterback's 13.9 per game which is fourth in the conference. Anna Olson ranks 10th with 11.7 points and Gilwee is 12th with 11.5 points per contest. Olson is also fifth in the conference with 6.4 rebounds per contest, while Gilwee leads the America East in three point percentage knocking down 42.6 percent of her threes. Olson is also fifth in field goal percentage at 47.8 percent, while Gilwee is 10th at 42.1 percent and Utterback is 11th at 41.0 percent from the field.
 
AMONG NATION'S BEST
Emma Utterback is leading the team in scoring this season with 13.9 points per game. She is currently fourth in the America East in scoring and is tied for 229th nationally. Utterback is also 11th in the conference knocking down 41.0 percent of her shots from the field, which is 199th in the country. Utterback is tied for 78th in the country with 76 total assists and her 4.2 assists is tied for 89th nationally and first in the America East. Her 1.9 assist to turnover ratio is tied for first in the conference and tied for 80th in the nation. Catherine Gilwee has shot the ball well this season ranking 31st (42.61 percent) in the nation in three point percentage, while being ranked 81st in three point attempts with 115. Her 2.72 threes made per game has her 36th in the country and her 49 makes is tied for 23rd nationally. As a team Vermont is shooting 37.54 percent from three which has them ranked 13th nationally, while their 42.5 percent shooting from the field is third in the conference and ranked 105th in the country. Defensively their 55.4 points allowed per game is first in the conference and 21st in the nation while holding teams to just 37.9 percent from the field (84th in the country and first in America East). Their 28.6 percent three point percentage allowed is ranked 77th in the country.
 
NET RANKING
The current 2022-23 NET rankings were released on January 18, 2023, with Vermont leading the America East, coming in at 163. UAlbany followed the Catamounts at 186 while Maine rounded out the top three for the America East coming in at 193. Binghamton, UMBC and NJIT are the other America East teams in the top 300 coming in at 282, 298 and 300 respectively.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
The Catamounts this season are 5-4 on the road and are 5-2 in their last seven games away from Patrick Gym. In their nine road games, Vermont is averaging 61.1 points and are allowing 60.9 points per game while shooting 41.1 percent from the field and 35.9 percent from the three point line. Vermont on the road is holding opposing teams to 40.5 percent and 31.7 percent from behind the arc. In road games Utterback has been having her way averaging 15.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists per contest. Olson has recorded 11.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game on the road including a career-high 15 rebounds against Bryant and a game-high 21 points on the road against Maine. In nine road games, Gilwee is averaging 11.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game on 39.8 percent shooting and a remarkable 45.1 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
 
SCOUTING THE HIGHLANDERS
The Highlanders enter this Saturday Night matchup with a 9-9 overall record and are 4-2 in the America East. In conference play, NJIT defeated UNH, UMass Lowell, and Bryant in close contests, with the win over the Bulldogs coming in overtime. Their two losses in the conference came against the top two teams in the America East in Maine and UAlbany. Offensively NJIT enters this matchup averaging 59.4 points per game on 40.6 percent shooting from the field and 29.3 percent from behind the arc, while hitting 62.0 percent of their free throws. Defensively, the Highlanders have given up 62.3 points per game on 39.2 percent shooting and 30.5 percent from three point range while averaging 5.9 steals and 3.8 blocks per game. The Highlanders are ranked sixth offensively in the America East in scoring but are fourth in defense when it comes to scoring. First year guard Alejandra Zuniga leads the team in scoring with 10.8 points per game to go along with 2.1 assists and 1.1 steals. Junior guard Aria Myers is second on the team averaging 9.8 points and 3.3 rebounds to go along with 2.1 assists. Trinity Williams is leading NJIT with 6.0 rebounds per game along with 9.7 points and 1.4 blocks per contest. NJIT was selected just behind Vermont at fourth in the preseason poll receiving 42 total points.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
This will be the ninth matchup all-time between the two teams, with Vermont having a 7-1 record against NJIT all time. Their only loss was 70-60 defeat that came on the road on December 27, 2020. Vermont has won three straight contests against the Highlanders, including sweeping the season series 56-30 on February 2 and 71-49 on January 19. Last season, in two games against the Highlanders Olson recorded two double doubles averaging 13.0 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game on 70.5 percent shooting and registered a career-high five blocks in the January matchup. In two games against the Highlanders, Utterback averaged 12.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists. The first matchup ever came in Newark, NJ in December 2015 where Vermont won 54-46.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Following Saturday's matchup with NJIT, the Catamounts will return to Patrick for another America East clash with Binghamton on Wednesday, January 25. The start time for that game is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Ryan Zimmerman, the voice of Catamounts women's basketball, will be on the radio call on WVMT.
 
NATIONAL GIRLS AND WOMEN IN SPORTS DAY
The University of Vermont Women's Basketball team will celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day powered by Vermont Mutual on Saturday, February 4th during their game against UAlbany at 12 P.M. On February 4th, girls from the local community with an interest in sports and being involved in this celebration will have the opportunity to become members of the UVM Athletic Staff for the day. Girls between fourth and eighth grade can apply to a wide variety of positions including: Public Address Announcer, Marketing Assistant, Ticket Staff, and many more! Participants will be able to work in the position for one half of the game, the other half they will be able to watch the game with their family. To apply, please visit https://uvmathletics.com/sb_output.aspx?form=126