WOMEN'S BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK
The Catamounts (1-0) travel to Alumni Hall to face Big East foe Providence (1-0) on Friday night. The game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast live on FloSports (with a subscription). Fans can listen to the game for free on the Vermont Sports Network, from Learfield 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 via the
Varsity Network App with Ryan Zimmerman on the call.
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Game Notes: Vermont
STARTING THE YEAR OFF RIGHT
Vermont began their season with a 60-48 victory over Miami (OH) at Patrick Gym on Monday (Nov.6). With the victory Vermont earned their 11th straight victory at Patrick dating back to January 1, 2023.
Emma Utterback and
Anna Olson led the way for the Catamounts with 20 points apiece. Utterback added seven assists while Olson chipped in seven rebounds.
Andjela Matic made her first career start for Vermont, registering career highs with seven points and 33.3% shooting from three in 28 minutes.
REGULAR SEASON STREAK
Following the season opening victory over Miami (OH) UVM has now won 15 straight regular season games dating back to last season. Vermont last lost on January 1, 2023, to UMBC in a highly competitive 58-57 defeat. During their run Vermont has outscored their opponents 62.2-50 and held them to 36.0 percent shooting from the field and only 25.2 percent shooting from deep. Utterback has led the way averaging 13.9 points and 3.4 assists per game during the streak while Olson has also been steady averaging 12.7 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.
MID MAJOR RANKINGS
The Catamounts begin the 2023-24 campaign ranked 14th in the
Mid-Major Top 25 rankings. Last season Vermont reached the top-10 in the mid-major rankings rattling off the second longest winning streak (17) behind only South Dakota State (25).
The Mid-Major Poll is made up of teams from the following conferences: America East, Atlantic Sun, Big Sky, Big South, Big West, Coastal Athletic, Conference USA, Horizon, Independent, Ivy, Metro Atlantic, Mid-America, Mid-eastern, Missouri Valley, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot, Southern, Southland, Southwestern, Summit, Sun Belt, West Coast and Western Atlantic.
DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE
Last season, the Catamounts held their opponents under 50 points 13 times including holding NJIT to a season-low 32 points on a 19.3 percent shooting. In their America East Championship victory, Vermont held UAlbany to only 36 points. Overall, 24 of their 32 opponents failed to reach 60 points last season. Only five teams scored over 70 in a game against Vermont last season, while seven teams failed to reach 40 points. In their season opener on Monday (Nov. 6) the Catamounts continued their defensive prowess holding Miami (OH) to just 48 points on 40 percent shooting and only 29.4 percent shooting from three point range. Dating back to last season, Monday was the fifth time in the last six regular season games the Catamounts have held their opponent to under 55 points.
SCOUTING THE FRIARS
Providence enters Friday's matchup after a 76-46 season opening win over Hampton on Tuesday (Nov. 7). Providence enters the game shooting 54.3 percent shooting from the field and 41.7 percent from three point range. Junior Olivia Olsen leads the Friars after one game with 25 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two assists. Fellow classmate Kylee Sheppard led the team with eight assists and finished with four points. Senior Grace Efosa registered 21 points, six rebounds and three steals in the season opener. Providence was selected to finish ninth in the Big East Preseason Poll receiving a total of 32 points.
INSIDE THE SERIES
This will be the sixth matchup all-time between the Catamounts and the Friars with Vermont holding a 3-2 advantage. The first time these two teams met was on February 7, 1979, at Alumni Hall where Providence came away with the 85-43 victory. The next time the two teams met, and first time in Burlington, was November 23, 2002, where Vermont earned a 65-49 victory at Patrick Gym. UVM won three straight matchups from 2002-2009 by an average score of 68-57.7 with two home victories. Providence earned the last victory in the series on November 13, 2012, with a 92-76 win at Alumni Hall.
WHAT'S NEXT
Following Friday night's matchup with the Friars the Catamounts will have a week off before returning on the road to face Quinnipiac on Friday, November 17. Tip-off for that game is scheduled for 4 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Fans can also listen to the game for free on the Vermont Sports Network, from Learfield 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 via the Varsity Network App with Ryan Zimmerman on the call.
Vermont Federal Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont Women's Basketball
