FINAL SCORE: Vermont 79, UAlbany 61
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Vermont (20-10, 14-2 AE) closed out 2022-23 regular season with a 79-61 victory over UAlbany (8-23, 3-13) on Wednesday night at Patrick Gym. Prior to the game, the Catamounts honored six seniors on Senior Night, presented by the UVM Alumni Association.
 
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COACH'S QUOTE
"Exciting night with Senior Night and last regular season game, to come away with a win," Cioffi Men's Basketball Head Coach John Becker said. "It felt really good to send our seniors off the right way, and to reach the 20-win mark, which is always one of our goals coming into the season. That streak looked like it was going to be broken this year earlier in the year when we were 2-7 and kind of in the midst of a really challenging non-conference schedule, so the credit to our guys, to the coaching staff, to everyone involved. They did an incredible job this year and, you know, playing our best basketball at the right time here."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Dylan Penn drove through the lane to score the opening basket for the Catamounts. The fifth-year senior scored the game's first four points as Vermont went 6-for-9 from the field to take an 18-10 lead before the 12-minute mark. Aaron Deloney led the early attack with six points on a pair of triples.
• The Catamounts eventually opened up a double-digit lead when Matt Veretto received a pass from Penn and converted a layup to go up 25-14 with 8:28 left in the half.
• Vermont and UAlbany exchanged baskets over the next 5:16, as the Catamounts maintained their lead, up 34-25. Veretto had six of UVM's nine points during that stretch, sinking a pair of treys.
• Deloney caught fire in the final minutes of the opening half, draining three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to put Vermont up 40-27 with 1:50 remaining.
• Penn added a left-handed layup with 0:30 left to give the Catamounts a 42-27 halftime lead.
• UAlbany began the second half on an 8-2 run to cut the deficit to nine points. Gerald Drumgoole and Sarju Patel both drained three-pointers for the Great Danes who trailed 44-35 with 17:32 remaining.
• Vermont responded with seven-straight points to regrow the lead. Robin Duncan led the UVM run with three points, finishing a layup while getting fouled, and converting the free throw for a 51-35 lead with 15:34 left on the clock.
• The Great Danes chipped away at the Vermont lead, but could never pull to within single digits. Da'Kquan Davis drilled a three-pointer with 7:24 remaining to trail 62-51, but the 11-point deficit was as close as the Great Danes would come to the Cats.
• UVM pulled away with a 17-5 run over the next 6:20 to lead 79-56 with 1:13 left and put the game out of reach. Sam Alamutu's three-pointer gave Vermont the 23-point lead, its largest of the evening. Veretto had six points for the Catamounts, all coming on consecutive possessions to begin the run. TJ Hurley gave Vermont its first 20-point lead of the night when he knocked down a pair of free throws with 2:59 remaining.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Vermont reaches the 20-win mark for the 14th-consecutive full season, dating back to the 2008-09 campaign. The Catamounts were limited to just 15 games in the COVID-altered 2020-21 season.
• The Catamounts made 52.9% (27-51) of their field goal attempts on the night, and drilled 39.3% (11-28) of their attempts from beyond the arc.
• Deloney poured in a team-high 18 points on a near-perfect 6-for-7 shooting night. The senior made 4-of-5 attempts from long range, and knocked down 2-of-3 free throws.
• Veretto reached double figures for the third consecutive game, tallying 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting. The UVM forward hit 3-of-5 attempts from three-point land, and went 2-for-2 from the line.
• Penn tallied 13 points on 4-for-7 shooting from the field. The Evansville, Ind. native made 5-of-6 attempts from the free throw line.
• Prior to the game, Vermont honored six seniors: Dylan Penn, Kam Gibson, Finn Sullivan, Robin Duncan, and student managers Will Fischer and Justin Morse on Senior Night, presented by the UVM Alumni Association.
• With the win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to King Street Center as part of the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative. Since its inauguration in 2017, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group has donated over $80,000 to local non-profits through the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative.  

UP NEXT
Top-seeded Vermont will host No. 8 NJIT (7-22, 4-12 AE) in the 2023 Jersey Mike's America East Quarterfinals on Saturday (Mar. 4) at Patrick Gym. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. The matchup between the Catamounts and Highlanders will broadcast live on ESPN+. 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 Brian McLaughlin on the call.
 
AMERICA EAST QUARTERFINAL TICKET INFO | Release
Sales to the GENERAL PUBLIC will begin on Wednesday, Mar. 1 at 1 p.m. in-person at the Patrick Gym ticket office and online at UVMathletics.com/Tickets. Phone orders will not be taken until all in-person customers have been assisted.

TICKET PRICES
Courtside: $35
Padded Reserve: $20
Reserved: $18
Reserved Youth (12 and under): $14
UVM Students: Free

McGee Automotive Group is the presenting sponsor of Vermont men's basketball