MEN'S BASKETBALL NOTEBOOK
With a quick turnaround from Thursday, Vermont (22-6, 12-1 AE) returns to Catamount Country to host UMBC (13-14, 6-6 AE) on Saturday night (Feb. 22). The opening tip is set for 7 p.m. on the hardwood of Patrick Gym. The game has officially been ruled a sellout.
 
TELEVISION AND RADIO COVERAGE
All of the action will be streamed on ESPN+ with a paid subscription. 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 Jake Marsh on the call.
 
RELATED LINKS
UMBC: Video | Live Stats | Audio
Game Notes: Vermont | UMBC
 
AMERICA EAST REGULAR SEASON TITLE ON THE LINE
With a win on Saturday, Vermont can win its fourth consecutive outright America East regular season title and lock up the top overall seed in the upcoming conference tournament. The Cats can become the first team in league history to record four straight outright regular season conference crowns. The regular season championship would be the 10th in school history and would tie Northeastern for the most ever in America East.
 
OVERTAKING UCONN
The victory at Stony Brook on Thursday night helped UVM overtake UConn for the most wins by a New England team since 2002-03. The Catamounts have won 409 games during the 17-year run while the Huskies have reached the win column 408 times.
 
TRIPLE D
Everett Duncan registered his first double-double of the season on Thursday night with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Duncan's double-double was the third of his career. After connecting on 3-of-5 attempts from downtown, the redshirt senior also climbed back into the top 10 on the program's career three-point percentage list (37.5%).
 
RELIVING LAST YEAR'S AMERICA EAST TITLE GAME | CatamounTV Highlights
The last time the Cats and Retrievers played in Burlington was last year's America East Championship Game. Top-seeded Vermont captured its seventh conference title after taking down defending champion and No. 3 seed UMBC 66-49. Anthony Lamb was named the Reggie Lewis Most Outstanding Player (MOP) for the second time in his career. The MOP had a monster game with a game-high 28 points and nine rebounds. The junior shot 8-of-16 from the floor, 9-of-12 from the line, and canned three triples. Stef Smith reached double figures with 17 points and pulled down eight boards.
 
SCOUTING UMBC
The Retrievers sit fifth in the conference standings after winning four straight games, including a 69-50 victory at UAlbany on Thursday. During the four-game streak, UMBC has held its opponents under 60 points and has produced a +11.5 scoring margin. America East Preseason All-Conference member K.J. Jackson leads the offense with 14.0 points per game. The senior dishes out 4.6 assists per game, which ranks second in the league. R.J. Eytle-Rock averages 10.4 points per game and has a team-high 40.4% clip from deep. Brandon Horvath (10.1 ppg) and L.J. Owens (10.0 ppg) round out UMBC's scorers in double figures. Horvath also has a team-high 6.6 boards per game.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
Vermont has dominated the all-time series 34-7 and have won 24 out of the last 27 meetings. The Catamounts have tallied 62 victories in their last 66 regular season conference games, but the Retrievers handed the Green and Gold two of those setbacks with a regular season sweep last year. In January, UVM had four out of its five starters score double figures in a 74-50 victory on the road. Duncan led the way with 15 points and finished the game with three triples.
 
National Life Group is the presenting sponsor of the 2019-20 Vermont men's basketball season