UMBC (5-5, 0-0 America East) at Morgan State (2-8, 0-0 MEAC) | Wed., Dec. 6, 6:00 p.m. (Talmadge Hill Field House) | Watch | Live Stats | Game Notes
SETTING THE STAGE
- The Retrievers are looking for their second straight win after defeating Lehigh, 92-87, Saturday at The Peake.
- UMBC is 1-4 on the road this season
- The Dawgs will finish a difficult span of eight games in 18 days after they travel to Saint Peter's on Tuesday, Dec. 12. They are 2-2 thus far during the stretch.
- UMBC began their 56th season at Louisville on Nov. 6. This is the 38th season of DI hoops for the Black and Gold.
- UMBC had won seven straight home openers until falling to Marist on Nov. 11.
SERIES HISTORY
- The UMBC/Morgan State series is tied at 14-14.
- The Bears had won four straight in the series until the Retrievers cruised to a 75-63 victory last season at the Peake. UMBC led for all but 13 seconds of action and won their fourth consecutive game at the time.
- Junior guard Matteo Picarelli hit a career high six treys and led three Retrievers in double figures with 18 points. Seniors Jacob Boonyasith and Yaw Obeng-Mensah had strong second halves and finished with 15 and 14 points respectively.
- UMBC's last win at Morgan came during the 2006-07 season.
A GLANCE AT THE BEARS
- Morgan State has dropped seven straight contests and their two victories have come against Non-DI teams (Cheyney University & Penn State Wilkes Barre.
- The Bears are being outscored by an average of 13.1 points per game.
- Wynston Tabbs is averaging a team-high 14.2 ppg.
- Redshirt junior guarg Kamron Hobbs and redshirt junior forward Will Thomas were named to the preseason All-MEAC second team. Last season, Hobbs started in 16 of 31 games played and averaged 28.1 minutes. He averaged 8.4 points, 2.8 rebounds and shot 44.7 percent from the field and 45 percent (45-100) from 3-point territory. Hobbs also averaged 2.7 assists (ranked No. 10 in MEAC) and 1.4 steals. He scored in double-figures 13 times, including a season-high 24 points versus Delaware State (Feb. 4). Thomas started in 8 of 29 games played last season and averaged 8.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and shot 43.4 percent from the field and 34 percent (16-47) from 3-point territory. He scored in double-figures 10 times, scored 20 or more points five times, and poured in a season-high 27 points (11-22 FG) and grabbed 11 rebounds versus Norfolk State (Jan. 23).
WHO'S HOT
- Sophomore guard Dion Brown averaged 20.0 points and 7.3 rebounds over three games last week. He converted 25-of-46 field goal attempts for a 54 percent clip. Brown is 7th in the America East in scoring at 16.2 ppg. and is 12th in rebounding (5.8 pg.)
- Gradute student forward Khydarius Smith is third in the America East with a .604 shooting rate (43rd in country) and is 10th in scoring (13.2 ppg.).
- The USC Upstate transfer erupted for a career high 25 points on 9-of-11 shooting in the win versus Sacred Heart. He hit 7-of-9 clutch free throws, also a career best against the Pioneers.
- Smith made his first start as a Retriever versus Loyola Maryland.
- Junior guard Devan Sapp has had the touch from long-range during the early going this season. Sapp, who made just 8-of-29 (.276) treys in his initial season in Baltimore last year, is 18-for-39 (.462 percent) from distance.
- Sapp is 12th in the league with 1.8 threes per game.
- Junior guard Marcus Banks Jr. is third in the conference in free throw percentage as he's hit 28-of-32 attempts for a .875 percent overall. Additionally, he's 7th in 3-pt fg percentage (.373) and is 6th with 2.2 treys per game.
- FR guard Franck Emmou is 10-for-18 from the floor over his last four games. He hit 4-of-5 field goal attempts to spark the Retrievers against Lehigh on Saturday.
COOL UNDER PRESSURE
- The Retrievers have been much better from the foul line during crunch time this season.
- UMBC, who is shooting just .685 from the charity stripe as a team this year, are a combined 42-54(.778) over the final four minutes of play.
- Banks is 14-of-15 (.933) to lead the squad during money time.
BROWN'S HUGE SECOND-HALF PERFORMANCES
- Dion Brown has enjoyed some terrific second half performances thus far this season.
- UMBC's leading scorer and rebounder, poured in 15 of his team-high 17 points in the win at Hampton on Monday night.
- Brown scored 16 of his 18 points in the final stanza at William & Mary.
- He also scored 16 of his game-high 28 points in the season-opener at Louisville.
- Most recently, Brown scored 15 of his game-high 25 points in the final stanza versus Lehigh.
- Brown was named the America East Player of the Week (Nov. 13) for the first time in his career.
MAD MAX
- Graduate student Max Lorca-Lloyd, who will have two seasons of eligibilty at UMBC, is 3rd in the America East with 16 blocks (1.8 per game) and is 55th in the country
- Lorca-Lloyd came off the bench for the first time versus Loyola Maryland and swatted a career high four shots.
- Lorca-Lloyd was 5th in the Ivy last season in blocks per game at UPenn, averaging 1.2 bpg.
REESE A PLEASANT SURPRISE
- Freshman guard Ashton Reese has been a nice surprise in the early season and has forced his way into Coach Ferry's rotation.
- The 6'5' sharpshooter converted a clutch, conventional 3-pt play in the win versus Sacred Heart and also added a trifecta in the game.
- The Scottsdale, Arizona native played a then career high 20 minutes in the victory against Loyola. He made 3-of-5 shots and went 2-for-4 from behind the arc.
- Reese is 5-of109 (50 percent) from downtown this season.
BENCH MOB
- The Retrievers' bench is averaging 29.4 ppg. UMBC ranks 40th in the nation in the category.
RED-HOT SHOOTING PROPELS RETRIEVERS VERSUS LEHIGH
- UMBC sophomore guard Dion Brown and junior guard Bryce Johnson combined for 49 points as the host Retrievers held off the Lehigh Mountain Hawks, 92-87, Saturday afternoon at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena.
- Brown drilled 10-of-16 field goal attempts and added eight rebounds while Johnson (season-high five assists, three steals) poured in a season-high 24 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Freshman guard Franck Emmou (12 points) and graduate student forward Khydarius Smith (10 points, game-high nine rebounds) were also in double-figures.
- UMBC (5-5), who improved to 4-1 at home this season, trailed 14-7 at the 15:24 mark but scored eight straight to grab their first lead at 15-14 after freshman guard Ace Valentine completed a four-point play with 13:16 left.
- The Retrievers still led by just one point, 31-30, after a layup by Lehigh junior guard Tyler Whitney-Sidney at the 7:13 mark, however the hosts ripped off eight straight points to grab their largest lead of the half, 39-30, with 4:09 left in the stanza. Brown ignited the run with a layup and then Valentine finished a fast break off a turnover, which forced the visitors into taking a timeout. Brown then made a jumper in the paint and Johnson turned a steal by freshman guard Alpha Chibambe into another layup.
- Lehigh (1-7) managed to trim the deficit to five at the half, 45-40, after a field goal by forward Burke Chebuhar just before the break.
- The hosts would take theirlargest lead of the game at 69-59 with 8:54 remaining in the second half after junior guard Marcus Banks Jr. came up with a steal and a trey.
- The Mountain Hawks, however, responded with a 12-1 burst to even the contest at 71-71 at the 6:48 mark. Whitney-Sidney, who scored eight points during the stretch, splashed a trifecta to cap the run.
- Johnson gave the Retrievers some breathing room with a 3-pointer to make it 80-76 with 5:18 remaining, but Whitney-Smith (24 points) hit another trey and then made one of two from the line to knot the score for the final time at 80-80 with 3:59 on the clock.
- Brown gave UMBC the lead for good, 82-80, on a second chance jumper in the paint. Smith then followed with a jumper in the paint to make it 84-80 with 2:44 left.
- The visitors were within 86-84 after a jumper by forward Bube Momah (18 points) with 1:59 left but that was as close as they would get. Brown stuck a jumper with 1:05 left and Keith Higgins Jr. (18 points) misfired on a jumper with forty-eight ticks left. Johnson grabbed the rebound and then made two free throws to widen the lead to 90-84 with just thirty-seven seconds left.
- Lehigh made one last push as Sinclair sliced the lead in half, 90-87, with a triple with twenty-four ticks left. However, Brown was fouled and made two free throws to extend the lead to 92-87 and the visitors were unable to score again.
- UMBC shot a season-high 54.2 percent overall as they made 32-of-59 shots, including 9-of-21 treys (42.9 percent). The Retrievers also converted 19-of-22 free throws for a season-high 86.4 percent clip.
WHO ARE THESE GUYS?
- UMBC is one of just six DI programs that did not return a single player who started one game for their current team last season. The others are Notre Dame, Penn State, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Northwestern State and Utah State.
A PROGRAM ON THR RISE
- UMBC is enjoying their best stretch in program history as the Retrievers have gone a combined 136-88 (.614) over the past seven seasons. UMBC enjoyed three straight 20+ win seasons from 2016-17 to 2018-19. Their 25 victories in 2017-18 was a program-high.
- UMBC became the first #16 seed to knock off a #1 seed when the Retrievers shocked Virginia, 74-54, in the 2018 NCAA Tournament.
- Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena (formerly the UMBC Event Center) officially opened on Feb. 3, 2018, as the UMBC men's basketball team hosted the Vermont Catamounts before a capacity crowd of 4,753. Both the men's and women's basketball teams played their February and March games in the new facility, which included three post-season victories.
- The on-campus facility can accommodate nearly 6,000 patrons for commencements, concerts, featured speakers, and other events. It includes spectator facilities, such as concessions, catering, hospitality, restrooms, security and guest services.
COACH FERRY
- Jim Ferry is in his 23rd season as a collegiate head coach and his third at UMBC.
- Ferry has led the Retrievers to consecutive 18-14 records as well as an appearance in the America East Finals in 2021-22. The Retrievers finished fourth in the league a season ago.
- Prior to his arrival in Baltimore, Ferry served in 2020-21 as the interim head coach at Penn State. He led the Nittany Lions to an 11-14 overall mark and a
- 7-12 Big Ten record that included wins over NCAA Tournament teams No. 14 Wisconsin, No. 15 Virginia Tech , Rutgers, and Maryland (twice).
- Ferry spent 10 seasons as head coach at LIU Brooklyn, guiding the program to unprecedented levels of success. He led the Blackbirds to the Northeast Conference regular-season titles and tournament championships in 2011 and 2012, including their first NCAA Championship appearance in 14 years.
AMERICA EAST PRESEASON POLL
Rank Team (First-Place Votes) Points
- 1 Vermont (6) 62
- 2 UMass Lowell (3) 55
- 3 Bryant 51
- 4 Binghamton 44
- 5 Maine 36
- 6 UMBC 25
- 7 UAlbany 23
- 8 New Hampshire 18
- 9 NJIT 10
MILESTONE WATCH
FORMER RETRIEVERS IN THE PRO'S
- Daniel Akin (6'9''-F-1998, played in 2017-21, plays pro in France) could not help one of league's weakest teams SIG Strasbourg (3-1) in their last game. Despite his good performance SIG Strasbourg lost 72-87 on the road to the leading Pinar Karsiyaka. Akin recorded 11 points in 24 minutes. It was SIG Strasbourg's first loss after three consecutive victories. There are only two games left until the end of the Basketball Champions League Regular Season. So now every game will be critical. This year Akin averages 5.3ppg and 3.9rpg in seven games he played so far.
- Szymon Wojcik (6'10''-F-1999, played in 2020-22, plays in Poland) led Grupa Sierleccy-Czarni Slupsk to a victory against the fifth-ranked Wilki Morskie (6-4) 86-82 in the Polish OBL on Sunday night. He recorded 13 points and grabbed 4 rebounds. Grupa Sierleccy-Czarni Slupsk (4-5) is placed tenth in the OBL. But this is still an early stage of the season and everything may happen. It's Wojcik's first year with the team. This season Wojcik averages 8.3ppg and 4.1rpg.
- Keondre Kennedy (6'6''-G/F, played in 2019-22, currently in Italy) contributed to an easy victory against the sixth-ranked Juvi Cremona (6-5) 96-80 in the Italian Serie A2 (second division) in Sunday night's game. He scored 15 points in 23 minutes; quite an impressive performance considering it's only Kennedy's first season in pro basketball. Reale Mutua Basket Torino (1-6) is placed 11th in Group Green. Kennedy has relatively good stats this year 14.1ppg, 4.0rpg and 3.4apg in 11 games.
- Brandon Horvath (6'10''-F/C-1999, played in 2017-21, plays pro in Belgium) contributed to an easy victory against the ninth-ranked Leuven Bears (3-8) 79-64 in the BNXT League last Sunday. Horvath scored 6 points and grabbed 4 rebounds. Brussels Basketball (6-4) is placed fourth in the BNXT League. It was his team's first victory after three consecutive loses. Horvath has relatively good stats this season 10.4ppg and 5.7rpg.
- KJ Jackson (6'2''-G-1998, played in 2018-20, plays in France) was not able to help Aix-Maurienne Savoie Basket in their game against Pau-Lacq-Orthez (5-3) in the French ProB (second division). Jackson scored 5 points and grabbed 4 rebounds in 32 minutes. Aix-Maurienne Savoie Basket was badly defeated93-73 on the opponent's court by the lower-ranked (#8) Pau-Lacq-Orthez. But the season just started, so everything may happen. It's Jackson's first year with the team. He has relatively good stats this season 14.0ppg, 3.1rpg, 5.6apg and 2.0spg in seven games.
- Jacob Boonyasith (6'3''-G, played in 2020-23, currently in Spain) was not able to secure a victory for Tarragona in their game against Cartagena in the Spanish LEB Silver (third division). Despite his very good performance in Sunday night's game He was the second best scorer with 13 points. Boonyasith has relatively good stats this season 13.7ppg, 2.6rpg, 2.3apg and 1.1spg.
MORE RETRIEVERS WHO PLAY PROFESSIONALLY
- Kevin Maura (5'8''-PG-1995, played in 2016-18) plays for Gigantes de Carolina in Puerto Rican BSN
- Craig Beaudion (6'3''-G-1998, played in 2022-23) signed for KK Joker Sombor in Serbian KLS
- Jarvis Doles (6'8''-F-1998, played in 2022-23) signed for Garveys Tralee Warriors in Irish Super League
- Arkel Lamar (6'6''-F-1996, played in 2016-20) plays for Western Mass Zombies in the ECBL
- Quentin Jones (6'0''-G-1990, played in 2020-14) plays for Wenatchee Bighorns in the TBL
- Anyang Garang (6'9''-F-2000, played in 2021-23) plays for Darwin Salties in Australian NBL One
- Jakob Stenhede (6'10''-F-1995, played in 2013-16) plays for Sloga Uppsala in Swedish Superettan
UP NEXT
- UMBC will host Towson at The Peake on Saturday afternoon. The Tigers have won seven straight contests in the series.
