UMBC (10-10, 2-3 America East) at Vermont (11-9, 4-1 AE) | Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, 1:00 p.m. (Burlington, VT (Patrick Gymnasium) | Watch | Live Stats | Int. Feed | Game Notes

SETTING THE STAGE  

• UMBC showed plenty of grit as the Retrievers battled back from a 15-point halftime deficit to defeat the UAlbany Great Danes in overtime, 92-87, Thursday evening at Broadview Center.
• Senior guard Bryce Johnson (23 points) and Marcus Banks Jr. (21 points, six rebounds) joined the 1,000-point club on back-to-back possessions in the second half and helped lead the comeback.
• Vermont recorded a win in Patrick Gym against NJIT on Thursday night. Ileri Ayo-Faleye led the Catamounts in scoring with a career-high 27 points and 9 rebounds. Shamir Bogues recorded his first double-double of his career contributing 14 points and 11 boards.
• Johnson is 3rd in the America East in scoring (17.6 ppg.) while teammate Marcus Banks Jr. is 11th (14.4 ppg.). Johnson is now 7th in the league with a .522 field goal rate. Graduate student forward Josh Odunowo is fifth in the AE in field goal percentage (.538).
• The Retrievers have recorded six of the top 17 scoring performances in the America East this season. They are second in the league in scoring (82.4 ppg.) and are 26th in the country.
• The Retrievers are 2-6 in games
• decided by single digits this season and are 2-9 when trailing at the half.
• UMBC's home game vs. Bryant on Jan. 30 will be televised nationally on ESPNU at 7pm.

 SERIES HISTORY

• Vermont has won 43-of-52 meetings.
• UMBC has dropped seven straight against the Catamounts.
• The Retrievers are 4-22 at Patrick Gymnasium.
• UMBC's last win was on Feb 19, 2021 at they came up with a 66-55 triumph in Baltimore.
• The last win in Burlington was on Feb. 22, 2020 (66-64). They have dropped five straight at Patrick Gymnasium.

 IT'S BRYCE'S WORLD

• Johnson is averaging 22.3 ppg. over his last eight contests and is 61-of-106 (58 percent) from the floor over the span.
• In addition, he's knocked down 42-of-50 free throws (84 percent).
• He joined the 1,000-point club this past Thursday at UAlbany late in the second half.
• Johnson has reached 20+ points on eight different occasions, including six of his last eight games.
• The eight 20-pt games are second in the league.
• He's also drawing a team-high 4.3 fouls per game.
• Johnson's nine drawn fouls at American was a career-high and he followed that up with eight at Binghamton.

 MONEY IN THE BANKS

• The senior guard joined the 1,000-point club in the second half of the win at UAlbany on Thursday.
• Banks Jr. matched his career high with 28 points on 11-of-20 shooting, including 6-for-13 from three-point territory in UMBC's 96-93 double-overtime victory at American. He also grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, just one shy of his career-high. Banks Jr. was named the America East Player of the Week after that performance.
• Banks Jr. has already made 5+ treys in five contests this season and is fourth in the country in total makes. His 2.9 threes per game ranks first in the America East and is 36th in the NCAA. His 41 percent clip from behind the arc is 4th in the league and slots 54th in the country.
• Overall, the sharpshooter is 11th on the circuit, scoring at 14.4 ppg. He's also one of the top guards in the conference in rebounding (4.4 pg.) and is 24th overall.

 ACE IN THE HOLE

• SO guard Ace Valentine is averaging 10.7 ppg. over his 13 outings since moving back into the starting lineup.
• He's shooting 54 percent overall (56-for-103) during the stretch.
• The point guard scored the go-ahead bucket in UMBC's 2OT win at American on a driving layup.
• Valentine is 4th in the league with 3.7 assists per game and is third in assist/turnover ratio (2.1).

 BOMBS AWAY

• • UMBC leads the AE with 8.9 3s made per game this season, which ranks 63rd in the country.
• • The Retrievers 17 makes against Valley Forge were an America East single-game high.
• • The Retrievers lead the league in 3-pt field goal percentage (.385)and are 20th in the nation.
• • UMBC has reached double-figures in treys 10 different times.
• • Marcus Banks Jr.(2.9) and Louie Jordan (2.1) rank first and 11th respectively in treys per game.
• Banks Jr. is 4th (.411) in the league in percentage.

 SHARING IS CARING

• UMBC dished an America East high 31 assists in the win versus Valley Forge. It was their highest output since they handed out 29 vs. Coppin St. on 11/30/2022.
• It was also the most in the conference since Maine and Bryant recorded 32 during the 2022-23 season.
• The Retrievers are 2nd the AE in the category at 15.4 pg. and are 78th in the NCAA.
• Ace Valentine is 4th in the league with 3.7 helpers per game and is 3rd in assist/turnover ratio (2.1).

 KINGS OF BALTIMORE

• The Retrievers won the Charm City Classic by virtue of their victories against Morgan State and Towson. UMBC, who had not defeated Towson since 2012, broke an eight-game losing skid against their Beltway rivals The Retrievers also knocked off Coppin State earlier this season.

 A PROGRAM ON THR RISE

• UMBC is enjoying their best stretch in program history as the Retrievers have gone a combined 149-114 (.562) over the past nine 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 led the Retrievers to consecutive 18-14 records as well as an appearance in the America East Finals in 2021-22.
• 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 (8)                 64
2          UMass Lowell (1)         55
3          Bryant                          52
4          Maine                          39
5          UMBC                          31
6          Binghamton                30
7          UAlbany                      26
8          NJIT                             15
9          New Hampshire          12
 
MILESTONE WATCH   
1000 career points -Marcus Banks, Jr. (1011)
1000 career points - Bryce Johnson (1003)
900 career points -  Marlon Short (835)
700 career points, Josh Odunowo, (645)
200 career 3-pointers-Marcus Banks, (198)
450 career rebounds - Marlon Short (436).
400 career field goals - Bryce Johnson (344)
150 career 3pt-fg - Bryce Johnson (142).
 
 
LAST TIME OUT: UMBC REVERSES 15-POINT HALFTIME DEFICIT; DEFEAT UALBANY IN OT  

• ALBANY, N.Y. – The UMBC men's basketball team showed their true grit as the Retrievers battled back from a 15-point halftime deficit to defeat the UAlbany Great Danes in overtime, 92-87, Thursday evening at Broadview Center. UMBC improves to 10-10 overall and 2-3 in the America East, while the hosts fall to 10-11 (2-4 AE).
•  Senior guard Bryce Johnson (23 points) and Marcus Banks Jr. (21 points, six rebounds) joined the 1,000-point club on back-to-back possessions in the second half and helped lead the comeback. Sophomore guard Ace Valentine (18 points), graduate student forward Josh Odunowo (13 points, six rebounds), and junior forward Regimantas Ciunys (10 rebounds, three blocks) were also instrumental in the victory.
•  The Retrievers, who trailed 43-28 at intermission, shot a sizzling 75 percent (18-for-24) from the floor in the second half, scored 51 points, and held the Great Danes to a 32.4 clip in the stanza.  Johnson scored 15 points in the second half while Valentine and Odunowo each added nine.
•  Banks Jr. came up with a steal off an inbounds pass with 12 seconds remaining in regulation and then calmly converted a pair of clutch free throws to even the game at 79-79 a second after he was fouled in the backcourt.
•  UMBC's defense came up big with a stop in the closing seconds, and the game went into overtime.
•  The Retrievers only needed one field goal in the extra session, as they made 11-of-14 from the charity stripe, while the hosts were 0-for-6 from the line and made 4-of-12 field goals.
•  After inching their way within 66-63 after a dunk by Odunowo at the 8:04 mark, the Dawgs fell behind 75-68 with just 4:16 left in regulation. But Banks Jr. connected on consecutive buckets and senior forward Marlon Short followed with a driving jam to bring the visitors within 75-74 at the 2:22 mark. After another defensive stop, Ciunys was fouled and make one of two from the stripe to knot the score at 75-75.
•  UMBC again fell behind, 79-75 with just 45 ticks left, but Valentine converted a driving layup with 24 seconds left and Banks Jr. came up with the big steal following timeouts by each team. He then sent the game to overtime with the two free throws.
•  The Retrievers took the lead for good with 2:17 left in overtime, 83-81, as Ciunys swished a pair from the line.  UMBC led by as many as 10 points in the extra session despite making only one field goal with 50 seconds left.
•  Amar'e Johnson scored a game-high 25 points to lead UAlbany.
•  UAlbany held the lead for 38:59 while UMBC was ahead for just 3:28.
•  UMBC travels to Vermont on Saturday afternoon.