UMBC (6-5, 0-0 AE) at South Florida (6-5, 0-0 American) | Sunday, December 21, 3:00 p.m. | Tampa, Fl. | Yuengling Center | Watch | Live Stats | Game Notes

RETRIEVER TIP-OFF    

• The Retrievers are competing in their 58th season as well as their 40th season of D1 hoops in Baltimore.
• UMBC has a record of 675-955 (.414) all-time.
• The Retrievers are 478-682 (.412) at the DI level
• UMBC was selected to finish seventh in the America East Preseason Poll.
• Graduate student Josh Odunowo was named to the America East Preseason All-Conference Team after averaging 11.5 points and 5.1 rebounds per game last season.
• The Retrievers have nine new faces in 2025-26.
• The Retrievers are 2-3 on the road and have dropped two straight (Buffalo, Army).
• The Dawgs own the second highest winning percentage in the America East (.545) behind Vermont (.583).
• The Retrievers are second in the league with a +3.3 scoring margin.
• Junior guard Jah'Likai King was named the America East Player of the Week on Monday, December 8 after averaging 19.5 ppg. against Georgetown and Bucknell.
• King is 6th in the league in scoring at 14.5 ppg.
• Graduate student guard DJ Armstrong leads the conference in 3-point shooting accuracy (.408) and 3's per game (2.8).
• UMBC has not played in nine days since falling to Army on December 12.

 LAST TIME OUT - UMBC FALLS LATE AGAINST ARMY

• UMBC mounted a furious rally but came up just short, 63-60, in a non-conference game against the Army Black Knights on Friday evening at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena.
• Graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr. scored a game-high 14 points to lead three Retrievers in double-figures.  Armstrong also tied a season-best with four 3-pointers. Junior guard Jah'Likai King (11 points) and sophomore forward Caden Diggs (10 points, 8 rebounds) were also in double-digits.
• UMBC (6-5) struggled from the field, hitting just 39.7% (23-of-58) of its shots. In addition, the hosts went 8-for-28 (28.6 percent) from behind the arc and were a season-worst 6-for-16 (37.5 percent) from the charity stripe.
• Army (5-7) was not much better as the Retrievers held the visitors to a 35.1 percent rate overall, including 7-for-22 (31.8 percent) from deep. The foul line, however, was the difference in the contest as the Black Knights connected on 16-of-20 (80 percent).
• UMBC held a 14-11 advantage after fifth-year guard Cougar Downing's trey from the left wing at the 12:58 mark of the opening stanza.  Army then responded with a 17-2 burst to claim a 28-16 advantage with 7:35 left in the half.
• The Retrievers still trailed by 12, 36-24, with 2:49 left in the half, but the hosts rattled off the final six points to close within 36-30 at intermission.
• Diggs evened the game for the final time at 47-47 after connecting on a corner three with 10:21 left in the contest. The Retrievers had two chances to surge ahead but came up empty on two consecutive trips down the floor.
• Jackson Furman put the Black Knights ahead for good with a trifecta from the right wing with 9:12 left, igniting an 11-0 spurt that put his team ahead 58-47 after he knocked down another three with 6:47 left.
• UMBC did not go down without a fight as they held the visitors without a field goal for the remainder of the contest.  Armstrong Jr. got the Retrievers going with a trifecta, freshman forward Riley Jacobs recorded a dunk, and then junior guard Ace Valentine (season-high 8 boards) finished a 7-0 mini-run with a layup to make it 58-54 with 4:40 left.
• Jaxson Bell (12 points, ten rebounds)) then made a pair from the line to make it 60-54 at the 4:10 mark, but King answered with a jumper in the paint, and Armstrong Jr. splashed another trey to bring the hosts within 60-59 with 1:47 left.  UMBC had an opportunity to take the lead, but they turned the ball over out of bounds after a defensive stop.
• Bell made one of two from the line to give Army a 61-59 advantage with forty-nine ticks left, allowing the Retrievers another chance, but Armstrong Jr. misfired from behind the arc. Graduate student forward Josh Odunowo (8 rebounds)  grabbed the offensive rebound and was fouled, but was only able to make one of two from the line to bring the Dawgs within 61-60 with twenty seconds left. Following a timeout, Ryan Curry was fouled and made a pair from the line to extend Army's lead to 63-60 with ten seconds left.
• The Retrievers had an opportunity to force overtime, but Valentine's well-defended three-pointer from the left wing was off the mark as time expired.

ABOUT SOUTH FLORIDA

• South Florida narrowly fell to No. 16 Alabama, 104–93, on Wednesday night at Coleman Coliseum. The Bulls pushed the pace and traded runs with the Crimson Tide throughout the contest, cutting into the deficit multiple times before Alabama pulled away late.
• South Florida finished with 54 second-half points and 93 total points, becoming just the fifth team this season to score 85+ points against Alabama, joining No. 22 St. John's, No. 6 Purdue, No. 18 Illinois, and No. 1 Arizona.
• Izaiyah Nelson led USF with a season-high 25 points and 12 rebounds, securing his seventh double-double of the season. Wes Enis added 20 points, connecting on a season-high six three-pointers, and Josh Omojafo posted a double-double off the bench with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Joseph Pinion finished with 11 points, and Tristan Beckford contributed six points and four rebounds.

 SERIES HISTORY WITH SOUTH FLORIDA

• The Retrievers and Bulls have never met.

PLAY THAT HIT AGAIN MR. DJ

• DJ Armstrong's trey against Morgan State (11/11) was the first time UMBC hit a game-winner in the final five seconds since Craig Beaudion II. (11/20/22 vs. Central Conn.).
• Armstrong Jr. followed that up with a buzzer-beater to defeat Wagner in overtime on Nov. 16.
• Armstrong Jr. was named the America East Co-Player of the Week on Nov. 17.
• Armstrong Jr. was featured on #SCTop10 twice. Teammate Jah'Likai King also made the list after his crossover move and hoop against Penn State York.
• Armstrong Jr. is 14th in the America East in scoring (11.7 ppg.) and is first in 3s per game (2.8). He also leads the circuit in 3-point field goal percentage (.408).

 THE KING HITS A GRAND; NAMED AE PLAYER OF WEEK

• Jah'Likai King went over the 1,000 mark for his career at GW on November 18.  King scored 934 points in his first two seasons at New Haven (DII) before coming to Baltimore this season.
• King was named AE Player of the Week on December 8. The Newburg, New York native averaged 19.5 points while shooting an impressive 54% from the field during two road games last week against Georgetown and Bucknell.
• King started the week by scoring 19 points in a loss to Georgetown on Wednesday and followed it up with 20 points in a victory over Bucknell on Saturday. After trailing 26-25 at halftime against the Bison, UMBC opened the second half with a 14-6 run, establishing their largest lead of the game at 39-32 with 14:11 remaining. King contributed eight points during this crucial stretch.
• Currently, King leads the team in scoring with an average of 14.5 points per game, ranking fifth in the league. He is also 16th in the league in rebounding, averaging 4.6 caroms per game and steals (1.0).

 ACE IN THE HOLE

• Guard Ace Valentine continues to play a key role on both end of the floor.
• Valentine leads the conference in assist/turnover ratio (2.8) and is second in assists per game (4.7).
• The junior has shot the ball well from behind the arc going 15-for-37 (.405).

 DICKERSON DELIGHTS

• Junior forward Daylon Dickerson has been perhaps the biggest surprise for the Retrievers in the early going.
• Dickerson is playing 18.4 minutes per game after just 7.8 minutes per game in his first season in Baltimore in 24-25.
• Dickerson recorded his first career double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds in the victory at Morgan State (11/11). Both were career highs.
• He's averaging 6.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.

 NOT JOSHING AROUND

• Graduate student forward Josh Odunowo has been a model of consistency throughout this first two seasons as a Retriever.
• Odunowo is sixth in the league in field goal percentage (.545) and is a career .564 shooter.
• Odunowo is also 10th in the league in rebounding at 5.4 per game.

 CAN YOU DIG IT?

• Sophomore forward Caden Diggs erupted for a career-high 19 points on 7-for-9 shooting in 24 minutes off the bench against Buffalo. Diggs also knocked down a career-best three 3-pointers.
• Diggs recorded his first career double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds earlier in the season against Wagner.
• Diggs is seven for his last 14 from behind the arc after opening the season 1-for-12.
• Diggs has reached double-figures in scoring in four of his last five contests and is averaging 11.8 points per game during the stretch.

MILESTONE WATCH   
1000 career points, Jah'Likai King (1,093)
200 career assists, Jah'Likai King (198)
300 career rebounds, Jah'Likai King (274)
900 career points, Josh Odunowo (837)
500 career rebounds, Josh Odunowo (447)
100 career blocks, Josh Odunowo (75)
500 career points, Cougar Downing (523)
600 career points, Ace Valentine, (548)
250 career assists, Ace Valentine (232)
500 career rebounds, Paul Greene (465)
500 career points, Paul Greene (491)
800 career points, DJ Armstrong Jr. (795)
200 career 3-pointers, DJ Armstrong Jr. (185)