UMBC (8-6, 1-0 AE) vs. New Hampshire (4-11, 0-2 AE) | Saturday, Jan. 10, 1:00 p.m. | Baltimore, Md. (The Peake) | Watch | Live Stats | International Broadcast | Game Notes | Game Program
 
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 677-956 (.414) all-time.
• The Retrievers are 479-683 (.412) at the DI level
• The Retrievers are 5-2 at home this season.
• The Dawgs own the second highest winning percentage in the America East (.571) behind Vermont (.588).
• The Retrievers are second in the league with a +3.7 scoring margin.
• The Dawgs lead the AE with a .356 three-point shooting percentage.
• UMBC paces the circuit with 27.2 defensive rebounds per game.
• 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 3rd in the league in scoring at 14.9 ppg. and graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr is 8th (12.7 ppg.).
• Armstrong leads the conference in 3-point shooting accuracy (.424, 34th NCAA) and 3's per game (3.0, 25th NCAA). He needs just four treys to hit 250 for his career.
• Junior guard Ace Valentine leads the conference with a 3.2 assist/turnover ratio. He needs five assists to reach 250 for his career.

 LAST TIME OUT - BALANCED SCORING EFFORT LIFTS MEN'S HOOPS OVER MAINE

• UMBC defeated the Maine Black Bears, 69-62, on Thursday evening in the America East Conference opener for the Retrievers at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena.
• Junior guard Jah'Likai King led four Retrievers in double-figures in scoring with 15 points and added six rebounds to pace the hosts. Junior guard Ace Valentine (14 points, two steals), sophomore forward Caden Diggs (13 points, six rebounds), and freshman forward Riley Jacobs (10 points, seven boards) provided the Dawgs with a balanced scoring performance.
• UMBC (8-6, 1-0 AE) trailed 7-2 after the first 3:42 of the contest but scored six straight to take their first lead of the night after a thunderous dunk by Jacobs with 14:35 left in the opening stanza.  The game was deadlocked for the final time at 16-16 at the 8:14 mark, but the Retrievers went on a 9-2 burst to grab a 25-18 advantage with 5:55 remaining. Fifth-year guard Cougar Downing ignited the stretch with a left-wing triple, and King hit a pair of long-distance bombs from the same spot to give UMBC some separation. 
• The Retrievers continued to build their lead and took a 32-20 advantage at intermission as they held the Black Bears to just five points over the final 8:41 of the stanza.
• The hosts took their largest lead of 14 points on three occasions over the first nine minutes of the second half, the latest coming on a nifty layup by junior forward Daylon Dickerson.
• Maine (2-15, 0-2 AE) managed to get the game back into single-digits, 50-41, after a fast break layup by Mabrey at the 9:33 mark. Valentine answered with a layup on the next possession, but the visitors went on a 9-4 spurt to inch within 54-50 with 5:30 remaining in the contest.
• King then converted two attempts from the line, and Valentine added another freebie to make it 57-50 at the 4:36 mark. Maine got a layup from Ace Flagg to close within 59-54 with 3:14 left, but were unable to get any closer.  Diggs provided UMBC with a layup, and Jacobs rocked the rim with another jam to spot the Dawgs a 63-54 advantage with 2:24 left. The Retrievers hit four free throws, and Diggs added a dunk to put the game away.
• TJ Biel scored a game-high 27 points and added 10 boards to pace the Black Bears.

 ABOUT NEW HAMPSHIRE

• The Wildcats have dropped four straight contests and are 0-9 on the road this season.
• KiJan Robinson is 11th in the league in scoring at 12.3 points per game.
• Belal El Shakery is third on the circuit with 7.3 rebounds per game.
• Junior guards Comeh Emuobor and KiJan Robinson scored 18 and 16 points, respectively, but UNH was upended 80-76 by NJIT at the Joel & Diane Bloom Wellness & Events Center on Thursday evening.
• Emuobor also pulled down six rebounds while Robinson tied for the team lead with four assists. Sophomore forward John Squire finished with seven points, nine rebounds and career-high four assists. Junior forward Davide Poser recorded 10 points, four rebounds and four assists. 

SERIES HISTORY WITH NEW HAMPSHIRE

• UMBC trails 24-23.
• The The Dawgs are 12-10 all-time in Baltimore against the Wildcats
• UNH has won five of the last seven meetings overall, including a pair of tight contests last season. The Wildcats pulled out a 79-76 decision in Baltimore and recorded a 79-78 comeback win in Durham.

 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.
• DJ also enjoyed a career game at Coppin State with 31 points on 10-of-16 shooting. He drilled a career-best eight treys in 14 tries.
• Armstrong Jr. is 8th in the America East in scoring (12.7 ppg.) and is first in 3s per game (3.0). He also leads the circuit in 3-point field goal percentage (.424).

 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 14.9 points per game, ranking third in the league. He is also 22nd in the league in rebounding, averaging 4.5 caroms per game and is 11th in steals (1.0).

 ACE IN THE HOLE

• Guard Ace Valentine continues to play a key role on both ends of the floor.
• Valentine leads the conference and is 42nd in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (3.2) and is second in the AE in assists per game (4.6).
• The junior has shot the ball well from behind the arc going 20-for-47 (.426) and is 49-of-103 overall (.476).
• Ace needs five assists to hit the 250 mark.

 DICKERSON DELIGHTS

• Junior forward Daylon Dickerson has been a pleasant surprise for the Retrievers in non-conference play.
• Dickerson is playing 18.0 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 6.5 points and 4.1 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 owns a .500 field goal percentage this year and is a career .559 shooter.
• Odunowo is also 6th in the league in rebounding at 5.5 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 has reached double-figures in scoring in five of his last eight contests and is averaging 10.6 points per game during the stretch.

 MILESTONE WATCH   
1000 career points, Jah'Likai King (1,128)
200 career assists, Jah'Likai King (203)
300 career rebounds, Jah'Likai King (281)
900 career points, Josh Odunowo (847)
500 career rebounds, Josh Odunowo (465)
100 career blocks, Josh Odunowo (77)
600 career points, Ace Valentine, (567)
250 career assists, Ace Valentine (245)
500 career rebounds, Paul Greene (474)
500 career points,  Paul Greene (501)
850 career points, DJ Armstrong Jr. (835)
200 career 3-pointers, DJ Armstrong Jr. (196)