Top-Seeded Men's Hoops Hosts No. 8 New Hampshire on Saturday to Open Air Force Reserve America East Playoffs

The Retrievers are competing in their 58th season and their 40th season of D1 hoops in Baltimore.
UMBC has a record of 690-958 (.420) all-time.
The Retrievers are 491-685 (.418) at the DI level.
The Retrievers have now won four regular-season championships at the Division I level (3 AE, 2 outright, 1 NEC).
UMBC has now recorded its 6th 20-win season as a DI member and its first since 2018-19. The program's win record in 2017-18 was 25.
The Dawgs accomplished their best DI conference winning percentage in program history (14-2, .875) and the fewest losses.
The Retrievers went 17-3 (.850) in league play as a member of the Northeast Conference in 1998-99 under Tom Sullivan. That squad won a DI program-best 11 straight games.
UMBC last won the AE regular-season crown in 2020-21. The Dawgs, who joined the AE in 2003-2004, shared that title with Vermont.
UMBC has won nine straight contests, tying for the fifth-best streak in the country.
The Dawgs last won nine straight during the 2007-2008 championship season.
UMBC won 10 straight during the 1998-99 season.
The Retrievers own the highest overall winning percentage in the America East (.724) and are 50th in the country.
UMBC is tied for the third-best single-season win improvement in league history after winning just five AE games last season.
Head Coach Jim Ferry recorded his 400th career win at Maine. He is the first coach in program history to reach that mark. He's now 81-76 in five years at UMBC.
Ferry has won at least 18 games in three of his five seasons at UMBC and recorded his first 20-win season as a Retriever in 25-26. It's the 7th 20-win season of his career.
The Retrievers are 12-2 at home this season and went a perfect 8-0 in America East games at the 'Peake. It's the first time the Retrievers have gone undefeated in the league on their home floor.
UMBC is 3rd in the country in fewest fouls allowed per game (13.4).
The Retrievers lead the league with a +8.4 scoring margin and are 70th in the country.
UMBC is 36th in the NCAA in scoring defense (67.7 ppg.), which is tops in the AE.
UMBC leads the league with 27.4 defensive rebounds per game (29th NCAA).
The Dawgs are 30th in the country with just 9.8 turnovers per game.
The Retrievers have outscored their 15 America East opponents by a combined total of 255-150 from the free-throw line. (5.9 more makes per game).
The Retrievers are 72nd in the NCAA in free-throw shooting at 75.3 percent.
UMBC leads the America East in the following categories: Points Per Game, Points Per Game Allowed, Scoring Margin, FT Percentage, Field Goal Percentage, Field Goal Percentage Defense, and 3-Point Field Goal Percentage.

UMBC'S AMERICA EAST TOURNAMENT HISTORY

The Retrievers are 17-20 in America East postseason play since joining the conference in 2003-04.
This is the third time that the Retrievers have entered the event as the No. 1 seed. (2021, 2008)
The Retrievers have reached the championship game five times.
UMBC won the tournament in 2008 and 2018.
The Retrievers reached the finals in Head Coach Jim Ferry's first season in 2022 but fell at Vermont.
UMBC is 2-1 against UNH in AE postseason play. 2020 (No. 4 UMBC d. No. 5 UNH, 73-67, QF). 2017 (No. 4 UNH d. No. 5 UMBC, 74-65, 2005 (No. 9 UMBC d. No. 8 UNH, 78-73.

INDIVIDUAL SUPERLATIVES

Junior guard Jah'Likai King is 7th in the league in scoring at 14.0 ppg. and graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr is 10th (12.8 ppg.).
Armstrong leads the conference in 3-point shooting accuracy (.400, 53rd in NCAA) and 3's per game (2.6, 104th in NCAA). He drilled his 200th career triple at Bryant on Jan. 15.
Armstrong Jr. made his first 22 free throw attempts in conference play before missing two straight in the 2nd half at Vermont. Those were his only two misses in the conference as he's gone 33-for-35 (.943).
Junior guard Ace Valentine leads the conference with a 3.0 assist/turnover ratio (25th NCAA) and is fourth in assists per game (4.0).
Graduate student forward Josh Odunowo, a career 60 percent foul shooter, has converted 36-of-45 (.800) attempts over the last 11 games. He's 10th in the league from the stripe in AE contests (.764).
Odunowo is 13 points shy of 1,000 and could become the third Retriever to hit the mark this season (Armstrong Jr., King).
Jose Tanchyn Tanchyn has posted double-figure rebound totals in seven of his last 11 contests and is averaging 9.1 points and 9.7 rebounds during the Retrievers current nine-game winning streak.

AMERICA EAST POSTSEASON AWARDS

Three Retrievers earned America East All-Conference Team accolades. Jah'Likai King (First Team), DJ Armstrong Jr (Second Team), Ace Valentine (Second Team). It's the first time the Retrievers have had three honorees since the 2021-22 season.
Caden Diggs was named the 6th Man of the Year. He is just the second Retriever to win the award and the first since Keondre Kennedy in 2020-21.
Jim Ferry was named the Coach of the Year. It's the third time a UMBC coach has won the award and the first since Ryan Odom (2020-21).
Josh Odunowo made the All-Defensive Team.
Armstrong Jr. and Valentine both made the All-Academic Team.

LAST TIME OUT - RETRIEVERS CLOSE REGULAR SEASON WITH CONVINCING WIN AT NJIT

UMBC put a stamp on the program's best conference regular season in program history after a convincing 91-52 victory against the NJIT Highlanders in their final tune-up before the 2026 Air Force Reserve America East Conference playoffs begin this Saturday. The Retrievers, who have won nine straight contests, improved to 14-2 (.875) in the league and 21-8 overall. Top-seeded UMBC will host No. 8 New Hampshire at the Peake at 1:00 p.m. Buy Tickets
"This achievement is a credit to these guys, who are a selfless group that just really cares about playing basketball," said UMBC Head Coach Jim Ferry. "To be rewarded with that and leave a mark at UMBC is special, and I think they are all very proud of that. Everyone would like to leave a mark, and these guys did it the right way. Tonight's effort showed off this group's character. Everybody was saying this was a meaningless game because our seed was already decided, but they are locked in and are willing to do the hard things because they want to be great."
Graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr. paced four Retrievers in double-figures with 14 points, drilling 4-of-7 three-point field goals. Junior forward Jose Roberto Tanchyn, junior guard Jah'Likai King, and freshman forward Riley Jacobs (seven boards) each produced 10 points. Graduate student forward Josh Odunowo added a team-high seven rebounds, while junior guard Ace Valentine played a tremendous all-around game with eight points, six rebounds, and six assists.
"Tonight's game meant a lot to us and we have all been talking about having that mentality that's it's our last game," stated Armstrong Jr. "This season has meant everything, and our success is a testament to the work that all of us put in," stated Armstrong Jr. "We are aware that we are playing for history and now we just need to finish in the postseason.
UMBC led 46-24 at halftime as they went on a 32-14 run over the final 11:13 of the stanza to break open the game. The Retrievers led by as many as 42 points in the second half.
UMBC shot 50.8 percent (33-for-65) from the floor and held the Highlanders (15-16, 10-6 AE) to just a 32.1 percent clip. The Retrievers went 12-of-27 (44.4 percent) from behind the arc while the hosts misfired on 26-of-30 attempts (15.4 percent).
The Retrievers scored 29 points off NJIT's 16 turnovers compared to only four points off of UMBC's 14 miscues.
The Dawgs held a 46-29 advantage on the glass, including a season-high 16 offensive rebounds.
The 91 points were the second-most points scored against a Division I opponent this season (Coppin State, 93). The Dawgs have outscored their opponents by nearly 17 points per game over the last nine contests, and are two games shy of tying the program mark with 11 straight victories.

SERIES HISTORY WITH UNH

UMBC leads 25-24
The Dawgs delivered a comeback win this past January in Baltimore. Graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr. calmly sank two free throws with 0.9 seconds remaining to give the Dawgs a 75-74 come-from-behind victory.
Armstrong Jr., who had already made two game-winning shots earlier this season, paced the Retrievers with 17 points on 6-of-7 shooting and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. Junior guard Jah'Likai King contributed 15 points, junior guard Ace Valentine (12 points, four assists), and sophomore Caden Diggs contributed 10 points.
UMBC was down by as many as 11 points in the second half after it trailed 39-30 at intermission. Belal El Shakery recorded a game-high 18 points and 13 boards for UNH.
UMBC scored the first 16 points of the contest and never looked back in a dominant 85-63, at Lundholm Gymnasium in February.
Junior guard Jah'Likai King and graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr. (3 assists, 3 steals) led five Retrievers in double-figures with 17 points apiece. Sophomore forward Caden Diggs (15 points), graduate student forward Josh Odunowo (12 points), and sophomore guard Ace Valentine (10 points) provided a balanced scoring effort. Junior forward Jose Roberto Tanchyn grabbed a season-high 12 rebounds along with a team-high four assists.

ABOUT THE WILDCATS

New Hampshire is the #8 seed in the Air Force Reserve 2026 America East Men's Basketball Playoffs.
UNH was a streaky team in conference play this season. The Wildcats lost the first three games, then won four consecutive games to climb into fourth place in the standings at 4-3. The 'Cats dropped eight straight before ending the regular season with an 88-83 double OT win.
UNH has a 1-6 record in games decided by fewer than 5 points, but a winning record (5-2) in games decided by 5-9 points.
New Hampshire ranks second in the America East Conference in rebounding (35.7 per game), with #4 in defensive rebounding (25.1) and #3 in offensive rebounding (10.6). The Wildcats are also second in 3-pointers per game (8.1). UNH is #3 in fewest turnovers (11.2 per game) and #4 in steals (6.28/game).
Redshirt sophomore forward Belal El Shakery leads America East in rebounding (8.2 rpg) and defensive rebounding (6.1/game), and he is No. 4 in offensive rebounding (2.0/game). El Shakery is also seventh in blocks (0.7/game) and 10th in steals (1.1/game).
Sophomore forward John Squire is #6 in both rebounding (5.7 rpg) and offensive rebounding (1.9 per game). Junior guard Comeh Emuobor, who missed the Feb. 19 & 21 games, is #6 in offensive rebounding (1.9).
Freshman guard Tyler Bike is No. 4 in 3-point field goal percentage (38.1%) and No. 10 in 3-point field goals made per game (1.8), as is junior guard Jack Graham. Junior forward Davide Poser, who made eight 3-pointers Feb. 26 at Binghamton, is No. 8 in 3-pointers per game (1.9).

INSIDE THE 9-GAME WIN STREAK

The Retrievers have won seven of the nine games by double figures.
UMBC owns a 16.6 ppg. margin of victory (77.3 - 60.7).
UMBC is holding opponents to a combined .386 field goal percentage.
Opponents are shooting .292 percent (63-for-216)from behind the arc.
UMBC is shooting .806 from the foul line (142-for-177).
Six Retrievers are averaging at least 9.0 ppg. (Valentine, Armstrong Jr., King, Diggs, Odunowo, Tanchyn).
Tanchyn is averaging nearly a double-double (9.1 points, 9.7 rebounds).

THANKS FOR THE CHARITY

The Retrievers have outscored their 15 America East opponents by a combined total of 255-150 from the free-throw line. (5.9 more makes per game).
The Retrievers are 72nd in the NCAA in free-throw shooting at 75.3 percent.
UMBC is shooting a league-best .799 percent in the AE play while its foes are at a league-worst .636 percent.
UMBC is first overall (.753) from the charity stripe in the AE this season. (97th NCAA).

PLAY THAT HIT AGAIN, MR. DJ

Armstrong Jr. earned Second Team America East honors on Friday. He was also named to the AE All-Academic Team.
He's 10th in the America East in scoring (12.8 ppg.) and is 1st in 3s per game (2.6) and 3-point field goal percentage (.400). He's swished at least two treys in 21-of-29 contests this season.
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.
He also came up clutch by hitting two free throws in a one-and-one situation with 0.9 on the clock in the 75-74 win over UNH (1/10).
DJ also enjoyed a career-high 31 points on 10-of-16 shooting at Coppin State. He drilled a career-best eight treys in 14 tries.

THE KING OF BALTIMORE

King was named to the America East All-Conference First Team. Currently, King leads the team in scoring with an average of 14.0 points per game, ranking 7th in the league. He is also 19th in steals (0.9). Additionally, King is 3rd in free-throw percentage at .824. King has scored 20 or more points a team-high seven times this season and has been in double figures in a team-best 22 of 28 games played. King went over the 1,000 mark for his career at GW on November 18. He scored 934 points in his first two seasons at New Haven (DII) before coming to Baltimore this season. He currently has a team-high 1,327 career points. 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 against Georgetown and Bucknell. He also recorded his 300th career rebound at Vermont.
King was named to the America East All-Conference First Team.
Currently, King leads the team in scoring with an average of 14.0 points per game, ranking 7th in the league. He is also 19th in steals (0.9). Additionally, King is 3rd in free-throw percentage at .824.
King has scored 20 or more points a team-high seven times this season and has been in double-figures in a team-best 22-of-28 games played.
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. He currently has a team-high 1,327 career points.
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 against Georgetown and Bucknell.
King also recorded his 300th career rebound at Vermont.

ACE IN THE HOLE

Guard Ace Valentine continues to play a key role on both ends of the floor and earned his first America East All-Conference selection on Friday. He also earned All-Academic Team honors.
Valentine, a Second Team pick, leads the conference and is 25th in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (3.1) and is fourth in the AE in assists per game (4.0).
Valentine and King are averaging a team-high 12.9 ppg. during UMBC's current nine-game winning streak and is shooting 55 percent during the stretch.
The junior is sixth in the league overall in field goal percentage (.509) and also ranks sixth in conference games (.522).
Valentine needs three assists to reach 300 for his career.
Ace had reached double-figures in scoring in eight straight games until being held to eight points on Tuesday at NJIT.

CAN YOU DIG IT?

Sophomore forward Caden Diggs was named the America East Sixth Man of the Year.
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 11 of 16 AE contests and is averaging 10.4 ppg. during the stretch.
TANCHYN GAINING MAJOR STEAM
Junior forward Jose Tanchyn has started 13 of the last 14 games in the frontcourt, and the team is 11-2 in his starts.
Tanchyn is 4th on the circuit with 78 rpg in conference play.
He's averaging 23.5 mpg, 8.5 ppg. and 7.8 rpg. in AE contests.
Tanchyn averaged 4.2 ppg. and 2.7 rpg. in just 12.1 mpg. during the non-conference season.
He recorded his first career double-double with 10 points and 11 boards in the home victory against Binghamton on Feb. 5 and added another one at UMass Lowell (12 pts, 13 reb).
Tanchyn has posted double-figures in rebounds in seven of his last 11 contests and is averaging 9.3 rebounds during the stretch.
During UMBC's nine-game win streak, Tanchyn is netting 9.1 points and 9.7 rpg.
He needs just one rebound to reach 500 in his career.

A PROGRAM ON THE RISE

UMBC is enjoying its best stretch in program history, as the Retrievers have gone 178-158 (.528) over the past 10 seasons. They are 95-82 (534) in AE Play.
UMBC enjoyed three straight 20+ win seasons from 2016-17 to 2018-19. Their 25 victories in 2017-18 were 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 postseason 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 26th season as a collegiate head coach and his fifth at UMBC.
Ferry owns an 81-76 record in Baltimore.
Ferry picked up his 400th career win against at Maine this season.
Ferry led the Retrievers to consecutive 18-14 records as well as an appearance in the America East Finals in 2021-22.
Ferry was recently named the America East Coach of the Year, the third time a UMBC coach has won the award.
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, including 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 (7) 63
T-2 Maine (1) 47
T-2 UAlbany 47
4     UMass Lowell (1) 39
5.     Binghamton 37
6.     Bryant 35
7     UMBC 31
8.     NJIT 13
9     New Hampshire 12

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