Men's Basketball

Top Seeds Vermont & UMass Lowell to Play for Men's Basketball Title Saturday on ESPN2

BURLINGTON, Vt. – For the 18th time in league history, it will be the top two seeds that decide the America East men’s basketball champion.
 
#1 Vermont hosts #at 2 UMass Lowell at Patrick Gymnasium on the campus of the University of Vermont on Saturday at 11 a.m. Jay Alter and Terrance Oglesby have the call on ESPN2. The game will also be broadcast on Westwood One radio nationally and on Sirius XM.
 
The Catamounts routed NJIT in the quarterfinals and Binghamton in the semifinals to reach the title tilt while UMass Lowell beat Maine and New Hampshire.

Find all the live coverage links at #AEPlayoffs Central.

#1 Vermont (22-10, 14-2)
  • Vermont is making its seventh championship game appearance in the last eight years and 16th all-time.
  • The Catamounts are 6-2 all-time at Patrick Gym in Title Games.
  • UVM seeks its league-record 10th title.
  • The Catamounts have won 14-straight games.
  • With a win, John Becker would earn his sixth title as a head coach and surpass Jim Calhoun and Will Brown for the most titles all-time as a head coach.
  • The Catamounts won their seventh-straight regular-season title and have won 14 straight games.
  • Finn Sullivan became the seventh-straight Vermont player and 15th all-time to be named America East Player of the Year.
  • Sullivan earned first-team honors as did Robin Duncan, the league leader in assists (4.5 apg). Dylan Penn, who is averaging 24.5 ppg in the #AEPlayoffs, was a second-team honoree.
#2 UMass Lowell River Hawks (26-7, 11-5)
  • UMass Lowell is in its second championship game in the last three years and seek its first title. It is trying to become the 14th different school to win an #AEHoops title.
  • The River Hawks have won six games in a row and 10 of its last 11.  
  • UMass Lowell’s 26 wins are the most in its Division I program history.
  • The River Hawks lead the conference in scoring margin at +12.8.
  • Everette Hammond (first team), Karim Abdoul Coulibaly (second team) and Allin Blunt (third team) pace the River Hawks. Hammond averages 13.8 points per game to lead the while Coulibaly provides 11.5 ppg and a team-best 7.7 rebounds per game. Blunt provides a solid 10.5 ppg and 3.2 rpg.
  • UMass Lowell is the league’s top defensive team allowing just 65.8 points per game. Max Brooks, an All-Defensive team choice, blocks a league-best 1.8 shots per game.
The Matchup
  • The 48 combined wins by the two teams are the most since Vermont and UMBC had 50 entering the 2018 title game.
  • The two teams split the regular-season series with UMass Lowell winning 80-65 at Lowell on Jan. 11.
  • That was the last loss the Catamounts suffered as they’ve won all 14 games since, including a 93-81 win over the River Hawks on Feb. 11. 
  • This is the first-ever #AEPlayoffs meeting between the two teams. title game matchup between the teams with the Retrievers taking the 2018 meeting and the Catamounts gaining revenge in 2019.
  • This will be the 18th time the top seeds have met for the league crown with the No. 1 seed having gone 12-5 previously.
 
About America East: The America East provides its member schools and their athletic programs a platform upon which student-athletes can achieve both collegiate and life success through the promotion and nurturing of athletic excellence, academic achievement and leadership, on and off the field. 


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