For the 10th time since 2003, Vermont is going dancing! The America East champion Catamounts will face Duke in the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament on Friday.
The Catamounts earned a No. 13 seed in the South Region and will meet the No. 4 Blue Devils at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The game will tip at 7:10 p.m. and be televised nationally on CBS.
Vermont (28-6) is a No. 13 seed for the fourth time since 2017. Overall America East teams have earned a 13 seed five times since 2016, the best stretch of any mid major confrence in the Northeast. The Catamounts were also a 13 seed when it upset Syracuse in 2004.
The Catamounts secured their third-straight America East title on Saturday with a 66-61 win over UMass Lowell at home. UVM is the America East champion for a league-record 11th time.
Duke (24-8) finished second in the ACC regular season and fell in the ACC tournament quarterfinals to NC State.
AE News & Notes
Cats Champs Again
Vermont captured its 11th America East men's basketball title all-time with a 66-61 win over UMass Lowell in the league title game on Saturday, March 16. The crown is Vermont's third-straight, fifth in six years and 11th since 2003. The 11 championships are the most in America East history. Vermont has also won eight-straight America East regular-season titles, the longest streak of any program in the country.
How it Happened
The Catamounts captured their third-straight America East title by winning three Jersey Mike's #AEPlayoffs games in eight days. UVM overcame a scare from #8 UAlbany in the quarterfinals. TJ Long's go-ahead three-pointer with 30 seconds left led the Cats to a 75-72 win. In the semis, Vermont outlasted #4 UNH, 66-59, behind 19 points and eight boards from Ileri Ayo-Faleye. Vermont used a 13-3 second-half run to knock off #2 UMass Lowell in the championship game on Saturday to hoist the America East tropy for the 11th time in school history.
Bogues is the Best
Shamir Bogues was named the Reggie Lewis Most Outstanding Player of the tournament after providing a team-high 15 points, nine rebounds, four steals and three assists in the title game. He averaged 14.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.3 steals and 3.0 assists over UVM’s three games. Bogues was joined on the All-Championship team by teammates Ileri Ayo-Faleye and TJ Long, as well as UMass Lowell’s Quinton Mincey and Cam Morris III.
Becker Tops the List
John Becker picked up three more #AEPlayoffs wins giving him 26 for his career. With UVM's win over UMass Lowell in the title game, Becker surpassed Bill Herrion atop the league's all-time postseason wins list. Becker also extended his league record for titles won by a head coach with sever. In addition to this year, Becker’s teams captured the crown in 2012, ’17, ’19, ’20, ‘22 and '23.
NCAA Tournament History
America East teams have won nine NCAA Tournament games all-time including three in the last 11 years, matching the best stretch in conference history. UMBC shocked the world in 2019 becoming the first #16 seed to beat a #1 seed in 136 tries, downing Virginia, 74-54. UAlbany and Vermont won First Four games in 2014 and 2012, respectively. The Catamounts scored a major upset win in 2005 as a No. 13 seed with a 60-57 overtime victory over No. 4 seed Syracuse.
A Coaches' Conference
America East has served as the starting point for several high-profile coaches. National champions Rick Pitino (Boston U.), Jim Calhoun (Northeastern) and Jay Wright (Hofstra) all started in America East as did Mike Brey (Delaware), Steve Pikiell (Rutgers) and Ryan Odom (VCU).
ABOUT AMERICA EAST
Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference its social media channels, @AmericaEast.
- America East Conference – Where Champions Rise -