Men's Basketball

Men’s #AEHoops Preview: Feb. 12-14

BOSTON – Just one game separates teams 1-3 in the standings and 1-game is the different between 4th and 8th, as anything can happen over the final three weeks of the regular season.
 
UMBC (7-2) at Maine (4-6) – 6 PM
  • The Retrievers have won two straight after a loss to Vermont, playing just once last week. On Thursday, they took down Binghamton by a 79-62 margin at home. Maine went 1-1 last week, beginning with an impressive win over Vermont, 76-70, at home and then falling 73-67 at Bryant.
  • In the conference opener, UMBC beat Maine 69-62 at home by jumping out to a 32-20 halftime lead. Four players scored in double figures for UMBC, while TJ Biel was the only Black Bear over 11 points, with 27.
  • UMBC ranks second in the league in scoring offense (73.8) and scoring defense (66.2) in conference action. Maine is 3rd in scoring defense (67.3) and 7th in scoring (64.8).
 
NJIT (8-2) at New Hampshire (4-5) – 6 PM
  • The first-place Retrievers have won four straight and last week blew out UMass Lowell 81-56 before beating Binghamton 73-64. They’ve scored 70+ in 10 straight games. UNH has dropped two straight, falling to Vermont 80-57 last Saturday and Bryant, 92-84 the previous Saturday.
  • In the first meeting between the teams, UNH led 40-35 at the half, but NJIT outscored them by nine in the second to earn the win. KiJan Robinson had 16 points for UNH while David Boldon put up 21 points.
  • NJIT leads the league in scoring at 75.9 ppg and is 5th in scoring defense (68.6). New Hampshire is last in scoring defense (74.4) but up to 3rd in scoring offense (72.3) in conference play.
 
Bryant (4-6) at UMass Lowell (5-5) – 6PM
  • The River Hawks have won 2 of 3, capped off by trouncing UAlbany 89-79 on the road this past Saturday. They’re 5-0 in league play when they get to 70 points and 0-5 when they don’t. Bryant has dropped 4 of 6, though they secured a 73-67 win over Maine on Saturday. They are 3-0 when they get to 70 points in league play.
  • UMass Lowell won the first meeting between the two teams. They led 34-27 at the half and got 27 points from Angel Montas Jr. while four players scored in double figures. Aaron David led Bryant with 21 points and five threes in the loss.
  • Bryant ranks last in offense (63.9) and is just 6th in defense (69.3), while UMass Lowell is 8th in scoring defense (73.4) and 4th in offense (71.8).
 
Vermont (7-3) at Binghamton (1-9) – 6:30 PM
  • The Catamounts snapped a two-game losing streak against NJIT and Maine with an 80-57 victory against New Hampshire on Saturday, thanks to 7 threes from Ben Johnson. Binghamton has lost two straight, with games at NJIT and UMBC last week.
  • Binghamton nearly took down Vermont in the team’s first meeting, as they had a go-ahead shot in the final seconds blocked. Jeremiah Quigley had 21 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists in the loss while Gus Yalden supplied 15 points and 5 rebounds to lead UVM.
  • Vermont has the top scoring defense in league play (64.4), while ranking 5th in scoring (70.5). Binghamton is 8th in scoring (63.9) and 7th in scoring defense (73.2).
 
Saturday, Feb. 14
  • UMBC at New Hampshire – 1 PM
  • Bryant at Vermont – 2 PM
  • NJIT at Maine – 3 PM
  • UAlbany at Binghamton – 4 PM
 
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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 and its social media channels, @AmericaEast.
 
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