VERMONT (10-5, 0-0 America East)Last Game: Vermont 77, Dartmouth 68 on 1/2/20
Last Game with SBU: Vermont 56, Stony Brook 50 on 3/2/19; SBU 7 for 29 from three; Lamb 14, Yeboah 11
Checkmate Unofficial Line: Vermont -6
NET Ranking: TBD
KenPom Rating: Stony Brook 140, Vermont 77
KenPom Prediction: Vermont 70, Stony Brook 61
Olaniyi 1,000 Point Watch: 924
Listen/Watch:TV:
https://www.espn.com/watch/search/vermontRadio:
https://uvmathletics.com/watch/?Live=289&type=LiveNotables:6-6/225 sr F Anthony Lamb 17.1 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 1.5 bpg
6-2/185 jr G Stef Smith 14.7 ppg, 1.3 spg, .406 3-pt FG%
6-6/190 rsr G Everett Duncan 8.4 ppg, 4.2 rpg, .905 FT%
6-8/250 so F Ryan Davis 8.2 ppg, 4.3 rpg, .506 FG%, .857 FT%, .355 3-pt FG%
6-2/200 rjr G Ben Shungu 7.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg
Game of the Year, part one. Let's dive in.
One very noticeable difference between this year's Vermont team and past versions these guys have not shot it like their predecessors. Take a look at this. I probably could have gone back much further.
14-15: .471 FG%/.355 3-pt FG%
15-16: .481/.383
16-17: .494/.369
17-18: .488/.401
18-19: .458/.359
19-20: .424/.298They've had sharpshooters for years McGlynn, Steidl, Ward, Ernie Duncan. But ... this group has struggled at times. Lamb has drifted outside but not hit with regularity. It's really been just Smith from deep with a little of Davis. Other than that, everybody's under 30 percent. Of course, anybody can catch fire in one game you'll remember Everett Duncan lit us up in our gym last year but they haven't been on to this point. Lamb (.365 last year, .231 this year) and Duncan (.367 last year, .290 this year) feel due. That said, we have the athletes to stay with their shooters, but because Lamb's kind of a tweener matchup for Olaniyi/Garcia, because have rim protection and because UVM hasn't been as sharp from deep, I do wonder if we do go zone. We stuck around with Virginia doing that.
Might they try to pound it inside instead? The transfer Giddens isn't really a scorer, but Lamb is obviously a concern and Davis is capable. Still, I just don't think that's this team's game. In the past, at their best, 30-35 percent of their shots came from three. This year? 43 percent. And they lack shooters. So what gives?
Another of Vermont's biggest advantages in past years also hasn't been there the free throw line. Let's take at made free throws during that same stretch of time.
14-15: UVM 14.6/opp 14.6
15-16: UVM 14.8/opp 14.8
16-17: UVM 13.0/opp 10.0
17-18: UVM 16.3/opp 9.7
18-19: UVM 14.9/opp 10.8
19-20: UVM 12.0/opp 12.0During the 17-18 season, they took 277 more free throws than their opponents, or about 8 more per game. TBH, Henson, Urquhart, Lamb when healthy they wore out a path to the line. Part of that is winning; you're up, you get fouled, you take free throws. But this was different. They took 32, 30 and 37 free throws in the three games against us that year. And then last year: 30 attempts in the rout here, just 15 when we kept it close up there. That all adds up. And looking at this year, we have been disciplined, giving up just 10 free throws a night, and I don't think they have the guards or the force inside of years past.
We should keep an eye on the injury report. Shungu missed the start of the season with a hamstring injury and then the last few he reaggravated it. And while he hasn't been an impact guy in our past matchups, he proved to be an important piece for UVM in the games he did play. He's thick so at just 6-2/200 he was second behind Lamb on the glass before getting hurt. He's been considered day-to-day but maybe he'll be healthy enough for their conference opener. Again, not a big-time scorer though.
Guys, I know it's Vermont, I know it's at their place, but I think we win this game. We have guys who can comfortably switch on D, even Gueye, and we can defend from baseline to baseline if need be. As I've said in many prior previews, teams are going to have to shoot it well against us. And offensively, we have multiple guys who can both attack the rim and keep the D honest by knocking down threes. We didn't have that even in the Warney years.
Fired up for this one. I have faith that we can pull it out.