America East All-Conference Picks

As America East conference play winds down, we are starting to get a better picture of who might be honored at the end of the season.

These are my personal picks:

First Team
Evan Fjeld, UVM
John Holland, BU
Chris De La Rosa, UMBC (pictured)
Troy Barnies, Maine
Tim Ambrose, UAlbany

I'm tempted to take Barnies off the First Team list based on his recent performance against Hartford, but that's probably not fair. He's still 7th in scoring (14.2), 4th in rebounding (7.7), and 2nd in FG% (.531). De La Rosa jumps out at me as the player of the year so far, leading the conference in assists (6.7, a full TWO assists more a game than the second-place Brian Voelkel), he's also second in points (16.8), and he even found his way onto the rebounding top 20 (at 19th, with 4.4 boards a game) despite being 5'10". Holland (19.0 ppg, 5.6 RPG) and Ambrose (16.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 3.4 APG) should also get a number of first place votes for player of the year.

Second Team
Brian Voelkel, UVM
Logan Aronhalt, UAlbany
Mahamoud Jabbi, Binghamton
Tyrone Conley, UNH
Morgan Sabia, Hartford

Maybe part of the reason I left Barnies on the First Team is because I have no idea who would move up. It would probably be Voelkel, but I'm self-conscious about doing that on a UVM blog. Voelkel is leading the league in Rebounding (9.8), he's second in both steals (1.7) and assists (4.7), and every Vermont fan (and most America East fans by now) knows his overall impact to the team is immeasurable. Aronhalt has been great as Ambrose's sidekick (14.7 PPG), and Sabia is a do-everything guy for Hartford who has very similar numbers to Barnies (14.1 PPG, 7.2 RPG). Maybe Sabia will work his way onto the First Team. I'm guessing Voelkel probably won't.

Did I snub anyone? Arguments could be made for Joe Zeglinski (Hartford), Milton Burton (Hartford), Bryan Dougher (Stony Brook), Gerald McLemore (Maine), and Dane DiLiegro (UNH), among others. But I feel pretty comfortable with these ten guys. So I guess we'll consider those last five "honorable mention," or the Third Team All-Conference.

We will see how my picks match up with those that matter at the end of the season.

Maine Loses Third In a Row

Even as a Vermont fan, this is hard to watch. Joe Zeglinski went off for 33 points in Maine's rough visit to Hartford on Thursday night. The same Joe Zeglinski that Vermont limited to 5 points on 1-11 shooting from the field last week. No other Hartford player had over 8 points.

The problem for Maine may not have been their defense. Zeglinski is streaky, so his torrid shooting from outside (7-14 from 3-point range) can be explained away. The fact that Troy Barnies only shot the ball 5 times is a problem for the Black Bears. Maine also seemed to lack passion on the floor, as they have the past three games. They are falling fast and will be under a lot of pressure to beat Vermont if they want to win the America East regular season crown (something they have never done).

The America East standings now look as follows:

Vermont 11-2
Maine 8-4
Boston U 8-4
Albany 5-7
Hartford 5-6
Stony Brook 5-7
New Hampshire 5-8
UMBC 4-8
Binghamton 3-8

If Vermont beats Binghamton at home on Sunday, the game against Maine next Wednesday will be for the America East title outright. Let's get it done, Cats.

Catamounts Get 8th Straight Win

Vermont downed UMBC 80-67 Wednesday night.

Brandon Bald and Brian Voelkel each had 19 points for the Catamounts, who improved to 11-2 in America East play with the win. The Cats improved to 20-5 overall, the first time they have started a season with a record like that since the 2004-2005 season. I think they had a pretty good team that year. Just ask Gerry McNamara.

The 67 points UMBC scored were the most Vermont has given up since losing to Maine at home (when Maine scored 72 points). The Cats had held their opponents to the following point totals over the previous seven games: 53, 52, 51, 54, 49, 47, 42. So needless to say, the 67 points put up by the Retrievers were somewhat surprising.

In fact, UMBC outscored Vermont 44-35 in the second half; Vermont held a 45-23 lead at the half. This was the first time in recent memory that Vermont played a better first half than second half. But you simply gotta love getting W's.

UVM went back to pounding the glass -- they out-rebounded UMBC 41-30. Voelkel had 10 of those, while Evan Fjeld and Matt Glass pulled down 7 boards.

All five UVM starters were in double figures: Bald and Voelkel with 19, Fjeld with 11, Glass with 13, and Sandro Carissimo with 10. Eight players checked into the game off the bench for UVM, and this happened early and often. Josh Elbaum and Garrett Kissel checked into the game within the first five minutes. Simeon Marsalis checked into the game seemingly at the first possible opportunity. Coach Lonergan is reinforcing the fact that this team is at least ten players deep, but possibly even eleven or twelve players can expect minutes for this Catamount squad down the stretch.

One more down, three conference games to go.

Down The Stretch

The next two games could be unexpectedly pivotal for the Vermont basketball team. Why are games against America East cellar-dwellers UMBC and Binghamton so big? Because the last two conference games of the year are against he only teams Vermont has lost to in conference: Boston University and Maine. These two games against UMBC and Binghamton are major stepping stones toward UVM locking up an automatic postseason birth (in the NIT) and the #1 seed in the conference tournament. If they win these next two games, they will sit at 12-2 in conference, and the Maine game in Orono will be played for the America East title (assuming Maine can also win 3 of 4 against Stony Brook, UNH, Albany, and Hartford). They get currently third-place BU at home for the last game of the year, which could prove to be huge depending on what happens in the next couple weeks.

UMBC comes into tonight's game having won 4 of their last 7, including last week's upset at Maine. The win streak started when they beat BU at home on January 20. Prior to that BU game, their record was a paltry 1-17. Led by the heroics of Siena transfer and America East POY candidate Chris De La Rosa, UMBC has became a formidable foe. 5 foot 10 inch De La Rosa is averaging 16.7 points per game, 6.7 APG, and an incredible 4.5 RPG. In the first meeting between the two teams, Vermont used a 56-21 advantage in the second half to dominate the UMBC Retrievers. In the last few minutes it seemed as though UMBC gave up: they took terrible shots, did not pass the ball much, and watched as Vermont scored at will. They will be motivated to take their best shot at Vermont tonight, so the Cats better be ready.

Binghamton's story is completely the opposite. The Bearcats surprised America East by winning their first three games of conference play. They surprised themselves by losing the next eight games. They do not play until the travel to Burlington to take on the Catamounts Sunday, so they will be riding that eight game losing streak coming into hostile territory. But they will also have had an eight-day layoff to prepare for the Cats, which could make it another interesting test for UVM.

And of course, the game that has not been discussed thus far is the ESPN Brackbuster matchup against the College of Charleston on February 19. Vermont got the best matchup out of any America East team, and got the only nationally televised game awarded to the conference. It is a tough matchup for Vermont, particularly on the road. Charleston has the fourth leading scorer in the country, Andrew Goudelock (23.8 PPG, 41.8% from 3-point range). The cougars rank 40th in the country in team points per game (76.3) and 17th in field goal pct. (48%). Georgetown and Charleston are the only two teams this season who have beaten Coastal Carolina. To put it mildly, Charleston has a good NCAA tournament resume. That game should be a true test for Vermont. It will also go a long way toward deciding NCAA tournament seeding, should Vermont be fortunate enough to make it.

Matt Glass Stonewalls URI Player (2009)

I just found this video tonight. Matt Glass is getting some respect on this blog.



Apologies for the soundtrack.

The Matt Glass Interview

Redshirt junior Matt Glass shows off the hustle.


Matt Glass transfered home to the University of Vermont after the 2008-2009 school year. He spent his first two seasons of eligibility playing at the University of Massachusetts. Hailing from Underhill Center, VT, Glass attended Mount Mansfield Union High School and was Vermont's Mr. Basketball (an award given to the state's most outstanding player) in 2005 and 2006. He became the first junior to win the award in fifteen years. Glass sat out the 2009-2010 season due to his transfer status, but he is eligible to play for the Catamounts this season and next. Glass is averaging 8.3 points and 3.9 rebounds a game for Vermont. He was nice enough to sit down and answer some of the questions I had for him.

FTPL: How would you compare your experience at UMass to your experience at UVM? Do you think there is a considerable difference between the competition in the Atlantic 10 and America East?

Glass: I am very fortunate because I have had great experiences both at UMass and at UVM. My time at UMass was wonderful and taught me a lot, and now I am definitely having a great experience at UVM. I think that the Atlantic 10 and the America East are two very different leagues. The Atlantic 10 is a much faster league with a lot of athletic, up-tempo teams. The America East doesn't have quite as many athletes, and has more teams that play in the half-court and execute.

FTPL: What were some of the main factors that influenced your transfer to UVM? How hard was it to make that decision knowing that you would have to sit out a year?

Glass: I definitely wanted to find a school that I would be comfortable at, play a larger role, and be part of a winning tradition. I found all of that in UVM. It was difficult knowing that I would have to sit out for a whole year but I was able to learn so much in that year and I think it has helped me to become a better player.

FTPL: Most of the preseason rankings I saw projected you guys to finish in the middle of the pack this season. This probably was not unfair considering you guys lost four starters from last year's team. What has made your basketball team so successful this season? Do preseason rankings like that provide inspiration for yourself and the team, or do you hardly pay attention to stuff like that?

Glass: As a team we definitely try to not pay too much attention to stuff like that, but it definitely motivated us. The coaches made it clear that they were not satisfied with this being a rebuilding year and we went to work. During the pre-season we saw that we had a lot of question marks but we knew that if we committed ourselves to working hard and playing as a team we could surprise some people. I think our unselfishness and our chemistry has helped us to be so successful. We all get along so well and are willing to work so hard for the guy next to us, it seems to be translating onto the court.

FTPL: You guys have a really talented group of freshmen, many of whom contribute quite a lot to the team (Voelkel, Carissimo, and Apfeld in particular). What has made their transition to the collegiate level so smooth?

Glass: We can't say enough about our freshmen. It is very rare in college basketball to find freshmen that are so ready to play, but these guys are certainly the exception. They are beyond their years in how they handle pressure and perform night in and night out. I think their transitions were so smooth just because they are so mature for their age. The basketball season can be very draining mentally and physically, and these guys came in with the right attitude from day one.

FTPL: Last question: what is your favorite thing about living in Vermont?

Glass: The best part about living in Vermont has to be the people. Everyone is so laid-back and kind it makes it easy to enjoy living here.

UVM Basketball, From the Parking Lot would like to give a special thanks to Matt Glass for being kind enough to answer these questions, and to Ben Dickie for arranging the interview. Bring it home boys.

A Super Sunday!

It is a great day to be a fan of UVM basketball. First, UVM dominated Stony Brook, 65-42, for their seventh straight win. During the game, Evan Fjeld scored his 1,000 career point for Vermont, a great achievement for Vermont's senior captain. After all that was done, Maine got beaten at home by... UMBC? The same UMBC team that has won 5 games all year (though, to give them credit, they have won 4 out of 7. I'm not exactly looking forward to Vermont's trip down there Wednesday). Vermont now holds a 1.5 game edge over Maine in the America East standings, with Boston University lingering 2.5 games back.

UVM rode 19 points from Brandon Bald and 10 assists from Brian Voelkel to the victory. According to UVMbasketball.com, at one point, Voelkel had 1 assist and 5 turnovers. He finished with 10 assists and 5 turnovers.

It was the third straight game Vermont held its opponent to less than 50 points. The defense seems to be firing on all cylinders, something you gotta love as a Cats fan.

One thing is becoming very clear in America East: the top seed will be a more coveted spot than usual heading into the conference tournament. Here is why: the first two rounds of the tournament are played at a neutral site, this year in Hartford. There are clearly three good teams in America East (UVM, Maine, and BU), while the rest seem decidedly mediocre. The top seed would play the #8 seed, and if they won, would play the winner of the #4 seed vs. the #5 seed. So if the standings held up, Vermont would play UMBC in the first round and Albany in the second round. Maine and BU would have to play each other in the semifinals, and Vermont would host the winner the following Saturday.

While it's a long way away, you see how important it is to land the top seed, considering that the top three teams are the biggest threats in the conference. Vermont could avoid playing Maine or BU until the conference championship, which would be at their place to boot.

Enjoy the Super Bowl. My pick: Packers 31-Steelers 24 (but only because I could never pick the Steelers to win).