America East Basketball News & Notes: Almost Halfway Home

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It has not taken long for the halfway mark of the America East season to arrive, which officially occurs this Saturday. The league standings are bunching up as teams prepare for a mad scramble to the finish. Here is a look at where the conference stands with half the season in the books.

Vermont currently sits alone in first place after a pivotal Thursday night showdown at Patrick Gym. The Catamounts (6–1 AE) defeated UMBC (5–2 AE) 64–55 to break a tie for the top spot. Before that loss, UMBC had been rolling, using home-court advantage last week to post an 87–74 win over NJIT and a 79–56 victory over UMass Lowell. The Retrievers entered Burlington on a three-game winning streak in which they outscored opponents by an average of 14.7 points. UMBC remains the best offense in the conference, averaging 77 points per game, and ranks fourth defensively, allowing 67.5.

Vermont has rebounded remarkably well from an opening-night loss at UAlbany. Last week, they picked up back-to-back road wins at UMass Lowell (77–68) and Bryant (62–52). The Catamounts have shown a knack for winning close games, with four of their six league victories coming by ten points or less. They possess the fifth-best offense in the league (69 points per game) and the second-best defense, allowing just 62.8 points per contest.

A team that struggled early in the year may be heading in the right direction. The Maine Black Bears have won two straight and three of their last five. Last week, they secured a 52–49 win over UAlbany, followed by a 79–63 victory over Binghamton. A primary driver of this turnaround is America East Rookie of the Week Ace Flagg. Last week, Flagg averaged 11.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, and four assists while shooting 50% from the field. The Black Bears had Thursday night off and will travel to Lowell on Saturday afternoon.

The New Hampshire Wildcats (4–3 AE) are also surging. Winners of four in a row, UNH moved into fourth place with a 66–61 win over UMass Lowell on Thursday night. Three-point shooting remains the Wildcats’ calling card as they lead the conference with nine makes per game. This perimeter threat has pushed their scoring average to 74 points per game, ranking third in the league.

The NJIT Highlanders (5–2 AE) have consistently found ways to put the ball in the basket. In all seven of their conference games, the Highlanders have scored at least 70 points, including a 77–68 win over UAlbany on Thursday. They now boast the second-best offense in the conference at 74.8 points per game, though their defense remains a work in progress, ranking sixth while allowing 70.2 points.

Defending champion Bryant (2–5 AE) is enduring a difficult stretch, having lost five of its last six league games. The Bulldogs suffered a narrow 63–60 loss to Binghamton on Thursday and have struggled to find consistent scoring, reaching the 55-point mark only once in their last five outings. Bryant currently ranks last in offense (58.5 points per game) and is losing by an average margin of over 10 points per contest.

This week’s America East Player of the Week is Vermont’s TJ Hurley. He averaged 28 points per game last week while posting a 50/40/90 stat line. Hurley shot 51% from the field, 45% from three-point range, and 90% from the foul line. He followed up a career-high 30 points against UMass Lowell with 26 points against Bryant and led the way again in Thursday’s win over UMBC with 18 points. As the calendar turns to February, the parity of the league suggests the race for the top seed will remain a tight battle until the final day.