The University of Vermont men's basketball team handily defeated Stony Brook, 70-51, and will face UMBC at the America East Championship at home on Saturday, March 10, 2018. BRIAN JENKINS/for the FREE PRESS
Cam Ward nearly lost the ball weaving through traffic, but the senior guard gathered himself, waved off Trae Bell-Haynes calling for the ball and launched a 25-foot bomb in front of coach John Becker.
Splash.
On a night with little to cheer on the offensive end, Ward’s 3-pointer capped a momentum-turning spurt that saw the University of the Vermont men’s basketball team seize control of its America East Conference semifinal contest.
The Catamounts’ defense took care of the rest.
Holding No. 5 Stony Brook to its worst shooting performance of the season, No. 1 Vermont stamped its third straight trip to the conference title game in convincing fashion, earning a 70-51 victory in front of a sellout crowd of 3,266 at Patrick Gym on Tuesday night.
The Catamounts (27-6), headed to their fifth league final in Becker’s seven years and the 11th in the last 16 seasons, will meet No. 2 Maryland-Baltimore County in Saturday’s championship game on Tom Brennan Court. The 11 a.m. tip-off will be nationally televised on ESPN2.
“This is why we preach defense and rebounding because they can carry you on nights when you don’t have your offense,” Becker said. “When we are locked in, like we were tonight, we are one of the best defensive teams in the country. We showed that tonight.”
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Ward, who finished with 12 points, three assists and no turnovers in 22 minutes, buried his triple for the 15-6 run with 13:42 to play in regulation, pushing UVM to a 45-32 advantage.
“I thought Cam Ward maybe had the most important game of his career. His energy, his defensive presence, he made big shots,” Becker said. “He was an awesome teammate. I loved everything about what Cam brought to the game tonight."
UVM’s margin never dipped under 10 points after the game’s decisive surge, and the Catamounts used a season-best 29-for-37 effort from the foul line to seal their first playoff win over the Seawolves (13-19) in three tries. Stony Brook had beaten UVM in the 2015 semifinals in Burlington and 2016 title game on Long Island in the teams’ previous tournament matchups.
“It was a big motivation. We didn’t forget about it,” Ward said. “We wanted to come out and avenge that and do whatever it took to win this game."
Senior forward Payton Henson: “It’s extremely special. Just trying to soak up every single moment and go out with another victory (on Saturday).”
Senior forward Drew Urquhart paced the Catamounts, fighting off first-half foul trouble with 19 points and eight rebounds, his 12th straight game reaching double digits in scoring. Henson’s 13 points included a trio of big 3-pointers and Bell-Haynes, the league’s two-time player of the year, was held to six points but tallied five boards, six assists and a pair of steals.
Stony Brook made just 19 field goals and finished 33.3 percent from the floor, matching its worst mark of the winter.
“The last three weeks I thought we were playing high-level basketball,” Stony Brook coach Jeff Boals said. “Hats off to Vermont. Coach Becker does a phenomenal job. They have an experienced group out there that knows how to win. The biggest thing is, they don’t beat themselves.
“They are poised, they take of the basketball, multiple guys can pass, dribble and shoot and, more importantly, they know how to win. That’s a great team right there.”
In a sluggish start for both teams, the Catamounts worked to a 30-21 halftime lead thanks to Henson canning a 3-pointer off a pick-and-roll with Ward.
UVM made it a priority to feed Urquhart to open the second half, and the big man from Vancouver came through, scoring 10 of UVM’s first 12 points.
Ward’s 3-pointer soon followed to send the Patrick Gym faithful into a frenzy.
“It’s always a lot of fun to be a key contributor on a winning team,” Urquhart said. “That’s why most of us come to Vermont, for this chance to play in championship games. I don’t think you can ask for anything more.”
Akwasi Yeboah (15 points), Elijah Olaniyi (13) and Jordan McKenzie (11) paced the Seawolves, who committed 29 fouls and coughed it up 14 times to just four assists.
“When you play a good team, you have to go get it, they are not going to give it to you,” said Boals, who believes UVM is good enough to win a game in the NCAA tournament. “Even if (UVM) loses in the championship game, I think their strength of schedule, their numbers are good enough to be an at-large bid. I’m looking forward to following them.”
Becker appreciated the vote of confidence from Boals. But preparations for Saturday's title game must come first.
“This game can take your breath away if you are not ready for it. It should be a really special day Saturday,” Becker said. “I can’t way to get there. There are going to be a lot sleepless nights between now and then, unfortunately.”
Contact Alex Abrami at 660-1848 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @aabrami5.
VERMONT 70, STONY BROOK 51
STONY BROOK (13-19)
Ochefu 1-1 0-0 2, Olaniyi 5-8 1-3 13, McKenzie 5-8 1-2 11, Yeboah 4-14 7-7 15, Saintel 1-8 0-0 2, Petras 1-5 0-0 2, Sturdivant 0-3 1-2 1, Cornish 2-3 0-0 5, Iroegbu 0-3 0-0 0, Sekunda 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 19-57 10-14 51.
VERMONT (27-6)
Urquhart 4-9 11-15 19, Henson 5-9 0-0 13, Bell-Haynes 0-5 6-8 6, Ev.Duncan 2-3 2-2 8, Er.Duncan 2-8 2-2 6, Rohrer 0-1 2-2 2, Lamb 1-5 2-4 4, Ward 3-5 4-4 12, Smith 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 17-45 29-37 70.
Halftime—Vermont 30-21. 3-Point Goals—Stony Brook 3-19 (Olaniyi 2-5, Cornish 1-2, Sturdivant 0-1, Saintel 0-1, Sekunda 0-2, McKenzie 0-2, Iroegbu 0-3, Yeboah 0-3), Vermont 7-17 (Henson 3-4, Ward 2-3, Ev.Duncan 2-3, Bell-Haynes 0-1, Urquhart 0-1, Lamb 0-2, Er.Duncan 0-3). Fouled Out—Petras, Sturdivant. Rebounds—Stony Brook 38 (Saintel 9), Vermont 33 (Ev.Duncan, Urquhart 8). Assists—Stony Brook 4 (Yeboah 2), Vermont 11 (Bell-Haynes 6). Total Fouls—Stony Brook 29, Vermont 15. Technicals—Iroegbu, Ward. A—3,266.