Eight of the nine teams in the America East are eligible for postseason play (UMass Lowell is still transitioning to Division I), and they will face off over the next two weekends for an auto-bid to the NCAA Tournament.
America East Tournament 2014: Vermont looks to continue conference dominance
The Catamounts nearly went undefeated in conference play during the regular season, but will look to secure an auto-bid in the NCAA Tournament.
USA TODAY Sports
Vermont and Stony Brook are far and away the two big favorites in the tournament, both sporting 21-9 records in the regular season, but the Catamounts take the first seed with a 15-1 conference record. KenPom.com favors Vermont, as well; the Catamounts are ranked 60th in the nation, and Stony Brook is the only other America East team in the top 200 (slotting in at 163rd).
Must Reads
Vermont first caught the nation’s eye in late November, traveling to Cameron Indoor and taking Duke to the wire before losing by a single point, 91-90. The Catamounts also lost close games to Saint Joseph’s and Harvard, but their biggest win of the year is probably a neutral-site victory over Illinois State just a few days after the loss to the Blue Devils.
Senior forward Clancy Rugg is Vermont's leading scorer, averaging 13.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. The 6'8 local out of Burlington ranks third in the nation in free throw rate and shoots an impressive 81.1 percent from the line when he gets there. He's not so bad from the floor either, ranking 17th in the nation in true shooting percentage at 66.1 percent.
The Catamounts lost just one game in conference play this season. This was at Stony Brook, naturally, by a score of 67-64. That was by far the Seawolves’ best win of the season (they later lost by 16 when facing Vermont on the road), with their only other top-200 wins coming against Marist and Detroit.
Quarterfinals: Saturday, March 8 (ESPN3)
Game 1: No. 1 Vermont vs. No. 8 New Hampshire, 12 p.m. ET
Game 2: No. 4 Albany vs. No. 5 UMBC, 30 minutes following
Game 3: No. 2 Stony Brook vs. No. 7 Maine, 6 p.m. ET
Game 4: No. 3 Hartford vs. No. 6 Binghamton, 30 minutes following
Semifinals: Sunday, March 9 (ESPN3)
Game 5: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2, 5 p.m. ET
Game 6: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4, 30 minutes following
Finals: Saturday, March 15 (ESPN2)
Winner of Game 5 vs. Winner of Game 6, 11:30 a.m. ET
See More:
