Vermont women’s basketball trailed by two with 19.4 seconds left at home against UMBC. Jadyn Weltz, battling through a tight calf, scored a game-tying layup with 12 seconds on the clock. UMBC responded with leading scorer Jade Tillman nailing a jumper with a defender in her face.
Tillman’s basket was the difference as Weltz’s potential game winning 3-pointer attempt was short and after the buzzer, helping the Retrievers pull off the 46-44 upset in front of the 862 fans at Patrick Gym during America East Conference action on Thursday, Feb. 19.
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“A winning culture always plays hard and right now this doesn’t feel like a winning culture,” Vermont coach Alisa Kresge said. “Our players know the mistakes that happen and when they do happen that’s what they are spending their time and energy on. We have to find a way to have a shorter mindset of forget it and move on.”
UMBC earned its first win over Vermont since 2023, snapping a nine-game losing streak in the series.
The Catamounts second home loss in their last three home games put a little dent in the team’s postseason aspirations despite seeing second-place Binghamton lose to Bryant. Vermont (22-7, AE 11-3) already clinched a top-four seed for the America East playoffs, but the team is working for a regular-season title.
This result comes as a disappointment after Vermont defeated UMBC handedly 69-47 on the road on Jan. 29.
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Vermont had trouble separating from UMBC despite some could-be momentum altering plays. The second and third quarters both ended with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Malia Lenz and Weltz respectively, but the Catamounts couldn’t capitalize on those plays. Vermont did not score over 12 points in any quarter.
Weltz (13 points) and Nikola Priede (19 points) were the only Catamounts to reach double figures as the Retrievers held Keira Hanson, Vermont’s second-leading scorer, to just six points.
For the third consecutive game, the Catamounts struggled to rebound defensively. The Retrievers (13-12, AE 8-5) racked up eight offensive rebounds scoring 10 second-chance points in the first half. UMBC finished the game out-rebounding Vermont 40-23 with 14 offensive rebounds the Retrievers cashed in for 15 second-chance points.
The Catamounts left points at the free-throw line converting just 7-of-12 attempts. The first five Catamounts that went to the free throw line split their pair before Priede made her set tying the game at 40 with 6:24 remaining in the fourth quarter.
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Tillman was the only Retriever to score double-digits finishing with 19, but six other teammates contributed points to provide a balanced attack.
In the loss, freshman Jacklynn Hosier, the Catamounts only bench option, earned just 6:36 of playing time with both Lenz and Priede playing all 40 minutes. Still Kresge does not blame fatigue as an issue for the loss.
“I have seen our players play much harder and need a sub,” Kresge said. “Nobody played to that extreme today. I know when our players are completely gassed and they didn’t give it today so they didn’t need subs, but maybe we should to see if wakes them up.”
Vermont has a fast turnaround, returning to the court for its senior day celebration against NJIT on Saturday, Feb. 21.
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Vermont men’s basketball drops first game of final regular-season road trip
It was a disappointing start to Vermont men’s basketball’s two-game road trip against the top two teams in the America East.
The Catamounts (17-11, 9-4 AE) never threatened UMBC (17-8, AE 10-2), suffering a 75-62 road loss and remain in third place in the conference standings.
The difference in this loss was another poor first half that saw the Retrievers outscore Vermont 38-26. UMBC converted 7-of-10 3-point attempts in the first half and Vermont could not keep up.
TJ Long had his best game since returning from his injury on Jan. 31 scoring a team-high 21 points in 28 minutes off the bench. Gus Yalden added a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds, but TJ Hurley had an off night and was held to just five points.
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Jah’Likai King led UMBC with 24 points and was one of three Retrievers to score 10-plus points joining teammates Ace Valentine (12 points) and Caden Diggs (12 points).
Contact Judith Altneu at JAltneu@usatodayco.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter: @Judith_Altneu.
This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Vermont women’s basketball suffers upset loss to UMBC
