UMBC

SET THE SCENE:  UMBC enters their seventh America East Conference Tournament  and the seventh-seeded Retrievers take on the second-seeded Vermont Catamounts at the Chase Family Arena on the University of Hartford campus. Tip-off time is set for Saturday, March 6 at 6:00 p.m.and the game will be broadcast by Fox 1370 Sports Radio (www.fox1370.com, Gary Stein) . The winner will face the winner of the No. 3 Maine vs. No. 6 UNH contest on Sunday, March 7 at 7:30 p.m.    

RETRIEVER UPDATE: UMBC concluded the regular season on Feb. 24, with a 79-50 victory at New Hampshire, therefore the Retrievers had nine days of rest prior to their tournament opener. Of the 10 players on UMBC’s active roster, only Jake Wasco remains a question mark health-wise, as he is day-to-day with an ankle injury suffered in practice on Feb. 15. Sophomore guard Chris De La Rosa, who leads the America East with 5.1 assists per game, scored 23 points and added seven assists in the win over the Wildcats, while running mate Chauncey Gilliam (13.5 ppg) has scored in double figures in 12 consecutive games.

CATAMOUNTS’ UPDATE: Vermont has won eight of nine games entering the tournament and concluded the season with a 78-69 win over Binghamton on Feb. 28. Two-time America East Player of the Year senior forward Marqus Blakely is averaging 17.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Senior guard Maurice Joseph (14.3 ppg) has hit a robust 38 percent (70 of 184) of his shots from behind the arc.