Preview of Vermont vs. Maryland-Baltimore County Men’s Basketball

CATONSVILLE, Md. (Interstat) — A pivotal America East Conference men’s basketball showdown is set for Saturday when the Maryland-Baltimore County Retrievers host the Vermont Catamounts at the Retriever Activities Center.

The matchup features the league’s top two teams in the final week of the regular season. UMBC (23-8, 14-4 America East) enters with a one-game lead over Vermont (22-11, 13-5) in the conference standings. A Retrievers victory would secure at least a share of the regular-season title and the seed in the upcoming conference tournament. A Catamounts win would tighten the race and potentially force a tie.

UMBC, which has won eight straight games, defeated Vermont 75-62 on Feb. 19 in the teams’ most recent meeting. Retrievers guard Jah’Likai King scored 24 points in that contest, part of a dominant stretch where he has averaged 20.2 points over his last five games. King is coming off a 24-point performance in a 91-69 rout of UMass Lowell on Tuesday.

Vermont has won five consecutive games since that loss at UMBC, including a 63-54 victory over NJIT on Tuesday. The Catamounts are led by guard TJ Hurley, who averaged 18.4 points over a recent four-game stretch before being held to 14 points against NJIT. Hurley was limited to just five points in the February loss to the Retrievers.

The season series is split, with Vermont winning 64-55 at home on Jan. 29. The over/under for Saturday’s game is set at 135 points.

The game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. EST tip-off.