The University of Vermont's Independent Voice Since 1883

The Vermont Cynic

The University of Vermont's Independent Voice Since 1883

The Vermont Cynic

The University of Vermont's Independent Voice Since 1883

The Vermont Cynic

Cat’s 15 Game Winning Streak Comes To An End At The Hands Of The Terriers

In the opening game of the brand new Agganis Arena, in front of a crowd just shy of 6,000 people, #2 Boston University put an end to #1 UVM’s 15 game winning streak that span over 53 days and all of January, giving the Cats their first loss in the American East Conference. The school record and second longest streak of any school in the nation, ended despite a 37 point outing by Taylor Coppenrath, as the Cats fell to the BU Terriers this past Saturday 61-55. Prior to the game, the Catamounts had gone 13-0 in the American East, essentially exerting their dominance of the number one position. Considered the premier defensive team in the American East and on a six game winning streak of their own, the Terriers Bell Rashad and Chaz Carr scored 53 points between themselves, shutting down the Cats from ever gaining the lead during the game. “I thought BU played with a desperation today that we did not have,” said retiring Vermont coach Tom Brennan. Before the game he was honored by Boston University for his 19 seasons in the America East. “This was a great game in a great new building with a great atmosphere for college basketball. There was a lot of talk of us running the table in the league but BU is every bit as good as us and we are every bit as good as them.” In their last meeting, back on January 16th, UVM defeated BU 69-58, with Vermont dropping a season-high 13 three-pointers in Patrick Gymnasium. In their defeat this past week, UVM put up a meager 5-24 from outside the line with leading three-point shooter T.J. Sorrentine going only 2-16; not his best showing of the year. The Catamounts got off to a good start with the 6’9″ Coppenrath scoring 25 points in the first half by backing straight up to the basket multiple times, completely stomping over BU’s coverage on him. He also had a game-high 13 rebounds, with a spectacular 10 for 10 from the line. Unfortunately, there was little scoring production coming from the other UVM players, forcing the Cats to overzealously pass the ball numerous times to Coppenrath. This lead to multiple turnovers as the BU defense began double and in some cases triple coverage of one of the nation’s leading scorers. A large contingent of yellow-donned UVM fans, made their presences known in their support of the Catamounts who will be away this week taking on Albany at their home court on Wednesday and Nevada on Saturday in an ESPN Bracket Buster. The game against Nevada will be televised on ESPN2 the 19th at 2 p.m. (ET) and gives UVM a chance to gain a higher seed for the upcoming NCAA tournament should they win their division. Last year the Catamounts fell to the Nevada Wolf Pack 69-49.

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Cat’s 15 Game Winning Streak Comes To An End At The Hands Of The Terriers