Vermont Catamounts
Overall Rank: #106
Conference Rank: #1 America East
Vermont Team Page
2010-11: 23-9, 13-3
2010-11 postseason: NIT
Coach: John Becker (First year at Vermont, 0-0 overall)
Coach John Becker takes over a Vermont program that has consistently exceeded expectations. With Boston U and Stony Brook popular favorites to win the America East Conference, Coach Becker will once again have to exceed expectations. Sophomore Sandro Carissimo will have to play a big role if the Catamounts are going to head to the NCAA Tournament. Carissimo will be asked to take over the point guard duties after starting the final 15 games of the 2010-2011 campaign. He is a very good shooter and can score plenty, but for now he needs to emerge as a leader and a solid ball handler. His outside shooting will open things up for the offense, but Vermont needs somebody who can set up the rest of the scorers.
Who’s Out:
The transfer of Simeon Marsalis leaves few options at the point beside Carissimo, but the big losses are Evan Fjeld and Joey Accaoui. Fjeld was the team’s top scorer and a solid rebounder as well. Like most players on the Catamounts, Fjeld was not a true post presence, but he did do plenty of scoring around the basket and that is something this year’s team could lack. Accaoui spent much of last season coming in off of the bench, but he did average 11.3 points per game and was a solid all-around scorer. Garrett Kissel has also wrapped up his career with the Catamounts after seeing limited playing time last season.
Who’s In:
Four McGlynn can help out at the point guard spot, although he would be better suited playing off the ball. He is a great scorer and a shooter with endless range. On a team that needs depth, McGlynn will provide it. Chris Santo will add some depth at the forward spots. The 6-5 Cherry Hill, New Jersey product is a good all-around scorer, but he will also do the dirty work. Jon Angstadt is another guard who could see some action sooner or later. The walk-on has been hampered by injuries and it will take some time before he can make an impact.
Who to Watch:
Speaking of injuries, the health of Luke Apfeld will be huge for Vermont if they want to win the conference. Apfeld is the one experienced player on the roster who can be a major interior scoring threat. However, his knees have been a big problem and he may not be able to play much more than 20 minutes per game. At 6-7 and 215 pounds, the Catamounts need his size on the floor as much as possible. Ideally, Apfeld will team up with 6-6 forward Brian Voelkel to form a dynamic frontcourt. Voelkel is a very unique player. As a freshman last season he averaged 7.0 points, 9.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.6 steals. Rarely does a player lead his team in rebounds, assists and steals. The scary thing is Voelkel can be a better scorer this year too. He will be asked to do more in the scoring department and at some point he will be really close to achieving a triple-double. Coach Becker has a couple big men who spent most of last season on the bench that will be key to the depth of this team, especially if Apfeld is limited. Ben Crenca has the most potential. And, at 6-10 and 260 pounds, he has the size to be a menace in the paint on both ends of the floor. Senior Pat Bergmann and sophomores Ryan McKeaney and Clancy Rugg are a few more options who need to help fill in some minutes off of the bench.
Final Projection:
For all practical purposes Matt Glass is a guard. He just happens to be 6-8. His size makes it easy for him to shoot over opposing defenders and he is a much better shooter than his 28.8 percent three-point percentage of a year ago would indicate. Glass does most of his scoring by attacking the basket, but he often gave way to the seniors last year and let them do the scoring. Now Glass is a senior and will take those shots. Brendan Bald will be taking plenty of shots as well. The shooting guard knocked down 41.0 percent of his attempts from long range last year and averaged 11.3 points per game. When the Catamounts need a big shot, Bald will likely be the guy who takes it. Even sophomore Josh Elbaum, who averaged a mere 2.2 minutes per game last year, is good enough to play some quality minutes. The team did not need him to do much during his freshman campaign, but some of these bench warmers from a year ago will step up and give Vermont the depth to go to the NCAA Tournament.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
Projected Starting Five:
Sandro Carissimo, Sophomore, Guard, 4.4 points per game
Brendan Bald, Junior, Guard, 11.3 points per game
Matt Glass, Senior, Forward, 8.2 points per game
Brian Voelkel, Sophomore, Forward, 7.0 points per game
Luke Apfeld, Sophomore, Forward, 4.8 points per game
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