All About The Triples

Albany's Britney McGee went off for a career-high 30 points Wednesday night, including 7 three-pointers, leading the Great Danes to the 92-80 win over UMBC and snapping Albany's 10-game losing streak. Her fifth triple of the night pushed her into sole possession of second-place on the program's all-time three-pointer list. She now only trails alumnus Jen Schumacher's 197, which McGee should be able to eclipse during her senior season next year. UMBC was led in the game by freshman Michelle Kurowski's 25 points, while the league's leading scorer, Carlee Cassidy, was held to 4 points.

Despite leading for much of the way, Stony Brook fell victim to UNH in the end, 50-49. Junior Candace Williams paced the Wildcats with 17 points and 14 rebounds, but freshman Lauren Wells and junior Amy Simpson also ended up in double figures. Williams also added 3 blocks on the night. The Seawolves led in several categories, including steals (11-1), turnovers (9 against UNH's 20) and bench points (15-12), but ultimately, New Hampshire's rebounding (53-30) gave it the late-game surge to take its first lead of the game with 3 seconds remaining in the contest.

The third game of the night resulted in Vermont's fifth-straight win, 61-44 over Maine. Sy Janousek went 5-for-6 from behind the arc and finished with a team-high 17 points. Courtnay Pilypaitis ended up with 13 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals for another well-balanced night. The Catamount defense, which has proved to shut down conference opponents better than anybody else in the league, forced 20 turnovers and 13 steals, while limiting Maine's leading scorer, Brittany Boser to just 5 field goal attempts and and 2 points. Senior Colleen Kilmurray recorded a game-high 19 points for the Black Bears and pulled down a team-high 7 rebounds.

Hawks, Terriers and Catamounts Win Conference Openers

The rest of the conference (except for Albany which begins league play Saturday at the Events Center) got America East play started Wednesday night. Hartford and Vermont won on their home courts, while Boston University won one on the road to all move to 1-0 in AE.

Hartford 63, Binghamton 54
America East Players of the Game: Ilicia Mathis (Hartford), Erica Carter (Binghamton)
Mathis took her game to a whole new level for the second straight contest. The reigning America East Rookie of the Week scored a career-high 15 points, surpassing the previous high of 10 points set against #1 UConn last week. Erica Beverly also contributed 15 points for the Hawks. While Hartford extended their home court winning streak to 30 games, the Bearcats did keep it close. Binghamton kept Hartford's lead in single digits and held a lead in the first-half. Carter scored 15 points for the visitors, including 11 in the first half to lead all players in the first 20 minutes.

Vermont 81, UMBC 52
America East Players of the Game: Courtnay Pilypaitis (Vermont), Erin Brown (UMBC)
Pilypaitis scored a game-high 28 points and added 11 rebounds for her fourth double double this year. The Catamount defense held the Retrievers to season lows of 52 points and four three-pointers, in addition to holding the league's leading scorer, Carlee Cassidy, in check to just 10 points. Vermont's May Kotsopoulos also had a great game with 16 points and a career-tying 7 assists. The Catamounts had a 16-point halftime lead and couldn't get any closer than 15 for the rest of the contest. Brown led the Retrievers with 13 points and 8 rebounds.

Boston University 72, Stony Brook 59
America East Players of the Game: Jesyka Burks-Wiley (Boston U.), Kirsten Jeter (Stony Brook)
The Terriers, who were a mere 3-5 on the road in AE contests last year, picked up their first league win away from Boston. Burks-Wiley secured her third double-double of the year with 18 points and 13 rebounds to help put the Seawolves away. Stony Brook did threaten late in the first half and early in the second half, going on a 9-0 run to end the first stanza and forced 7 ties in the game. The Seawolves had the edge in bench points (13-9) and second-chance points (12-5). Jeter scored 20 points for the Seawolves and sophomore Misha Horsey added 16, but 4 Terriers scored double-figures to eventually pull out the win.

Teams are off until Saturday.

Vermont's Rosenkrantz Selected Finalist For Academic Honor

University of Vermont senior guard Amy Rosenkrantz is among America East leaders at 15th in scoring and 6th in rebounding. She's also among the nation's leaders in the classroom. Rosenkrantz, a member of the 2007-08 America East All-Academic Team, was selected a finalist for the Lowe's senior CLASS women's basketball award. 30 men's basketball players and 30 women's basketball players were named finalists earlier this week. Once a national committee narrows down the list to 10 candidates, the ballot will be open to college basketball fans to vote here.

Big East Foes Have No Mercy

A pair of Big East opponents did not treat America East squads kindly Wednesday night. 12th-ranked Louisville, and All-American Angel McCoughtry's triple-double, defeated Hartford in Kentucky, 42-70. In the meantime at the Events Center, Villanova came away the victor against Binghamton, 55-37.

The only game Thursday night is Vermont at Harvard. The tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. It is the second of three straight America East opponents the Crimson will face.

Wildcats Win #1 On The Season

University of New Hampshire won its first game of the 2008-09 season, an 89-61 decision at Colgate Friday night. Five different Wildcats hit double figures, including junior Amy Simpson with a game-high 24 points. UNH shot 61.8% from the field and hit 14 treys for the game.

Five teams are in action Saturday. Hartford hosts St. Joseph's for a 1 p.m. game on NESN. The Hawks will try to extend their home win streak to 29 games. Also, Binghamton is at La Salle for a 1 p.m. tipoff, Holy Cross and Vermont face-off in Patrick Gym at 1:00, Northeastern is at Stony Brook for a 2 p.m. game, and UMBC hosts Towson beginning at 7 p.m.

Hartford, Vermont Win Friday

Hartford defeated the Big South Champions, Liberty, 46-39, Friday afternoon in the George Washington Tournament and will play the Colonials Saturday at 5:30 p.m. for the tournament trophy. Erica Beverly posted her second double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 boards in the victory. Vermont also posted a win, 69-50 over Manhattan. The Catamounts have now won three-straight games after losing the first game of the TD Banknorth Classic in Burlington.

Three other teams played on Friday as New Hampshire fell to Long Island, 74-60, Stony brook dropped a match to St. John's, 61-49, and Brown upended Maine, 65-52, in Orono.

Seven teams are in action Saturday. Maine, Albany and Binghamton are at home, while New Hampshire, Boston U., UMBC and Hartford are all in tournament action on the road.

America East Splits Wednesday Night Games

Vermont defeated Providence, 73-67, Wednesday night at Patrick Gym in the Catamounts' second straight overtime affair. Junior guard May Kotsopoulos scored a game-high 25 points, including 24 in the second half and overtime period.

Albany fell at Colgate, 48-46, in the only other game before the Thanksgiving holiday.

Boston U. Comes Back To Win

The Terriers, who faced a double-digit deficit in the second half, rallied to defeat Northeastern, 71-68, at Matthews Arena in a cross-town rivalry. Senior Jesyka Burks-Wiley notched a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds, while classmate Kristi Dini hit five treys and a foul shot for 16 points on the night.

Hartford continued on a 10-day road trip in Columbus, Ohio, dropping a 63-45 contest to the #20/21 Buckeyes. Also on Tuesday night, Binghamton fell to Duquesne at home, 68-56.

Before teams break for the Thanksgiving holiday, Vermont hosts Providence at 4 p.m. on Tuesday and Albany treks to Hamilton to play Colgate at 5 p.m.

Vermont Uses 3OTs to Defeat Dartmouth

Vermont defeated Dartmouth in the consolation round of the TD Banknorth Classic, 82-77, taking three overtime periods to do so. Junior May Kotsopoulos finished with a game-high 24 points, along with five assists and three steals. Junior Courtnay Pilypaitis netted 21 points, while senior Amy Rosenkrantz finished with her first double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Maine picked up its first win of the season, a 54-45 victory over UMass at the Augusta Civic Center. Kristin Baker filled her stat sheet with 16 points, five rebounds, six assists and a steal.

Also around the America East, Binghamton dropped Bryant at the Events Center, 68-61, led by Darryll Peterson's career-high 16 points. Boston U. fell to Portland at the KCRG-TV9 Tournament in Iowa City, Iowa, 62-74, to fall to 2-2 on the season.

Hartford Stuns #5/6 Duke

The Hartford Hawks defeated the Duke Blue Devils Friday night, 53-51. Junior Lisa Etienne scored a game-high 15 points, while also recording 7 steals, 6 rebounds and 2 assists. The victory marks the fourth straight year Hartford has defeated a ranked opponent, and the highest-ranked team to fall victim to the Hawks.

UMBC also picked up a tournament win Friday night, defeating Northern Illinois at the Seton Hall Tournament, 88-73. Binghamton fell to Portland State in their home opener, 62-52.

The Hawks will play the host DePaul Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. ET to decide the tournament Champion, while the Retrievers also play for a tournament trophy against Seton Hall at 3 p.m. Boston University is in Iowa and will face the Hawkeyes at 1 p.m. Saturday in the KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Classic, Vermont hosts Quinnipiac at 1 p.m. in the first round of the TD Banknorth Catamount Classic, Albany host Richmond at 1 p.m., and Stony Brook continues its five-game road trip at Princeton at 6 p.m.

Vermont, Boston U. Wins Highlight Opening Night

Courtnay Pilypaitis scored 26 points and pulled down 10 rebounds and Amy Rosenkrantz added 24 points as Vermont defeated Massachusetts, 83-69, Friday night. Jesyka Burks-Wiley netted 16 points and added nine rebounds as Boston University also opened the season with a victory, posting a 50-45 win at Rhode Island.

In other games, Albany fell 63-39 at No. 9 Cal, Quinnpiac defeated Stony Brook, 59-45, Bryant won 69-66 at New Hampshire, and St. Bonaventure downed Binghamton, 66-51.

Two former America East Champions are in action on Saturday. Defending champion Hartford will unveil its 2008 title banner prior to its game vs. Dartmouth. UMBC, which won the America East Championship in 2007, plays at perennial Atlantic-10 power George Washington. Both games are at 2.

Pilypaitis a Player to Watch by ESPN.com

Graham Hays of ESPN.com has posted his list of teams and players to watch in 2008-09 and cites Courtnay Pilypaitis of Vermont as one of "five hidden gems" at the mid-major level.

22 Seconds With Courtnay Pilypaitis

University of Vermont junior guard Courtnay Pilypaitis, a preseason mid-major All-American and reigning America East Player of the Year, was recently featured on Burlington's Fox News Affililate in a segment called "22 Seconds With A Catamount" that will feature a different UVM athlete each week. Check out the guard's rapid-fire responses here.