One-Bid Wonders

A three-time America East champion at Vermont, Taylor Coppenrath is playing for his fourth Spanish title.

It’s been almost two months since America East season came to an end when the Albany Great Danes were bounced from The Big Dance by top-seed Duke and the Stony Brook Seawolves took a tumble in the second round of the NIT at Iowa. But several America East alums are still chasing titles in some of the best leagues in the world.

Former America East Champions Taylor Coppenrath and Rashad Bell will be playing for their league championships this week in Spain and Hungary, respectively, while former two-time America East champ Jason Siggers is in hot pursuit of the chip in France.

From 2001-2005 Coppenrath flat-out owned the America East as the most statistically dominant player in league history. Over his four-year career at Vermont, the 6’9” 250 pound Coppenrath amassed 2,442 career points, good for third in the league’s all-time record book. After winning the 2002 Rookie of the Year award, Coppenrath won three straight Player of the Year awards (joining late, great Reggie Lewis as the only players in league history to win the award three times), leading the Catamounts to the NCAA tournament each time. His 14 Player of the Week awards are tied with former-NBA player Vin Baker for the most in America East history.

Coppenrath scored a combined 80 points in the league title game over his last two seasons at Vermont, earning championship MVP honors both years. His 43 points in the 2004 Championship Game (despite missing the previous three weeks and playing the entire game in a brace because of a broken wrist) remain an America East Championship Game record. Coppenrath, of course, would lead the Catamounts to their historic first-round upset of Syracuse University in the 2005 NCAA Tournament as a senior.

After turning pro, Coppernath went to training camp with the Boston Celtics in 2005 and Indiana Pacers in 2006, coming that close to making the league (according to several NBA insiders, if not for persistent back injuries that have nagged him throughout his career, Coppenrath would have been all but guaranteed at least a cup of coffee in the league).

Even though he came up short of his NBA dreams, Coppenrath has followed up one of the greatest college careers in America East history with one of the most successful professional careers of any AE alumn. In his eight years as a pro, Coppernath has played in the Euroleague (a trans-national league made up of the best teams from across Europe), as well as the top league’s in Greece (A1), Italy (SerieA), Spain (ACB – regarded as the top domestic league in the world outside of the NBA) as well as the second-division in Spain (LEB Oro) – all regarded as top domestic leagues.

After winning three league titles in college, as a professional, all Coppenrath has done is win. The LEB Oro (or LEB Gold) may be the second division in Spain, but it is widely regarded as a top-five league in Europe and Coppernath has entrenched himself as one of the league’s best players, guiding three different teams to the championship and a spot in the ACB the following season (the regular season and post season champions of the second division move up to the first division and the bottom two first division teams drop down to the following year).

Now Coppenrath has a chance to do it a fourth time, leading Lucentum Alicante (a team he has previously guided to a championship) through the playoffs and into a best-of-five championship series. Coppenrath’s eighth season of pro ball may have been his best, as he has averaged a team-best 14 points per game while shooting a robust 58.5 percent from the floor to go along with 5.8 rebounds (good for second on his team).

Coppenrath’s quest for his seventh championship (and fourth as a pro) tips off Friday, May 24, in a best-of-five game series.

Rashad Bell won the 2002 America East Championship at Boston University, now he’s playing for the Hungarian title.

If his career hadn’t coincided with Coppenrath’s, Bell would likely have been regarded as the premier America East power forward of his era. (more…)

For Immediate Release

NEW ENGLAND BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME
www.nebasketballhalloffame.com
Individual Honoree Press Release

TAYLOR COPPENRATH TO BE INDUCTED INTO THE NEW ENGLAND BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME

Taylor Coppenrath has been named to the 2013 New England Basketball Hall of Fame. On Saturday, June 22, Taylor Coppenrath will join other honorees representing a variety of categories including coaches, players, teams and special contributors at a major ceremony at the DCU Center in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Widely known as one of the best basketball players from the state of Vermont, Taylor Coppenrath will return home after a sixth season playing in Spain. This season he has been named MVP of the LEB ORO league four different weeks and MVP for the month of October. He is currently the top player on his team and one of the top ten players in the league. After graduating from UVM Taylor has played 8 years in the top leagues in Europe and was the “MVP” of the 2010 Spanish Prince Cup and he is the only player to play in four consecutive cups playing on three different teams!

In 2005,Taylor was a finalist for the John Wooden Award as he led the University of Vermont to an unprecedented season, capped by a legendary upset of Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament. He finished second all-time in scoring at UVM, was MVP at UVM for three years and third in America East conference history with 2,452 points. The America East Conference named Taylor “Player of the Year” three consecutive years, and he received the Reggie Lewis Most
Outstanding Player in 2004 and 2005. A scholar/athlete Taylor was named to the America East Academic Honor Roll in 2003, 2004, and 2005. Taylor finished his senior year at UVM second in the NCAA Div I in scoring with a 25.1 points per game average.

The June 22 event will include a series of afternoon panel discussions featuring a number of former NBA and WNBA players who will be inducted that evening, as well as famed coaches, such as John Caliperi of Kentucky, former UMASS Coach. Renowned novelist, Harlan Coben, who was an outstanding player at Amherst, will be among the inductees, and will serve as an afternoon panelist.

The event — as much reunion as ceremony — has become one of the largest sports dinners in America. At the last ceremony, the event welcomed over 1,600 people and was a sell out. The 2013 event is expected to be a sell out.

For further information, visit www.nebasketballhalloffame.com.

Caption: St. James’s Serman Harris (11) defends as Dre Wills of Mercersburg Academy drives to the basket on Tuesday, December 4, 2012. (Public Opinion/Ryan Blackwell)

(Burlington, VT) – It was a very happy birthday indeed for Vermont head coach John Becker last Wednesday. On the day he turned 45, Becker received the best gift a coach could ask for: a verbal commitment from Harry “Dre: Wills – a player with the skill set to turn every one of the Catamounts’ weaknesses into strengths.

Vermont fans may have to go all the way back to high-flying Tobe Carberry (’00) to find a Catamount guard with a similar skill-set to Wills. An extremely athletic, incredibly tough and very physical 6’1” combo-guard, Wills’ is a bit rough around the edges and a suspect shooter from behind the arc, but he is an elite-level defender, an elbows-above-the rim-athlete and a big-time play maker capable of blowing by his man off the bounce, slashing into the paint and finishing at – and well above – the rim.

Wills comes to Vermont from Indiana by way of a post-graduate year at Mercersburg Academy, a prep-school in Pennsylvania and had significant interest from, among others, Butler, Loyola-Chicago, Siena and Wisconsin-Green Bay and was also recruited by the likes of Xavier and Michigan before committing to the Catamounts. (more…)

After being relegated to the bench by injuries, Albany junior Luke Devlin took center stage in the Championship Game, scoring 12 points on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting to help lead Albany to the title and the NCAA Tournament (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Burlington, VT) – Dripping sweat and draped in the Australian national flag, a shy smile spread across Luke Devlin’s face.

Devlin had just played a starring role in Albany’s 53-49 championship game shocker over Vermont, punching the Great Danes’ ticket to the NCAA Tournament by swishing all six of his shots from the floor. Against the Catamounts vaunted front-line, Devlin was unstoppable on offense, leading all post players in scoring with 12 points, while adding five rebounds, two steals and an assist.

Now he was at the center of the media swarm in the post game press conference.

“He was huge today,” said Albany head coach Will Brown after the win, “he’s not bothered by the moment.”

“I just got the opportunity to play a bit more tonight, knocked down some shots and it is what it is,” said Devlin, downplaying his dominant performance.

Two years ago, starring for the conference champion was exactly where the native of Sydney, Australia was supposed to be. Two weeks ago, it seemed all but impossible.

When he arrived on campus in the summer of 2010, Devlin was a star in the making – The Man from The Land Down Under. A 6’8” 230 pound forward with a silky-smooth jumper, nose for the basketball and a knack for pulling down tough rebounds in traffic, Devlin made an impact in the paint and on the perimeter and could take over a game on both ends of the floor. As a freshman, Devlin averaged 7.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 30 minutes per game and was named to the All-Rookie Team.

Two years later, Devlin was a forgotten man: recruited over and buried under a mountain of injuries. (more…)

The Great Danes rushed the court in hostile Patrick Gymnasium to celebrate their shocking 53-49 upset of the Vermont Catamounts to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Burlington, VT) – A tidal wave of purple cascaded down over the wooden the bleachers of Patrick Gymnasium, burst through the green and gold floodgates and crashed onto the hardwood floor.

Amidst the sea of purple and gold chaos, first-year Albany assistant coach Jon Iati –who had helped lead the Great Danes to their first two NCAA Tournaments as a player – assistant coach Jeremy Friel – who had first competed against Iati at rival New Hampshire before coaching him as a member of the staff at Albany – and associate head coach Chad O’Donnell bear-hugged at center court; leaping and shouting in celebration – grown men turned kids again by the magic of the moment.

Iati’s younger brother Jacob, a fifth-year senior shooting guard who followed his brother to Albany initially as a walk-on transfer, fought frantically through the fray, searching for his teammate and best friend Mike Black. The diminutive-duo had stood tall as pillars of the program over the grind of the season, and in the biggest game of their lives Saturday, the pint-sized playmakers towered over the court, combining for 22 points.

When Iati finally found his back-court mate, tears were pouring from Black’s eyes and streaming down his face. Now, amidst the uproar, they shared an embrace.

Great Danes head coach Will Brown, wearing a sedated smile, quietly ducked out of the spotlight to find his family: kissing his wife Jamie and embracing his son Jackson.

The final buzzer had sounded. The clock read “0:00,” but it still hadn’t struck midnight on the Great Danes and their fairytale season.

Albany had run the gauntlet through the America East Tournament, exorcising demons and slaying dragons every step of the way. And now, the scoreboard read “Albany 53, Vermont 49” and the Great Danes were the America East Champions. (more…)

Trey Blue’s long and winding basketball odyssey has been a long and winding road, wrought with obstacles and tragedy, but he has finally found peace as a fifth-year senior at Vermont (Photo by Sam Perkins).

Special Submission to One Bid Wonders

By: Kyle Barry

If You’re Going Through Hell, Keep Going.
- Winston Churchill

It wasn’t the senior day he had imagined (or could have ever predicted), but there he was, standing at center court, holding his framed Vermont jersey in one hand and his infant son in the other, posing for pictures while the Patrick Gym crowd gave him a standing ovation. The crowd was the usual greying bunch—members of the Burlington community who, while undyingly supportive, are rarely raucous, and who usually prefer to sit on Patrick Gym’s unforgiving wooden roll-out bleachers rather than stand and cheer for any length of time. But this was UVM’s annual celebration of its senior class, and, before tip-off against visiting Hartford, it was Trey Blue’s turn to be honored.

It was a long time coming.

For basketball purposes, Horace “Trey” Blue III is a one-year transfer and fifth-year senior, though technically he’s neither—he isn’t a “senior,” he’s a graduate student, and he didn’t “transfer,” he graduated from Illinois State and then enrolled, this past fall, at UVM. Trey took a rather unorthodox route to campus, first spending a year at Fordham University in the Bronx before transferring to Illinois State, where, after paying his own tuition during his transfer year, he played for two seasons and obtained his undergraduate degree. He also has an extraordinary basketball pedigree, having come of age within the City of Chicago’s ocean-deep talent pool of future NBA draft picks and college superstars. (By the time he was twelve-years-old, Trey was traveling around the country playing AAU basketball alongside future NBA Most Valuable Player Derrick Rose. For four years, Trey and Rose played in the same backcourt, with Rose drawing defenders and feeding Trey for open jump shots, and Trey lobbing alley-oop passes to Rose.)

In his single season at Vermont, Trey has been a crucial offensive threat on a team that has twenty-one victories and is one win away from the NCAA Tournament. He’s played in all thirty-one games, scoring 8.5 points per contest, answering every call – either as energy off the bench, a glue guy holding the team together, or a shooter in the starting lineup.

In the last ten games (including two in the conference tournament), Trey started while shooting guard Candon Rusin played reduced minutes with a toe injury. During that stretch, Trey increased his scoring output to over ten points a game, and emerged as a more versatile and aggressive combo-guard—a player who will not only hit open shots but who can dependably handle the ball and attack the rim. In a non-conference game against Canisius, for example, he scored seventeen points on 6-9 shooting (2-4 from three), and picked up four assists working adroitly with freshman forward Ethan O’Day on the pick-and-roll. And late in the regular season finale against Hartford, Trey asserted himself in crunch time, getting to the rim off a quick crossover dribble and setting up a tip-in that tied the game with thirty-four seconds to play (the Cats would lose on a buzzer beater).

For the fans at Patrick Gym, it was this single season of achievement for which they stood and applauded on senior day. But for Trey the moment was about much more; it was the culmination of all he had been through, both good and bad, on his long journey from feted, sure-thing recruit to father and impact college player—and it could hardly have come at a more symbolically significant time.

One week earlier, Trey’s son Carter had turned one year-old. Two weeks before that, and after years of delay, the man who brutally murdered Carter’s aunt and baby cousin was convicted, finally, of two counts of first degree murder.
These milestones, inextricably intertwined with Trey’s trajectory as a college basketball player, reminded Trey of how fragile youthful hoop dreams can be (pedigree be damned), and how grateful he was to be there, in that moment, standing between those roll-out bleachers and waving to the standing Vermont crowd. (more…)

Vermont forwards Clancy Rugg (31) and Ethan O’Day (32) impede New Hampshire forward Ferg Myrick’s path to the hoop in the Catamounts 61-42 win in the America East Tournament quarterfinals (Photo by Sam Perkins

(Albany, New York) – In basketball, as in life, at some point, everyone and every team gets knocked down – It’s what happens after the fall that counts.

The Vermont Catamounts have tripped, slipped and been flat-out floored several times this season.

Multiple times, the Catamounts have been knocked down for an eight count: There were the back-to-back December losses – on the road to a bad Rhode Island team and at home to Towson; a season-sweep on a pair of lackluster performances to arch-rival BU; a beat-down at the hands of first-place Stony Brook on the heels of their second loss to the Terriers; and an inexplicable no-show on their home court in their season finale against Hartford (a team with which they share no love-loss).

But every time Vermont has fallen, the Catamounts have picked themselves back up off the mat and come back fighting harder than before.

And that’s why, when the dust of the America East Tournament settled and top-seeded Stony Brook – the regular season runaway champion – and three-seed Hartford – the Tournament “dark horse” in the eyes of many – had been felled, the Catamounts were still standing. (more…)

Vermont head coach John Becker (standing) may be quick to duck out of the limelight and deflect praise, but over his two years at the helm, he’s emerged as the league’s top coach (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Albany, New York) — It is said that teams often embody their coach. After back-to-back comebacks in the America East Tournament – a turning on the second-half jets quarterfinal win over New Hampshire, and a do-or-die 85-72 win over UMBC in the semifinals – and a punched ticket to the title game, nowhere is that more true than with the down-but-never-out Vermont Catamounts and second-year head coach John Becker,

Neither flashy nor fancy, Becker is not a hype man, self-promoter or mouthpiece – and is decidedly not a “rah-rah” guy. A soft-spoken players coach, he is a lunch-pail and hard-hat gamer, a blue-collar grinder who gets his hands dirty.

In the era of sideline theatrics where outspoken coaches pander to the camera, Becker has deflected credit during press conferences, praising his players while downplaying his own accomplishments.

But his accomplishments speak at a far more deafening decibel level than boisterous boasting ever could: He is the hard-working, hardwood embodiment of Teddy Roosevelt’s proclamation to “speak softly, and carry a big stick.”

All he does is win. (more…)

Nate Sikma watches, along with the capacity crowd at Patrick Gymnasium, as his three-pointer at the buzzer hangs in the air. Sikma’s shot found the bottom of the net, giving the Hawks a 61-58 win (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Burlington, VT) – The saying goes that numbers don’t lie, but on a cold Sunday in The Green Mountain State, they did just that.

In nearly every statistical category, host Vermont pasted visiting Hartford: The Catamounts out-rebounded the Hawks by a staggering 20 boards, 34-14, while outscoring Hartford 28-10 in the paint and 27-18 off the bench. Vermont outshot Hartford from the floor (50 percent to 43.9 percent), outscored them in second-chance and fast-break points while taking seven more free throws than the Hawks, who were whistled for 10 more fouls.

But when sophomore forward Nate Sikma’s pick-and-pop three from the left corner found the bottom of the net as the final buzzer echoed off of the back wall of Patrick Gymnasium – a shot that survived the ensuing official review – it was Hartford who walked off the court the 61-58 winner.

Toughness, effort and energy – along with dead-eye sharpshooting from behind the arc – proved to be the great equalizer for the Hawks, who snapped a 15 game losing streak against the Catamounts with their first victory over Vermont since 2006.

“They flat out beat us tonight,” said Vermont forward Luke Apfeld, “They just came out and kind of took it to us on our home court.”

“If you have toughness and energy, if you have those two you can win a lot of games,” said third-year Hartford head coach John Gallagher, whose team improved to 17-10 on the season and 10-6 in conference play.

It wasn’t always pretty, but the Hawks simply played harder for longer than the comatose Catamounts, out-hustling Vermont to loose-balls, getting under the Catamounts’ skin in scrums and flustering and frustrating Vermont’s offense with frenetic D: The Catamounts committed 20 turnovers to just seven assists.

“They were tougher than us across the board today and the turnovers were a clear indicator of that,” said Apfeld.

Playing the majority of the game without star forward and go-to scorer Mark Nwakamma, the Hawks buried 12 three’s while shooting a blistering 48 percent from behind the arc (12-of-25).

“We have toughness; we find ways to win,” said Gallagher. “We’re a program now – we’re much more than just one player.” (more…)

Stony Brook forwards Tommy Brenton (24) and Eric McAlister box out Vermont center Ben Crenca in the Seawolves 65-48 win Friday night (Photo by Sam Perkins).

(Stony Brook, NY) – Only time will tell if this was the “Statement Win” that has long eluded Stony Brook Men’s basketball in its quest for America East supremacy, but the Seawolves sure made a statement Friday night, stomping Vermont.

Squaring off against their bitter-rival – and the team that dashed their NCAA tournament dreams a year ago – before a packed house partisan fans, Stony Brook rose to the occasion, crushing the Catamounts 65-48 in a game no where near as close as the final score. In doing so the Seawolves grabbed a stranglehold of first place in the standings, entrenching themselves on the inside track in the race for a regular season title and the coveted top-seed in the conference tournament.

“We played a real good basketball team in Vermont and we played really well,” said Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell.

“They out toughed us; they out-played us; they out-shot us; they kicked us all over,” said Vermont head coach John Becker.

They say revenge is a dish best served cold, and against a Catamount squad that had bested them in three straight games – including last year’s Championship Game – the Seawolves did just that, holding Vermont to an icy 36.7 percent shooting from the floor (18-of-49) and 26.3 percent from behind the arc (5-of-19). Stony Brook forced 13 Catamounts’ turnovers, turning them into 26 points, and held Vermont to a season-low in scoring.

“Defensively they gave up their bodies,” said Pikiell of his team. “We swarmed today, this was the kind of defense we need to play.”

On offense, the Seawolves used a first-half three-point barrage to space the floor and open up a lead in the first half, before bulldozing the Catamounts in the paint after the intermission.

Freshman center Jameel Warney shrugged off double – and many times, triple – teams in the post to notch a double-double, scoring 12 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting to go with 10 rebounds. Warney scored all but two of his points after the intermission and poured in eight points in the opening five minutes of the second half to turn a six point lead into a 14 point runaway.

“Give credit to Vermont in the first half for playing tough defense: They wouldn’t let me get the ball. But you start to see chances open up, and we knew we had to attack,” said Warney, who added a blocked shot and altered several more on the defensive end.

While Warney finished off the Catamounts, it was reserve guard Marcus Rouse who started the romp, scoring a team high 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor. Rouse took advantage of the defensive attention being paid to Warney in the paint to drill 4-of-5 shots from the perimeter. (more…)