Dons Notes: Breaking Down San Francisco’s Non-Conference Schedule

Mar 16, th2013; Burlington, VT, USA; The Vermont Catamounts bench reacts as they take on the Albany Great Danes in the second half during the championship game of the America East tournament at Patrick Gymnasium. Albany defeated Vermont 53-49. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Vermont Catamounts

GOLDEN GATE CHALLENGE

Friday, November 29th. San Francisco, California.

Last Season: 21-12 (11-5 America East)

You haven’t heard about the Vermont Catamounts? Well, let me tell you, these guys finished the 2012-2013 campaign with their fifth straight 20 win season (10th in the last 12 years) and return all five of their starters. Vermont will be stacked with six seniors on this years squad with hopes of returning to the postseason with an NCAA tournament berth. Last year, the Catamounts’ season ended with an opening round loss to Santa Clara in the CBI Tournament – a tournament the Broncos eventually won.

Ryan Pierson is a junior transfer from Northeastern that stands at 6’10”. He could make a key impact in this match up, but he may still be injured from a lower leg fracture suffered during early team workouts. He was expected to miss half of the Vermont season. This leaves Vermont well below 100% on the court but definitely not out in the most anticipated game of the Golden Gate Challenge.