Big Green Sent Back Home with 80-53 Loss

Wednesday, December 1

Burlington, Vt.

7:00 PM

Dartmouth College

2-5

Vermont

5-1

Dartmouth

Vermont

12/1/2010 10:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Dartmouth

BURLINGTON, Vt. — Vermont utilized its size advantage to defeat visiting Dartmouth on Wednesday evening at Patrick Gymnasium by a final score of 80-53. The Catamounts (5-1) controlled the glass, grabbing 45 rebounds — 13 by Brian Voelkel — compared to just 27 for the Big Green, and outscored Dartmouth (2-4) on second-chance points by a 15-0 margin.

Both Joey Accaoui and Evan Fjeld topped 20 points for Vermont, with Accaoui electrifying the crowd of 2,160 with five three-pointers to score a career-high 21 points. Accaoui's previous high came last year in Hanover against the Big Green with 17 points. Fjeld proved to be a strong presence in the paint, hitting 8-of-12 from the floor for 20 points, grabbing nine rebounds and blocking four shots. As a team, the Catamounts hit 52.5 percent (31-of-59) of its field goals.

At the other end of the court, Dartmouth had trouble connecting on its shots, converting just 20-of-59 (.339) from the floor. Accuracy was better from outside the arc, however, as five Big Green players contributed a total of eight three-pointers in 18 tries (.444), led by sophomore R.J. Griffin who hit 3-of-6 trifectas while scoring a team-high 11 points. Freshman Tyler Melville scored in double figures for the first time in his career, tallying 10 while handing out three assists.

It was Griffin who put Dartmouth on the board with his first of three three-pointers, giving the Green their only lead of the night at 3-1. Simeon Marsalis quickly answered with a driving layup to tie the game, and after Melville traded buckets with Vermont's Brendan Bald, the Catamounts gradually began to pull away.

Accaoui helped create the first double-digit lead of the evening for Vermont with a pair of threes, followed by a 15-footer for a 24-14 advantage with 9:35 left in the first half. Griffin hit consecutive shots for the Big Green, including another triple, slashing that 10-point deficit in half. Vermont continued to build the bulge back to at least 10, even when junior David Rufful bumped it back under with a layup and classmate Jabari Trotter popped a three-pointer. Brian Voelkel canned a pair of free throws for the final points of the half and allow the Catamounts to take a 37-26 lead into the locker room.

The point differential hovered between 11 and 15 for the first five minutes of the second stanza before Accaoui found his stroke again by drilling a trio of treys in a two-and-a-half-minute span. The only way Dartmouth was able to keep Vermont from pushing its lead over 20 was with three-pointers by Melville and Rufful.

But the Catamounts continued to stretch the lead as Pat Bergmann contributed a layup with just under 10 minutes to play, making it a 61-40 contest. Trotter hit another three-pointer in response, and Griffin pitched in his third three of the night a few minutes later, but the outcome was well in hand. Dartmouth head coach Paul Cormier played five freshman for the final five minutes of the game, one of which — James Herring — recorded his first collegiate points with an 18-footer.

Dartmouth has a 10-day break between games due to exams. The next Big Green battle on the court will be against Army at home in Leede Arena on Saturday, Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. Vermont hosts another Ivy League school, Yale, on Dec. 4 at 1 p.m.