Written by Mark Bergin

This piece was written and produced by Mark Bergin, a senior multiplatform producer at WRAL.

Brooklyn, N.Y.

Duke has obtained the No. 4 seed for the 2024 NCAA Tournament and is set to face off against the Vermont Catamounts, ranked as the No. 13 seed, in the first round on Friday.

The match is set to start at 7:10 p.m. EST on Friday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. It will be broadcasted on CBS.

The two groups are competing in the Southern division.

On Thursday, Duke (24-8, 15-5 in the ACC) was defeated by NC State 74-69 in the quarterfinal round of the ACC Tournament.

Duke guard Tyrese Proctor stated on Thursday that a new season has begun. As a result, all teams are starting with a clean record as they enter the last month and the upcoming tournament. We will take lessons from our experiences and continue to make progress.

Duke’s regular season came to a close with a defeat of 84-79 against their rival North Carolina at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Prior to this, they had achieved three consecutive victories. The team finished strong, winning eight of their last 10 regular-season games.

After winning their third consecutive American East conference championship, Vermont (28-6, 15-1) heads into the NCAA Tournament with a 10-game winning streak. In their latest game on Saturday, the Catamounts defeated UMass Lowell 66-61.

“Duke coach Jon Scheyer expressed his concentrated energy and appreciation for the chance to compete against Vermont,” he stated. “I hold a great deal of admiration for them and Coach Becker. Their exceptional record speaks for itself. Whenever we face a team that has been crowned champions of their conference and tournament, we anticipate a highly significant matchup.”

The upcoming Friday’s match will signify the third back-to-back appearance of the Catamounts in the NCAA Tournament. Led by head coach John Becker, Vermont has qualified for the NCAA Tournament in 2012, 2017, 2019, 2022, and 2023. Despite this, the team has been unable to progress to the second round during Becker’s time as coach.

Since 2011, Becker has been the head coach of Vermont. Prior to that role, he served as an assistant coach at the school from 2006 to 2011.

In 2005, Vermont achieved its first win in the NCAA Tournament when it defeated Syracuse in overtime, earning a spot in the second round. This occurred during former head coach Tom Brennan’s tenure.

The Vermont team this season has three players who consistently score in double digits: Junior guards TJ Long (12.2 points per game) and Shamir Bogues (11 points per game), and senior guard Aaron Deloney (10.9 points per game).

Bogues, a guard who transferred from Tarleton State, holds the title of leading rebounder for the team with an average of 5.2 rebounds per game. He was honored with the title of Most Outstanding Player in the American East Tournament. In the championship game on Saturday, he scored 15 points, grabbed nine rebounds, dished out three assists, and had four steals with no turnovers.

Vermont has not won any of their two games against Quad 1 teams this season.

Source: wralsportsfan.com