At the start of a new season there’s always one question … can a championship be won? The men’s basketball team has a promising chance to get that coveted title that has eluded them in past years.

Last season saw a disappointing loss to New Hampshire in the America East quarterfinals. While they were not able to reach their ultimate goal, they did qualify for the College Insider Tournament. During this intense competition, the Retrievers made it to the semi-finals before being defeated by Texas A&M Corpus Christi. While the team fell a bit short, they still proved they can hang with some of the best teams this country has to offer.

The win total from last year nearly doubled the likes of the 2015-16 season. That success is encouraging because this year UMBC returns four of their five starters as well as nine letter-winners to complete a veteran lineup.

The progress of the team will be tested during the later part of the season when they begin conference play against their America East rivals. The beginning of this tough stretch will start with the team who ended their dreams last season, the New Hampshire Wildcats. This game has the potential of being a fantastic indicator towards whether or not the Retrievers can do some serious damage come playoff time. So far, this year’s team has been great during crunch time in order to win close games, and can use their vast experience to pave the way for the younger contributors on the team.

With another year of coaching under his belt, Coach Ryan Odom has officially implemented his coaching style that has proved to be beneficial in growing this team into one of the conference’s best. This season looks like it could finally be the year that UMBC takes back an America East Championship.

Archaeology in Greece
Summer 2018
Informational Meeting
Wednesday, December 13, 12–1 p.m.
(Reading Day, lunchtime), PAHB 441

Learn about archaeology training & experience available to all UMBC students through 

Prof. Michael Lane, Ancient Studies Department
ARCH 350(03) SP 18 “Archaeological Methods & Techniques” Prereq. Excavation, Survey, Archaeological Geophysics, Materials Analysis, Curation et cetera

The Women's Center will be operating under reduced hours beginning study day and through the winter term. Please plan accordingly!

The UMBC men’s basketball team (4-4) will face off against the Delaware State University Hornets (2-6) on Wednesday Dec. 6. The Retrievers have had a good season thus far, winning all of their home games and currently ranked fifth in the America East conference standings. They look to get back to their winning ways after seeing their three game win streak come to an end during their last game against the Army Black Knights (4-2). Their opponents, the Hornets, are on a two game losing streak and have scored 70 or more points in just two games this season.

Retriever guard Jairus Lyles will look to continue his stellar play and lead the the Retrievers to another W. Lyles ranks in the top 100 offensive leaders throughout all of Division 1 basketball. He is averaging 19.7 points per game, with a field goal percentage of 47.5, and shooting over 81 percent from the stripe. Senior point guard K.J. Maura is also playing at a tremendous level, ranking amongst the top 25 in assistant to turnover ratio at a 4.17 rate.

UMBC’s high flying offense has been exciting to watch throughout the first eight games of the season. The Retrievers are averaging over 82 points and 16.5 assists per game, which both rank in the top half of teams across the nation. The attack is shifting into gear and the defense is performing admirably, which can make for a lethal combination with conference play on the horizon.

In their last home win, the Retrievers outscored the Shenandoah Hornets (3-3) by 29 points in a 88-59 win. In that game, junior forward Joe Sherburne, sophomore forward Arkel Lamar and senior guard K.J. Maura all posted double digit points.

The Retrievers are doing well, and will hope they can continue the trend against the Hornets. They have not won on the road this season, and this game provides them with the perfect opportunity to flip the switch. The game against Delaware State is the third of four consecutive road games for the Retrievers before a home game against Coppin State on Tuesday Dec. 12.