UMBC's 57th season opened with a game against Penn State York on November 4th, marking the 39th season of DI hoops for the Black and Gold. Now, they're set to finish their seven-game home stand against Morgan State. This comes after a stretch of seven games in just 17 days in November. The series history shows Morgan State took a 15-14 edge last season with Marcus Banks Jr. and Bryce Johnson scoring in double-figures for UMBC while Wynston Tabbs and Will Thomas had big games for the Bears. UMBC has lost five of their last six meetings against Morgan State but is 9-10 at home against them and has won five straight at home.

Last Time Out: UMBC's Dominant Win

Senior guard Bryce Johnson scored 26 of his game-high 28 points in the second half, leading the host UMBC men's basketball team to a 95-77 victory over the Howard Bison on Monday afternoon. More than 1,000 elementary and middle school children attended Midday Madness. Johnson buried 10-of-15 field goal attempts and 4-of-7 from behind the arc. He said, "I wouldn't have gotten those shots without good ball movement and my teammates allowing me to get open and setting screens." Senior guard Marcus Banks Jr. had 17 points, six rebounds and three steals. Sophomore guard Ace Valentine contributed a season-high 16 points and seven assists. The Retrievers shot 60.3 percent from the floor, draining 35-of-58 field goals and 12-for-24 from long-distance in the second half. They overcame a 66-61 deficit with 9:39 remaining and pulled away with 12 consecutive points. Blake Harper led the Bison with 20 points.

UMBC's Shooting Prowess

UMBC leads the AE with 9.3 three-pointers made per game this season. Their 17 makes against Valley Forge were an America East single-game high. The Retrievers also lead the league in 3-pt field goal percentage at.385. Marcus Banks Jr. (2.9) and Louie Jordan (2.3) rank 2nd and 8th respectively in treys per game. Jordan is first in 3-pt percentage at.486 while Banks Jr. is 4th at.451.

Sharing the Ball for Success

UMBC dished an America East high 31 assists in the win versus Valley Forge, their highest output since 2022. It was also the most in the conference since Maine and Bryant recorded 32 during the 2022-23 season. The Retrievers lead the league in assists per game at 15.5. Ace Valentine is third in the league with 4.0 helpers per game and is 2nd in assist/turnover ratio at 2.3.

Bryce Johnson's Tough Defense

Bryce Johnson drew a career-high eight fouls in back-to-back games against Coppin State and Saint Peter's. He leads the squad with 33 fouls drawn thus far in 2024-25.

A Program on the Rise

UMBC is enjoying their best stretch in program history, going 148-112 (.570) over the past nine seasons. They had three straight 20+ win seasons from 2016-17 to 2018-19, with 25 victories in 2017-18 being a program-high. They became the first #16 seed to knock off a #1 seed when they shocked Virginia in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena officially opened in 2018 and has hosted many events.

Coach Ferry's Impact

Jim Ferry is in his 23rd season as a collegiate head coach and his third at UMBC. He led the Retrievers to consecutive 18-14 records and an appearance in the America East Finals in 2021-22. Before coming to Baltimore, he served as the interim head coach at Penn State, leading the Nittany Lions to an 11-14 overall mark and a 7-12 Big Ten record with wins over NCAA Tournament teams. He spent 10 seasons at LIU Brooklyn, guiding the program to unprecedented success with Northeast Conference regular-season and tournament championships in 2011 and 2012 and their first NCAA Championship appearance in 14 years.

Up Next for UMBC

UMBC will travel to D.C. to take on Georgetown at Capital One Arena on Monday, Dec. 2 at 6:30.