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America East Basketball: 2020 conference tournament preview and predictions

By Joe Weidenburner

CATONSVILLE, MD - FEBRUARY 21: The American East Conference logo on the floor before a college basketball game between the Vermont Catamounts and the UMBC Retrievers at the Event Center on February 21, 2019 in Catsonville, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
CATONSVILLE, MD - FEBRUARY 21: The American East Conference logo on the floor before a college basketball game between the Vermont Catamounts and the UMBC Retrievers at the Event Center on February 21, 2019 in Catsonville, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /
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MILWAUKEE, WI – MARCH 16: Vermont
MILWAUKEE, WI – MARCH 16: Vermont /

Key Teams 2020 America East Tournament

Team to beat: Vermont

Vermont’s recent dominance in America East play is unrivaled as the school won its fourth consecutive regular-season conference title and looks to compete in its fifth straight conference tournament championship game. NBA prospect Anthony Lamb and junior point guard Stef Smith lead a balanced attack that ranks in the top-100 in both adjusted offensive and defensive efficiencies according to KenPom.

Top competitor: Stony Brook

Stony Brook boasts a very good defense, but most important is the return from injury of Elijah Olaniyi who is critical to this team’s potential for tournament success. Stony Brook went 3-3 in Olaniyi’s absence. When healthy, Olaniyi has the potential to put Stony Brook on his back and lead this team to the conference championship game for the first time since winning the tournament in 2016.

Under the radar: UMBC

After an uncharacteristically down year under Ryan Odom, the UMBC Retrievers will look to recreate some of the March magic it possessed in the 2018 NCAA Tournament when it became the only 16-seed to knock off a 1-seed. UMBC finished the regular season on a positive note knocking off second-seeded Stony Brook and securing home-court advantage in its quarterfinal matchup with New Hampshire.

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