BURLINGTON, Vt. – TJ Hurley scored 24 of his game-high 29 points in the second half as second-seeded Vermont defeated the seventh-seeded Bryant men's basketball team, 73-55, on Saturday in the quarterfinal round of the 2026 Air Force Reserve America East Playoffs at Patrick Gymnasium.
 
With the loss, the Bulldogs close the season with an overall record of 9-22. Vermont advances to host a semifinal game on Tuesday night.
 
Bryant made it a four-point game with 8:30 remaining but Vermont outscored the Bulldogs 24-8 down the stretch to pull away for the victory.
 
Keegan Harvey led Bryant with 21 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field, 3-of-4 from three and 6-of-6 from the line. Timofei Rudovskii added 15 points and six boards.

Game Information
No. 2 Vermont 77, No. 7 Bryant 57
Records: Bryant 9-22| Vermont 21-11
Location: Patrick Gymnasium (Burlington, Vt.)
Attendance: 1,936

Key Moments

• A three-point play from Hurley with 6:55 to play ignited the home crowd and helped Vermont pull away.

How it Happened

• Bryant grabbed an early 6-2 lead as it made each of its first three shots.
• UVM grabbed a 7-6 lead at the under-16 thanks to a three from Blake. The run would extend to 12-0 and give the Catamounts a 14-6 lead.
• A three-point play from Harvey and free throws from Jakai Robinson and Rudovskii would keep Bryant within five but the Catamounts scored the next eight points to make it 26-13 with 7:45 to play in the first half.
• The Catamounts led 33-21 at the under-4 media thanks to Hurley's first three of the afternoon.
• UVM would lead by 17 with 1:25 left after Ben Johnson hit a three after Vermont ran down a missed free throw.
• Harvey, however, canned back-to-back threes to end the half and Bryant within 11, 38-27, at the break.
• Harvey led all scorers with 13 points in the opening 20.
• Bryant would cut the deficit to seven to begin the second half but a foul on a three-point attempt and a questionable flagrant foul on the same play started an 8-0 run for the Catamounts. (46-31)
• The Black and Gold would answer with their own 8-0 run to pull within seven. Rudovskii capped the run with a drive through traffic for a three-point play.
• Trailing by 10 with 11:36 to go, Allen swished a three and Harvey finished an and-1 to pull Bryant within four, 53-49, with 8:30 left.
• UVM, however, scored the next 12 points to take a commanding 65-49 lead with 4:58 left.
• The Catamounts closed it out from there.

Stats

• Bryant finished the game 17-of-38 (44.7 percent) from the field, 6-of-15 (40.0 percent) from three and 17-of-22 (77.3 percent) from the line.
• Vermont held a 29-20 edge on the glass and a 38-16 advantage in paint scoring.
• Harvey finished with 21 points and five rebounds before fouling out.
• Rudovskii added 15 points, six rebounds and two assists in a full 40 minutes.
• Allen chipped in seven points off the bench, while Tabales and Robinson each added six.
• Hurley led all scorers with 29 points (9-12 FG, 5-7 3pFG).

Game Notes

• Bryant falls to 2-9 all-time against Vermont and has lost all six trips to Patrick Gymnasium.
• Bryant finished the year 1-17 on the road.
• The Bullldogs lost in the America East Quarterfinals for the second time (2023).
• Bryant is now 9-10 in conference tournament play at the DI level. The Bulldogs are 0-7 on the road.
• Harvey finished in double figures for the 13th time in the last 14 games.
• Harvey notched his sixth 20-point game and his second in as many games.
• Rudovskii posted his 25^th double-digit scoring effort, the most by a freshmen in DI program history.
• With 14 points, Rudovskii joined Alex Francis and Nisre Zouzoua as the only freshmen in DI program history to record 400+ points in a single season.
• Allen returned to the lineup for the first time since Jan. 8.
• Robinson recorded six points in his 87^th and final collegiate game.