Under the Radar Game of the Day: The Citadel at UMBC

The Citadel at UMBC, 7:00 PM Eastern, espn3

The Under the Radar Game of the Day heads to Baltimore, Maryland tonight for some awesome sandwiches at Chap’s Pit Beef followed by a non-conference matchup between the UMBC Retrievers and The Citadel Bulldogs.  UMBC enters play tonight at 7-3 overall, the school’s best start through ten games since 2007-08.  Although the Retrievers lost their last two games (at Richmond and at Towson), the program has shown more life this season then in quite a few years and is attempting to prove that they will be a factor in America East play this year.  Jairus Lyles has been the focus of the team’s offense so far this season, having scored in double-digits each game that he has played, including a 29 point effort in the loss to Richmond.  Also keep an eye on sophomore Joe Sherburne, who had a team high 28 points in a win over Mount St. Mary’s.

Tonight, the Retrievers opponent will be The Citadel Bulldogs, who come in running the fastest tempo in the nation according to KenPom, with over 84 possession per 40 minutes.  They also come in with one of the worst defensive ratings in the country (350 out of 351), which is not surprising given how fast they push the offense.  The Bulldogs are 7-5 on the season, though that does include three non-D1 wins.  The Citadel has not posted a winning record since 2008-09, and is one of five programs that has been a member of Division I since its inception and never qualified for the NCAA tournament.  Although a tournament berth is very doubtful this season, the winning overall record is a good sign so far for a program that has certainly had its struggles.