AmEast Recap: Week 2 – Yahoo Sports

Let’s get into it. 250ish words on each game below.

Thursday, Jan. 8

UMBC 69, Maine 62

-TJ Biel is unbelievable. He’s a sure-fire All-Conference player. There isn’t a single other solid offensive option for the Black Bears, yet he simply willed the team into a competitive performance. He scored 27 of Maine’s 62 points, grabbed 10 of the team’s 24 defensive rebounds, and recorded three of the team’s four blocks. He drew Josh Odunowo on defense, and although UMBC’s power forward has looked off in the early going, Biel still shut him down.

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-I loved all the ways Maine got Biel the ball, especially as a roller (which I think might be the best way to unlock Chris Markwood’s ball-screen motion offense), and Markwood drew up some clever post entries for him. There are so many different ways he can score, and he’s a super impactful defender.

-Although nobody could stop Biel, Riley Jacobs did a half-decent job containing him. I thought it was a very good game for the freshman center, who worked his ass off on defense, grabbed seven boards (including four offensive) and managed 10 points with a few nice mid-range jumpers. He was arguably UMBC’s most important player down the stretch, making a few key game-closing plays.

-Still, Maine lost this game. UMBC’s dribble defenders are good, but the Bears have nobody who can playmake or shot-create off the bounce, which results in far too many free-throw-line pull-up jumpers. Even Biel didn’t get to the rim too often, but thanks to his heroics, the Bears shot 8-for-10 in that area.

-Maine did an excellent job messing with UMBC’s off-ball actions, but eventually the Retrievers started driving downhill and getting to the rim. Jah’likai King and Ace Valentine were effective, but I thought Caden Diggs had an awesome game off the bench. Even when Markwood switched to zone, Diggs was good as a high-post pin, and the guards cut very effectively behind Maine’s extended pressure.

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-I loved this play…

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Publish date : 2026-01-13 17:27:00

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