Monday, November 24
Kissimmee, Fla.
1:30 PM ET
Liberty University
5-0,0-0CUSA
79
vs
73
Vermont
4-2,0-0America East
1
2
F
Liberty
40
39
79
Vermont
32
41
73
Flames Down Catamounts 79-73 in ESPN Events Invitational Quarterfinals
11/24/2025 5:02:00 PM | Men's Basketball
KISSIMMEE, Fla. – The Liberty Flames took control of the game in the early going and downed the Vermont Catamounts 79-73, Monday afternoon in their first game of the ESPN Events Invitational at State Farm Field House.
Liberty stays unbeaten on the year, improving to 5-0. The Flames will move on to face Towson (4-2) in the semifinal round, Tuesday afternoon at noon on ESPN2. Towson topped Rhode Island 62-55 in the first game of the day. Vermont falls to 4-2 after its second straight loss. The Catamounts move to the consolation bracket and will face Rhode Island tomorrow at 2:30 p.m.
Brett Decker Jr. paced the Flames with a game-high 23 points. Zach Cleveland delivered another strong all-around performance with 14 points, six rebounds, seven assists, two blocks and two steals. Kaden Metheny finished with 14 points, and Colin Porter added 10 point, five boards, four assists and two steals.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Brett Decker Jr. 23 points, 7-11 FG, 5-7 3FG, 4 rebounds; Zach Cleveland 14 points, 6-7 FG, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 blocks, 2 steals; Kaden Metheny 14 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists; Colin Porter 10 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals
Vermont Individuals: TJ Long 19 points, 7-16 FG, 5 rebounds; Gus Yalden 17 points, 7-11 FG, 5 rebounds; TJ Hurley 15 points, 5-9 FG; Lucas Mari 10 points, 4-8 FG, 11 rebounds
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 55.6 percent for the afternoon, connecting on 30-of-54 attempts. The Flames have not shot worse than 54.2 percent in a game this season. Liberty was 41.7 percent (10-of-24) from deep. Vermont finished just below 50 percent (48.2 percent, 27-of-56) for the contest but was only 33.3 percent (8-of-24) from deep. The Flames led in assists (16-11), points in the paint (38-30), points off turnovers (14-11), fast break points (6-4) and bench points (11-9). Vermont held a 33-26 edge in rebounding. The Flames led for 37:49 and only trailed after the Catamounts' first basket of the game (a total of 26 seconds).
Turning Point
Liberty raced out to a 28-13 lead in the first half of the opening stanza. During that hot start, Brett Decker Jr. knocked down a trio of three-pointers on three straight possessions to make it an 11-6 game. The Flames took their first double-digit lead, 18-8, at the 14:40 mark following a three-point play from Zach Cleveland. Colin Porter's third basket of the game, a layup at the 9:57 mark, pushed the lead to 28-13. Vermont closed the first half on a 7-0 run over the final 3:41 to close within eight, 40-32, at the half.
Liberty led by double digits for much of the second half, but a 7-2 Catamounts run cut the lead to six (67-61) with 5:04 remaining. The Flames knocked down a pair of key triples on the next two possessions, with Porter canning the first (4:46 mark), followed by a JJ Harper three for a 73-61 lead at the 4:18 mark.
Key Stats & Notes
Liberty's next test will be against the Towson Tigers (4-2) in the semifinals of the 2025 Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational. This will be the 14th all-time meeting between the two squads but first since the 2019-20 campaign.
In that meeting (Dec. 20, 2019), the Flames improved to 13-0 with a 66-54 win in the opening round of the DC Holiday Hoops Fest Tournament.
Liberty stays unbeaten on the year, improving to 5-0. The Flames will move on to face Towson (4-2) in the semifinal round, Tuesday afternoon at noon on ESPN2. Towson topped Rhode Island 62-55 in the first game of the day. Vermont falls to 4-2 after its second straight loss. The Catamounts move to the consolation bracket and will face Rhode Island tomorrow at 2:30 p.m.
Brett Decker Jr. paced the Flames with a game-high 23 points. Zach Cleveland delivered another strong all-around performance with 14 points, six rebounds, seven assists, two blocks and two steals. Kaden Metheny finished with 14 points, and Colin Porter added 10 point, five boards, four assists and two steals.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Brett Decker Jr. 23 points, 7-11 FG, 5-7 3FG, 4 rebounds; Zach Cleveland 14 points, 6-7 FG, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 blocks, 2 steals; Kaden Metheny 14 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists; Colin Porter 10 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals
Vermont Individuals: TJ Long 19 points, 7-16 FG, 5 rebounds; Gus Yalden 17 points, 7-11 FG, 5 rebounds; TJ Hurley 15 points, 5-9 FG; Lucas Mari 10 points, 4-8 FG, 11 rebounds
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 55.6 percent for the afternoon, connecting on 30-of-54 attempts. The Flames have not shot worse than 54.2 percent in a game this season. Liberty was 41.7 percent (10-of-24) from deep. Vermont finished just below 50 percent (48.2 percent, 27-of-56) for the contest but was only 33.3 percent (8-of-24) from deep. The Flames led in assists (16-11), points in the paint (38-30), points off turnovers (14-11), fast break points (6-4) and bench points (11-9). Vermont held a 33-26 edge in rebounding. The Flames led for 37:49 and only trailed after the Catamounts' first basket of the game (a total of 26 seconds).
Turning Point
Liberty raced out to a 28-13 lead in the first half of the opening stanza. During that hot start, Brett Decker Jr. knocked down a trio of three-pointers on three straight possessions to make it an 11-6 game. The Flames took their first double-digit lead, 18-8, at the 14:40 mark following a three-point play from Zach Cleveland. Colin Porter's third basket of the game, a layup at the 9:57 mark, pushed the lead to 28-13. Vermont closed the first half on a 7-0 run over the final 3:41 to close within eight, 40-32, at the half.
Liberty led by double digits for much of the second half, but a 7-2 Catamounts run cut the lead to six (67-61) with 5:04 remaining. The Flames knocked down a pair of key triples on the next two possessions, with Porter canning the first (4:46 mark), followed by a JJ Harper three for a 73-61 lead at the 4:18 mark.
Key Stats & Notes
- Liberty is 5-0 for the second time in the last three seasons. Two years ago, the Flames moved to 5-0 with a 71-61 triumph over the Catamounts in the Myrtle Beach Invitational title game. Liberty is now 2-0 all-time versus the Catamounts.
- The Flames have shot 54.2 percent or better in all five games. The last time Liberty did
- Brett Decker Jr. scored a game-high 23 points, his third 20-plus point game of the season. The squad is leading the team in scoring at 20.6 points per game. Decker Jr., who entered the game first in the nation in three-pointers per game (5.00), equaled his season average with five more threes. The Elizabethtown, Ky. native is shooting 64.1 percent (25-of-39) from deep.
- Sixteen of Decker Jr.'s 23 points came in the first half, and he was a perfect 4-of-4 from deep in the opening 20 minutes. On the contrary, 12 of Kaden Metheny's 14 points came after halftime.
- Zach Cleveland (14 points, six rebounds, seven assists) has notched five or more assists in seven straight games. Cleveland is averaging 11.2 ppg, 9.2 rpg and 7.8 apg.
- Liberty is averaging 90.6 ppg and surrendering 63.8 ppg through five games. The Flames are shooting 57.2 percent from the field.
- Forward Josh Smith scored a season-high six points on 3-of-4 shooting in his seven minutes of action.
- Liberty has led for 191:15 of a possible 200 minutes this season through five games. The Flames have only trailed for 4:17.
Liberty's next test will be against the Towson Tigers (4-2) in the semifinals of the 2025 Terry's Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational. This will be the 14th all-time meeting between the two squads but first since the 2019-20 campaign.
In that meeting (Dec. 20, 2019), the Flames improved to 13-0 with a 66-54 win in the opening round of the DC Holiday Hoops Fest Tournament.
Zach bringin' down the house????
— Liberty Men's Basketball (@LibertyMBB) November 24, 2025
?? @ESPNU pic.twitter.com/gAOhqjpDBz
BD is cookin'!
— Liberty Men's Basketball (@LibertyMBB) November 24, 2025
That's 14 points on 4-of-4 from 3 for the sophomore.
?? @ESPNU pic.twitter.com/jNNrRdV26i
Team Stats
Lib
UVM
FG%
.556
.482
3FG%
.417
.333
FT%
.500
.733
RB
26
33
TO
8
11
STL
6
3
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
7
3FGM
5
FTM
4
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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