BALTIMORE COUNTY — From long distance, long range or downtown.
The triple. The trey. The three-pointer.
Whatever you call it, however you describe it, the UMBC Retrievers are good at it.
"We have weapons. The three-point shot is a valuable part of the game and we have guys on our team that are hunting threes," said guard Jacob Boonyasith.
"We have a lot of guys who can make them. That certainly helps," added guard Matteo Picarelli.
This season the canines of Catonsville have a propensity for popping off behind the arc. UMBC is among the best teams in the nation with a whopping 109 three-pointers in just ten games. That's ranked eighth in the country in Division I.
"We are very aggressive. We have a very aggressive mindset," said Boonyasith. "When one goes down that basket gets wider."
"We’re unselfish. The ball moves. We have skilled basketball players. We have five guys on the floor at all times that can shoot threes," said head coach Jim Ferry.
"When you come down and hit a couple threes in a row it sets the tone for the game. It creates momentum for your team," added Picarelli.
Picarelli leads the team with 28 three-pointers this season. Colton Lawrence is right behind him with 25.
Their squad’s expertise for sinking threes is already history-making. Last week in a win over Coppin State they netted a school-record and America East Conference-record 21 triples.
"All we could do is laugh at some point. It was unbelievable," said Lawrence. "21, yeah that’s a crazy number. I don’t think I’ve ever reached that."
"I’ve been a part of some explosive offensive nights. But collectively that was unique," said Boonyasith.
"We were on. We really shot the ball well," said Ferry.
The Retrievers sit at 6-4 on the season. They have won three games in a row. They’ll look to extend that winning streak on Saturday when they host local rival Morgan State at 5:30 p.m.
The forecast inside the Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena: raining... even more threes.
Follow Shawn Stepner on Twitter @StepnerWMAR and Facebook
