Top ten UVM men's basketball players of all time

With the end of Marqus Blakley's wonderful career at the University of Vermont, it got me thinking where the high-flying dunkmeister ranks among the greatest Catamounts of all time.

Granted, this is a purely subjective pursuit and I'm not saying this is a definitive list, but here's my list of top 10 UVM men's basketball players in school history. Agree? Disagree? Add your comments at the end of this article.

1. Taylor Coppenrath (2001-05). The Vermont native finished second on the all-time scoring list with 2,442 points and a 21.4 points per game average. The tenacious forward also owns the single-season scoring record of 777 points in his senior season. He's number one all-time in field goals (by nearly 120 over the next player on the list) and he's fourth all-time with 839 rebounds. Beyond the individual accomplishments, Coppenrath was a huge part of three straight America East championships and the school's lone NCAA win.

2. T.J. Sorrentine (2000-05). The third-leading scorer in school history (2,013 points), Sorrentine is the Catamounts' all-time 3-point shooter with an astounding 354, nearly 50 more than the next player on the list (Tony Orciari). He also holds the record for 3-pointers in one game (11) and is tied for second (8). He also ranks fourth in steals all time (165) and his 45-point effort against Northeastern is tied for second most in school history. He also has the single-game assist record of 15 against Albany in 2000. Sorrentine was Robin to Coppenrath's Batman during the America East 3-peat and his "Shot from the Parking Lot" against Syracuse is the single-most recognizable play in school history and ranks among one of the most memorable moments in NCAA tournament history.

3. Eddie Benton (1992-96). The greatest offensive player in school history, Benton finished with 2,474 points and a 23.8 points per game average 104 career games. Benton owns three of the four highest single-season scoring totals and holds or shares the top-four single-game scoring marks. His 54-point effort against Drexel in 1994 is the highest scoring total by nine points. He also is fifth on the all-time assist list. The only knock on Benton's career - and it wasn't his fault - is that the teams he played on only finished over .500 once in four seasons (14-13 in 1994-95).

4. Kevin Roberson (1988-92). The greatest defensive player in UVM history, "The Lion" was the only Catamount with more than 1,000 rebounds when he graduated (1,054) and his 409 blocked shots are are over 140 more than the next player on the list (Erik Nelson). When he retired, Roberson was third on the all-time NCAA shots blocked list. Five times her blocked 10 or more shots in a game, including 13 against UNH in 1992. Roberson is eighth on the all-time scoring list and his sixth on the all-time field goal percentage list with .a 538 mark. Roberson was only on one winning team, the 1991-92 mark was 16-13. His death in an automobile accident in his hometown of Buffalo, N.Y. in 1993 stunned the state and led the America East's Outstanding Performer Award being named for him.

5. Marcus Blakely (2007-10). The greatest dunker in school history (pictured at the top of this article in a photo by Shawn Corrow, www.coldhollowphoto.com), both in terms of quality and quantity (163), Blakely finished his career No. 5 on the school's all-time scoring list and he finished his career just 10 rebounds shy of Roberson's mark becoming only the second Catamount to exceed 1,000 rebounds. He finished his career third in blocked shots (253), second in steals (226), second in field goal percentage, second in field goals made, fourth in free throws made and 10th in assists.

6. Mike Trimboli (2006-09). The school's all-time leading assist man with 624 (nearly 60 more than second-ranked Kenny White), Trimboli also ranks fourth on the all-time scoring list with 2,008 points. Trimboli ranks fourth on the school's all-time 3-point list with 230 and he's second all-time with a .833 free throw percentage.

7. Benny Becton (1960-63). Benny who? Becton's a name all Cat fans should know. He only played 66 games, but he still managed to rank 20th on the all-time scoring list and his 17.3 points per game scoring average is fifth all-time. Becton also ranks No. 1 with 14.9 rebounds per game and he holds the single-game mark of 29 (8 more than the second-ranked mark shared by Roberson and Rich Trela). He averaged 17.5 rebounds per game in the 1960-61 season. His lowest mark in his three seasons was 12.8 rebounds per game in 1961-62. He finished with 986 rebounds, third all-time, despite playing in almost 50 games less than Roberson and Blakely.

8. Tony Orciari (1997-2001). Before Coppenarth came along, Tony O was the best thing from St. Johnsbury Academy to hit the Patrick Gym hardwood. A 3-point shooting star, Orciari is No. 6 on the all-time scoring list with 1,743 points and he's second on the all-time 3-point field goal list with 305.

9. Howard Hudson (1982-86), Hudson ranks 13th on the scoring list with 1,314 points, but he made his mark with thievery and generosity on the court. Hudson averaged 2.48 steals per game, easily the tops in program history, as was his total of 253. He also ranks fourth all time with 511 assists and his 5.0 assist per game average is tied with Trimboli for the best in school history. He recorded 177 assists in the 1985-86 season, the most in one season. He also owns the record for most steals in one game (9).

10. Mike Evelti (1978-82). Evelti ranks seventh all time with 1,697 points and it could have been much more if he had played in the 3-point shot era. Evelti also ranks eighth on the all-time free throw percentage list and is eighth on the all-time rebounding list.

SHAWN CORROW, is a freelance photojournalist in Vermont. He has a photo website and maintains a blog. You can follow him on Twitter (scorrow) to know when he's posted to examiner.com or to his blog. Have a question, comment or story idea, use the comment section to let Shawn know what you are thinking.