Albany, N.Y. ? Tiffanie Johnson had 17 points and Britney McGee added 15 as UAlbany picked up its first America East Conference victory of the season in a 70-44 triumph over Maine on Tuesday, Jan. 13 at SEFCU Arena.

            In a first half that produced four lead changes and two ties, both teams struggled to find the mark over the opening 12 minutes.  Maine's Brittany Boser, a junior forward who had 17 points and seven rebounds, tied the contest at 12 apiece when she followed up Samantha Wheeler's missed baseline jumper.

            UAlbany (3-12, AE 1-1) then exploded with a string of 21 consecutive points.  Janea Aiken, who was coming off a career-best 33-point effort in her previous start, went coast-to-coast and was fouled on a driving layup that broke the deadlock.  Felicia Johnson, a senior guard who had made just five appearances this season, was a key figure in stretching the lead.  She made two free throws and later canned a three-point field goal from right of the key for a 26-12 advantage.

            Tiffanie Johnson and McGee worked together to end that decisive run, as Maine (2-14, AE 0-3) went scoreless for nearly eight minutes.  Johnson, a 5-foot-11 senior who shot 6-of-11 from the field and grabbed five rebounds, buried a three-pointer from the top of the arc.  McGee, who scored in twin figures for the 10th time this season, sank two foul shots and converted a layup after her own steal.  The Great Danes took a 36-15 to the locker room, when Johnson drilled a 22-footer at the buzzer.

In the final half, Maine still trailed by 21 points when Boser, who made 5-of-10 from the floor and 7-of-7 from the line, connected on a three-point play as she was fouled scoring against UAlbany's press.  But the Great Danes put the game away with 11 unanswered over the next two minutes.  McGee countered with a deep 3-pointer from the right wing, before Felicia Johnson made a jumper in transition.  Tiffanie Johnson added a pair of baskets, including a fastbreak layup off Johnson's feed.  Charity Iromuanya's two free throws provided her club with a commanding 58-26 margin.

“If we can click in January and February, then we are going to be very dangerous in March,” said UAlbany coach Trina Patterson, whose team held the visitors to 29.8-percent shooting, a season-low by an opponent, and held a 40-26 margin on the glass.  “The thing I was the most proud was our rebounding. The team was really focused on not giving up offensive rebounds in the second half.”

Amanda Tewksbury added 11 points for the Black Bears, who have lost 10 in a row.  UAlbany's Felicia Johnson netted a career-high 11 in 16 minutes off the bench.  The Great Danes, who have won three straight in the series after dropping the first 14 meetings between these programs, tied their third-best win margin as a Division I program.

“I am coming off of an ACL injury, and I was playing with a brace,” explained Johnson, who had totaled 31 minutes and three points this season coming into the contest.  “I finally got rid of the brace, and I felt like myself again. I think that was what helped me tonight. I felt so free on the court.”