Seniors Shine In UAlbany's Win Over New Hampshire, 56-49
Box score
ALBANY, N.Y. - The University at Albany's four seniors combined for 57 percent of the offensive output and were led by Mike Black's 23 point-performance to defeat the University of New Hampshire, 56-49, on Thursday, Feb. 28 at SEFCU Arena on Senior Night.
Black led the Great Danes with 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting and grabbed six rebounds. Sophomore forward Sam Rowley chipped in with 11 points, five rebounds, and one block. Junior center John Puk tallied a game-best nine rebounds.
The Wildcats were within striking distance for most of the contest due to the shooting of forward Patrick Konan. Konan went 9-of-10 from the field and a perfect 6-of-6 from behind the arc to record a game-best 24 points.
Down three at the half, UAlbany (21-9, 9-6 America Eat) jumped out to a 15-2 run to begin the second half to lead, 36-29, with 12:18 left. The run was capped with a drive by Black and a dish to Peter Hooley, in the corner, for a three-pointer.
New Hampshire (8-19, 4-11 America East) came back with back-to-back threes from Patrick Konan and Chandler Rhoads to cut the deficit to one, 36-35, with 10:26 remaining.
The Great Danes came back and extended the lead to six, 45-39, with 6:21 remaining. Black led the 9-4 charge with five of his team-best 23 points.
New Hampshire's Konan knocked down his final two three-pointer within a minute to cut the deficit to four, 49-45, with 4:50 left in the contest.
Rowley then sparked the Great Danes with a crucial three-point play and followed up with two more free-throws to extend the lead to nine, 54-45, with 3:46 left.
UAlbany held New Hampshire to four points in the final 3:45 to secure its 21st victory, which is their second most wins in program history before the postseason.
The Great Danes outrebounded the Wildcats, 37-28, and had a better shooting percentage from the floor, 41.3 percent to 34.0 percent. UAlbany imposed its will in the paint, outscoring its opponent 22-8.
UAlbany will play its regular-season finale against Stony Brook on Sunday, March 3 at Pritchard Gym. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. and can be viewed on ESPN3. Ed Cohen and Frank Sullivan will have the call.
