Richards' 35 Points Leads UAlbany WBB to 75-53 Win over Binghamton on Commitment to Education Day
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ALBANY, N.Y. – In front of 1,925 on Commitment to Education Day, the UAlbany women's basketball team, led by Shereesha Richards scoring 35 points, ran past Binghamton 75-53 to hold first place in America East play.
“I thought the first half was our best defensively, holding Binghamton to 15 points,” said UAlbany head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson. “But, we need to put two halves together, they are a good three-point shooting team.”
UAlbany (18-7, 11-1 AE), outscoring its opponent 52-18 in the paint and outrebounding the Bearcats 44-23, led by as much as 32 in the second half and held off a late Binghamton (4-21, 2-10 AE) comeback attempt to win the game.
The 9th annual Commitment to Education Day was a success at UAlbany as students and educators enjoyed educational and fun stations, plus a Great Danes women's basketball victory.
“Today's game is truly a unique experience for kids around the Capital District,” said UAlbany ticket manager James Troutman. “They had the opportunity to come see what college athletics is all about while enjoying a premier basketball game.”
“It was awesome to have the kids today, I wish we could do that more often!” added Abrahamson-Henderson. “It is a fun atmosphere for them, and they can come and do something different.”
With the win, UAlbany improves to 11-1 in conference play to stay ahead of second place Maine, which stands at 9-1 as of Wednesday afternoon.
Richards shot 14-21 from the field and 7-10 from the free throw line for 35 points on the day. It is the fourth time the junior forward has scored at least 34 points in a game and the sixth time total that any UAlbany player has achieved that feat. She outscored Binghamton 18-15 in the first half. She also tied her own UAlbany record with her 25th-consecutive game scoring in double figures.
“We are tough, we do not mind getting on the floor,” said Richards. “I like playing aggressively and being tough.”
Tiana-Jo Carter earned her career-high in points in an America East game with 12, adding a career-high three blocks. Imani Tate finished with six points and 12 rebounds, while Sarah Royals tallied eight points, four boards, four assists and four steals.
“We thought they would play zone, but we saw them play man[-to-man defense],” said Royals. “Once we calmed down, all of our plays worked.”
Three Binghamton players scored in double digits. Kim Albrecht led the team's scoring with 17 points, adding three assists. Jasmine Sina and Sherae Swinson each netted 16 points, with the latter adding six rebounds and two blocks.
At 3-2 Binghamton, UAlbany attacked in the paint, with Carter hitting a pair of putback layups in a row for a 6-3 home team advantage in the opening minutes.
The teams went back and forth as UAlbany looked to go inside against the Bearcats man-to-man defense while Binghamton focused on the perimeter against the Great Danes zone.
At 9-7, a Carter layup sparked a long UAlbany run. The Great Danes kept going into the paint for Richards, who responded with seven-consecutive points. Tate added a jumper, then later Richards earned another layup, to complete a 13-0 run to put UAlbany ahead 22-7 as the Great Danes held Binghamton without points for almost six minutes.
After Sina hit a three to end Binghamton's drought, the teams were scoreless for the next three minutes. UAlbany held Binghamton to three points in the following six minutes as UAlbany kept going inside, putting together a 12-3 spurt, capped by a steal and score by Tate. Albrecht hit a couple of free throws with two seconds left as UAlbany took a 34-15 lead into the locker room.
The full court press forced Binghamton turnovers at the start of the second half, leading to an 8-0 UAlbany run. Kristin Ross hit a layup in transition to stop the run, then UAlbany responded with three-straight baskets in the post to lead 48-17 with just over 17 minutes left, later making it 52-22 after a pair of Richards layups.
Binghamton went on a 6-0 run in a span of two-and-half minutes, which UAlbany countered with a 6-2 streak off layups from Bose Aiyalogbe, Richards and Carter to make it 58-28 UAlbany with 11:37 left.
The visitors started hitting their three-point shots, with Sina contributing two on a 9-0 streak to pull Binghamton to 58-37 with 8:54 remaining.
UAlbany's defense and paint shooting kept the lead in double digits, but a 6-1 Binghamton run made it 64-49 UAlbany with 3:08 left to play. UAlbany's senior guards Margarita Rosario and Royals drew contact to get free throws. Richards added a layup and a later free throw to rebuild the lead to 21 at 70-49 with 1:43 remaining.
Binghamton saw Sina and Swinson score late points, but UAlbany kept the advantage. A late Aiyalogbe layup set the 75-53 final score in favor of UAlbany.
UAlbany will have a week before its next game, taking on UMBC on Wednesday, February 18th at the SEFCU Arena at 7 p.m.
