Saunders' Career-High 20 Points Not Enough as UAlbany WBB Edged at Stony Brook 68-64
Box Score | Box Score (PDF)
STONY BROOK, N.Y. – The UAlbany women's basketball team saw its 30-game winning streak in league road games snapped on Sunday after falling at Stony Brook 68-64.
“Stony Brook played very well today, and they worked harder than us today,” said UAlbany coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson.
It is the first time that UAlbany (19-8, 12-2 AE) has lost a league road game since February 26th, 2011. The Great Danes now stand in second place in the league behind Maine, which is 13-1, with two conference games left. Stony Brook (16-11, 9-5 AE) is currently in third place.
UAlbany led by four at the half but was outscored by Stony Brook 46-38 in the second period. The Great Danes got to within one possession a couple of times with under a minute left, but did not tie the game in that stage.
Zakiya Saunders finished with a career-high 20 points, also having a team-high four assists and two steals. Imani Tate concluded with 12 points off the bench while Shereesha Richards and Sarah Royals each had 11. Tiana-Jo Carter scored seven points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
For Stony Brook, Sabre Proctor tallied 21 points off 7-9 shooting and six rebounds. Brittany Snow got 17 points and seven boards while Kori Bayne-Walker ended with 14 points and five steals.
UAlbany employed the zone defense to start while Stony Brook played man-to-man. Royals and Saunders struck first inside the arc for an early lead, while Proctor got set up for a pair of layups on fast breaks for a 4-4 tie four minutes into the game.
The Great Danes used the pressure defense to force plays. Building off a Carter rebound and putback, Royals used a layup and one to draw Proctor's second foul. Tate drove in towards the paint for a couple of shots to complete a 9-0 run to put UAlbany up 13-4 with 13:11 left in the first half, later leading 15-6.
UAlbany was held without points for almost six minutes as Stony Brook got a couple of baskets. Kick-started by two Royals free throws, UAlbany went on a 6-0 run, capped by a Saunders jumper for a 21-10 lead.
With Bayne-Walker contributing five quick points, the Seawolves chipped away at the UAlbany lead. Carter earned another offensive rebound, putback layup and one. Stony Brook got five points in the final minute of the period as UAlbany led 26-22 at the break.
After Royals started another half with a layup, Stony Brook went on a quick 7-0 run, started by a three and a layup by Bayne-Walker, to take a 29-28 advantage two minutes into the second period.
Abrahamson-Henderson called timeout to reorganize the team. Saunders hit the jumper off the screen, then Carter blocked a Christa Scognamiglio shot, following up with a layup the other way to push UAlbany back in front 32-29 with three minutes gone in the second.
Back and forth the teams went as UAlbany built the lead to 38-34. In a span of a minute, Proctor hit a top-of-the-key three, followed by Snow hitting a putback baseline basket to push the home team back up. Proctor added a wing three to make it 42-38 Stony Brook with 11:13 left in the 2nd.
Again the teams exchanged points, with Stony Brook holding at least a one-possession lead for many minutes. At 49-46 home team, Saunders hit a jumper off the Royals inbounds, then stole the ball at halfcourt, got fouled and hit two free throws to put UAlbany ahead 50-49 with 6:13 left.
Proctor stole the ball on a UAlbany possession, leading to a Jessica Ogunnorin three from the corner to get Stony Brook in front. At 3:47 left, a Tate layup made it 54-53 Stony Brook. The Seawolves got the next two baskets, another Ogunnorin three and a long Proctor jumper, to go up six.
With two minutes remaining, Richards hit a layup. After a missed Proctor three, Margarita Rosario hit a corner three for UAlbany to bring the Great Danes within one at 59-58 with 1:21 left.
Stony Brook's next possession saw Scognamiglio hit a layup to make it a three-point game. Royals was called for a charge the other way. Stony Brook kept hitting free throws while UAlbany made baskets to keep pulling to within a possession, but the visiting team did not bridge the gap. A last-second three by UAlbany missed as it fell 68-64.
UAlbany will play its final regular season road game on Thursday, February 26th, taking on Hartford at 7 p.m. on ESPN3.
