Another Singletary Dagger Sends Men's Basketball to 11-0 With 69-59 Win Over UMass Lowell
BOX SCORE
ALBANY, N.Y. – Despite a 15-point halftime lead, University at Albany men's basketball (16-7, 11-0 AE) needed another clutch three from Evan Singletary to seal a 69-59 victory over UMass Lowell (10-14, 4-7 AE). The junior finished with 18 points on 4-for-6 from three-point range.
“It's a win,” said head coach Will Brown. “I thought it was the second game in a Row we relaxed and got complacent. It's something we need to be careful of, otherwise it's going to come back to haunt us. I'm happy that we won, but I'm not happy with how we won.”
The Danes had a rough start in the first half, going 1-for-5 from the field with five turnovers in the opening five minutes. Singletary scored the first basket for the Purple & Gold, a three at the 16:05 mark. The guard ended a 7-0 spurt by the River Hawks.
With a spark from behind the arc, UAlbany scored 13-straight points to take its first lead seven minutes into the game. Mike and Sam Rowley went back-to-back with points in the paint give the Danes a 9-7 edge.
After Singletary made one of two free throws, Will Brown's squad went 5-for-6 from three and 7-for-8 from the field over the next six minutes. A trey off the hands of Ray Sanders with four minutes left in the first gave the Danes their first double-digit lead 34-23. The River Hawks did not have field goal for the last 4:30 of the period.
Sam Rowley led UAlbany at the half with seven points and five rebounds. The Purple & Gold went 8-for-14 from three-point land in the opening stanza.
The second half started in a similar fashion to the first for UAlbany. The Danes went 1-for-6 from the field as UMass Lowell came within six points, 44-38.
After the Rowley's combined for three points, the score remained locked at 47-40 for three minutes mid-way through the second half. UMass Lowell came within four with a three from Chad Holley with just over 10 minutes to play.
Dallas Ennema drove past his defender for an authoritative dunk to get the sellout crowd back in the game. The sophomore gave the Danes a 51-44 lead with 8:36 on the clock. Greig Stire threw down at the rim on the ensuring possession, but the River Hawks remained within four points.
Shortly after Matt Harris drained two threes for the River Hawks, putting Pat Duquette's squad In striking distance, 58-57.
Singletary had not scored for the entire second half, but he rose up for UAlbany's on three-pointer of the period with just under two minutes to play. The junior put the Danes ahead 62-57. He went for six-straight points to seal the win with less than one minute to go.
Sam Rowley recorded his fifth double-double of the season in the victory with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Ray Sanders tallied 12 points with a career-high seven assists. Singletary led all scorers with 18.
The Great Danes hit the road for in-state rival Binghamton (4-22, 3-8 AE) on Tuesday, Feb. 10.
