Score: Niagara 66, UAlbany 58

Location: KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y.
 
Records: UAlbany (3-8, 0-0 America East) |Niagara University (5-6, 0-2 MAAC)
 
Short Story: The University at Albany men's basketball team battled all the way back from a 15-point deficit in the first half, but eventually fell to the Purple Eagles in Western New York.
 
Key Stat Lines

• UAlbany shot 45.8% (22-48) from the field and 22.7% (5-22) from three. Niagara shot 44.7% (21-47) from the field and 33.3% (7-21) from three.
• UAlbany finished with 28 rebounds, Niagara finished with 29. Niagara also won the turnover battle, committing just 12 to UAlbany's 17.
• De'Vondre Perry led the Great Danes in scoring with 14 points, finishing with a team-leading seven rebounds along with two steals, two assists, and a block.
• Jamel Horton (12) and Jarvis Doles (11) also finished in double-figures for points. Horton and Matt Cerruti led the team with three assists each.

Head Coach Dwayne Killings: "Great opportunity coming into this game… I'm disappointed with how we started, we came out flat and a step slow. We responded, which was exciting to see, but we made some mistakes late that were difficult to overcome."

How it Happened:

• Niagara jumped out to a quick 10-2 lead to start the game, hitting two threes in the process. UAlbany started the gamer going just 1-6 from the field.
• By the under 12 media timeout Niagara had established a 17-5 lead, hitting three of their eight three pointers attempted. The Great Danes didn't have any luck from deep to start the game, missing their first four.
• Before the midway point of the first half, UAlbany had committed seven turnovers.
• Perry hit the first three for UAlbany just before the eight-minute mark. He'd go on to hit his second of the afternoon moments later, keeping UAlbany in the game.
• Tairi Ketner brought the game back to single-digits with his first points of the game just under the five-minute mark. The bucket was part of a 12-2 run for UAlbany to close the game to just five points (19-24) before the final media timeout of the half.
• Niagara's Kuakumensah was given a technical foul before the end of the first half after the refs called him for hanging on the rim.
• By halftime, UAlbany trailed by just four points after trailing by as much as 15. The team shot 47.4% (9-19) from the field and 28.6% (2-7) from three. Niagara shot 39.1% (9-23) from the field and 27.3% (3-11) from three. Perry led the team during the first frame, draining eight points, nabbing four rebounds, and dishing out two assists.
• UAlbany tied the game at 26 right around the 17-minute mark of the second half. It was the first tie since the beginning of the game. The first lead for UAlbany came minutes later after a fadeaway from Perry was good, making the score 34-32.
• By the 13-minute mark, UAlbany was shooting 45.5% (5-11) from the field.
• Niagara shot back out to a 41-37 lead after a timeout with nine-minutes on the clock thanks to layups Traore and Levnaic. The Purple Eagles would keep the pressure on, going on a 12-0 run before UAlbany was able to score again.
• UAlbany clawed to within five points multiple times, but was never able to overcome the hole that was dug.

Next: The Great Danes travel to Lehigh this Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. to wrap up play before the holiday break. Stay up to date with UAlbany men's basketball by following the team on Twitter (@UAlbanyMBB) and Instagram (@ualbany_mbb) for all of the latest news and highlights throughout the season.