ALBANY, N.Y. - The University at Albany women's basketball team will close the non-conference portion of its schedule at Syracuse.
 
GAME INFORMATION
 
UAlbany at Syracuse
DATE: Tuesday, December 20
TIME: 10:30 AM
SITE: JMA Wireless Dome - Syracuse, N.Y.
RECORDS: UAlbany 6-7, 0-0 America East | Syracuse 9-2, 1-0 ACC
SERIES RECORD: 5-0, Syracuse leads
STATS: Cuse.com
TICKETS: Ticketmaster (FREE)
LISTEN: Cuse TV Audio
STREAM: ACCNX
 
HEAD COACH COLLEEN MULLEN
"Syracuse plays a fast-paced, high-pressure style of basketball. They love to score in transition, off opponent turnovers, and from offensive boards. They are athletic in every position and have two very talented guards. We need to carry over our composure from Ohio State and take care of the ball. We want to win the game of possession by controlling the tempo with quality shot selection, fundamental passes, and consistent box outs."
 
GREAT DANE REWIND

• UAlbany opened the season 3-0 with victories over Merrimack (11/11), Siena (11/13), and Navy (11/16).
• Before heading to the UNLV Thanksgiving Tournament to compete against UNLV (11/25), ETSU (11/26), and Stetson (11/17), the Great Danes hosted Colgate (11/19) for their first loss of the season.
• Closing out November, UAlbany visited Canisius for its fourth victory (11/30). The Great Danes came back from a 10-point deficit in the beginning of the second half to take the 11-point victory.
• Hosting its final non-conference game of 2022, UAlbany fell in a close matchup to Cornell (12/3).
• The Great Danes are currently on a five-game road streak. Beginning with a win at Dartmouth (12/6) and a loss at Boston College (12/10), UAlbany most recently defeated Stonehill (12/14) before falling to #3 Ohio State (12/16).
• Senior Helene Haegerstrand leads the team with a .469 field goal percentage with a 40.5% success rate from outside the arc.
• Ellen Hahne leads the team with 14.9 points per game and 34 assists.
• Senior Grace Heeps and Haegerstrand are tied with a team-high six blocks while sophomore Lilly Phillips leads in transition with 12 steals.
• Cooper owns a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game from two contests. Hahne follows with 5.5 rebounds per game.
• As a team, UAlbany is hitting 41.6% from the field, 32.5% outside the arc, and 71.3% from the free-throw line. The Great Danes are averaging 55.2 points per game and 32.4 rebounds per game with 11.4 assists per game, 5.3 steals per game, and 2.2 blocks per game.

 
ABOUT SYRACUSE

• The Orange will close the non-conference season hosting UAlbany after earning a 9-2 record including their first conference win.
• Syracuse opened the season with four-straight wins over Stony Brook (11/7), Colgate (11/10), Binghamton (11/14), and LIU (11/17).
• After earning its first loss at Penn State (11/21), the Orange went on to notch a defeat over Bucknell (11/25), a loss at Purdue (11/30), and its first road win at Yale (12/4).
• Syracuse currently owns a four-game win streak. In addition to the Bulldogs, the Orange has defeated Coppin State (12/8), Wagner (12/11), and Wake Forest (12/18) at home.
• Dyaisha Fair leads the team with 19.0 points per game with a team-high .329 three-point percentage.
• Saniaa Wilson tops the Orange with a 67.6% success rate from the field.
• Fair also holds team-highs with 48 assists and 28 steals.
• Dariauna Lewis leads on defense with 10.3 rebounds per game and 20 blocks.
• As a team, the Orange is hitting 42.4% from the field, 27.6% outside the arc, and 70.3% from the free-throw line. Syracuse is averaging 76.6 points per game and 46.4 rebounds per game with 13.5 assists per game, 10.1 steals per game, and 4.5 blocks per game.

 
SERIES AGAINST THE ORANGE

• The two New York State teams have met on five occasions, all of which have been Syracuse wins.
• Most recently, the Great Danes visited the Orange for a 75-53 loss on November 16, 2019. A freshman in the starting lineup, Morgan Haney grabbed nine points, three rebounds, and three assists while Helene Haegerstrand added eight points, two rebounds, two assists, and one block.
• In UAlbany's one NCAA Second Round appearance, Syracuse hosted and won, 76-59, on March 20, 2016.
• The Orange last visited UAlbany on December 20, 2005, leaving with a 70-52 win.

 
AROUND THE AMERICA EAST

• Vermont (7-4) is the only team in the conference with a winning record.
• Binghamton sits in second with an even 6-6 record.
• Four teams have seven losses. UAlbany leads with six wins, Bryant and NJIT follow with five, and New Hampshire has four wins.
• Maine is tied with New Hampshire with four wins but has one more loss for a 4-8 overall record.
• UMBC (2-8) and UMass Lowell (1-8) round out the America East.
• America East games will begin on Thursday, December 29.

 
AMERICA EAST CONTESTS THIS WEEK

• Tuesday
  • UAlbany at Syracuse, 10:30 am
  • Vermont at Holy Cross, 10:30 am
  • Hartford at Binghamton, 6 pm
• Wednesday
  • New Hampshire at Merrimack, 3 pm
• Thursday
  • UMBC at Hartford, 2 pm
  • Maine at Milwaukee, 8 pm
• Friday
  • UMass Lowell at Towson, 12 pm

 
WHAT'S UP, PRESEASON

• With seven first-place votes and 59 total points, the Great Dane women's basketball team was picked to finish first in the conference in the preseason coaches' poll. Maine was just behind them with 54 points while Vermont came in third with 46 points and one first-place vote.
• Last season's offensive and defensive leaders, respectively, Helene Haegerstrand and Kayla Cooper were named to the America East Preseason All-Conference Team.
• UAlbany added three new players to the roster for the 2022-23 season - Taylor Moffat, Karyn Sanford, and Marie Sepp.

 
DRIVE THE LANE WITH UALBANY HOOPS

• UAlbany has expanded its partnership with ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team and City Line Bar & Grill.
• Coaches Colleen Mullen and Dwayne Killings, along with select student-athletes, will join ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team's Charlie Voelker and Dan Bahl every Monday from 6-7 pm live from City Line Bar & Grill for a weekly segment entitled 'Drive the Lane with UAlbany Hoops'.
• Fans are invited to come out to City Line Bar & Grill to join Coach Mullen, Coach Kills, the student-athletes, and the ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team crew. 
• Food and drink specials will be available on a weekly basis as the teams embark on their new seasons and talk hoops every Monday.

 
UP NEXT

• The Great Danes will begin the conference season at home against Vermont (Dec. 29).

For more information on the University at Albany women's basketball team, follow the squad's official social media accounts shown below.
Twitter - @ualbanywbb
Instagram - @ualbanywbb
Facebook – facebook.com/UAlbanyWBB