ALBANY, N.Y. – The University at Albany men's basketball team is prepared to bounce back against the Vermont Catamounts, the America East's top team, for a showdown on Saturday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. The game will be available on ESPN3 and broadcast on ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team in Albany.
 
Game Info
Saturday, Feb. 12 – vs. Vermont
SEFCU Arena in Albany, N.Y.
7:00 p.m. EST
ESPN3 | ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team | Live Stats | Tickets
 
FREE with your ID
UAlbany students are welcome to SEFCU Arena and get in FREE with their student ID! Coach Dwayne Killings and the entire hoops team encourage the UAlbany student body to come out and support the Great Danes all season long.
 
Leading the Pack

• The team currently sits in fifth place in the conference with an AE mark of 6-6.
• The Great Danes are averaging 62.1 ppg, with opponents averaging 65.5 ppg. The team is shooting 41.2% from the field, 31.5% from three, and 72.0% from the charity stripe.
• In conference-only games, UAlbany leads the league defensively – allowing just 63.9 ppg. On the offensive side, the Great Danes sit in a tie for seventh place with 65.5 points scored per game.
• Matt Cerruti and Jamel Horton lead the team in scoring. Cerruti is averaging 11.3 points per game, shooting at a clip of.461 from the field and .437 from beyond the arc. Horton is averaging 11.7 per game, shooting .420 from the field and leading the team in assists with 92 on the year.
• Justin Neely, now a five-time America East Rookie of the Week, leads the team in rebounds with 109 on the season – averaging 5.0 per contest.

 
Last Time Out
The Great Danes played on Wednesday night, falling to the Maine Black Bears 73-63.

• UAlbany shot 43.1% (22-51) from the field and 25.0% (4-16) from three-point range. Maine shot 52.0% (13-22) from the field and 59.1% (13-22) from three-point range.
• The Great Danes edged out the Black Bears rebounding 28-27.
• Maine finished with 18 assists, UAlbany with 9.
• Matt Cerruti led the way for UAlbany with 14 points, followed by Jarvis Doles and Jamel Horton with 10 apiece.
• On the rebound, Doles and Hutcheson led the Great Danes with eight and seven, respectively. 
• Horton (4) and Champion (2) led UAlbany in assists.
• On defense, Cerruti and Newman each had a block for the Great Danes.
• Horton, Hutcheson, Reddish and Neely capitalized from the line shooting 100% FT percentage.

 
Scouting Vermont
The Catamounts come into Saturday's game as the best team in the America East, sitting with an overall record of 19-4 and an undefeated record of 11-0 in conference play. The last loss for the Catamounts came all the way back on Dec. 7 when the team played Providence on the road. The last time out for UVM, the Catamounts cruised to an 82-51 victory over Binghamton at home. Five Catamounts registered double figures to lead the team) to its 13th-straight victory. UVM's 13-game winning streak ties Wagner for the longest active streak in the country.

The Catamounts have two student-athletes averaging double-figures in Ryan Davis (17.4 ppg) and Ben Shungu (15.5), with Isaiah Powell (9.9) following close behind. Davis' 17.4 average is the best in the conference, Shungu sits fourth. The team is averaging 74.3 points per game offensively while allowing 62.3 points defensively, both marks the best in the conference. Vermont is shooting 49.6% from the field, 36.8% from three, and 76.0% from the free throw line while averaging 33.8 boards per game.

Last Time Against Vermont
The last time the Great Danes and Catamounts played was back on Jan. 31, with UVM taking the victory, 73-61, at home. The 73 points Vermont scored were the lowest total any America East team has held the Catamounts to, showing the UAlbany defense came ready to play. In the game:

• UAlbany shot 43.1% (22-51) from the field and 50% (11-22) from three-point range. Vermont shot 56.9% (29-51) from the field and 40.9% (9-22) from three.
• Vermont won the rebounding war 28-24.
• Vermont finished with 17 assists, UAlbany finished with 9. 
• Matt Cerruti led the way with 22 points, going 4-7 from three-point range.
• Chuck Champion and Jamel Horton both finished with 11 points. Champion had two rebounds, two assists, and a steal. Horton had a team-high four assists and two steals.
• Trey Hutcheson finished with three three-pointers and nine points.

 
#AEHoops Notes (2.7.22)

• Vermont is off to a 10-0 start in #AEHoops play and has won 12 straight games overall. That win streak is the third-longest in the country behind only Auburn and Wagner.
• The Catamounts rank 68^th in the country in NET ranking behind only Iona among regional peers.
• UVM is ranked 11th in the latest Mid Major Top 25.
• Binghamton is winners of four of its last six games.
• The Bearcats' seven league wins are the most since the 2009-10 season.
• After a 1-4 start, UMBC has won five-straight #AEHoops games.
• America East teams beat two ACC squads in non-league play. UMBC trounced Pittsburgh, 87-77, on Nov. 27 while UAlbany beat Boston College, 61-57, on Dec. 13.

 
Rookie Madness
Freshman Justin Neely has been named the America East Rookie of the Week five times this year, earning back-to-back titles on Nov. 22 and Nov. 29, on Dec. 13, on Dec. 27, and most recently on Jan. 31. The rookie is averaging over 17 minutes per game and leads the team in rebounds.
 
Postponements
UAlbany has had two games postponed this season due to COVID-19, a Dec. 28 matchup against Bucknell and a Jan. 2 matchup against Vermont, which has been made up. The Bucknell game has yet to be rescheduled. 
 
To view all America East schedule adjustments, click here.
 
Drive the Lane with UAlbany Hoops
It was recently announced that UAlbany had expanded its partnership with ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team and City Line Bar & Grill. Coaches Dwayne Killings and Colleen Mullen, along with select student-athletes, will join ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team's Charlie Voelker and Dan Bahl every Monday from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. 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 Killings, Coach Mullen, 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. 
 
Meet Coach Killings
Dwayne Killings, a native of Amherst, Mass., begins his journey as Head Coach of the Great Danes after previously serving at Marquette University, where he spent the previous three seasons. While at Marquette, Killings served under Head Coach Steve Wojciechowski. In Killings' three years in Wisconsin, the Golden Eagles posted two winning seasons and made one appearance in the NCAA Tournament. In 2020, his recruiting class ranked in the top-20 nationally and he coached 2019-20 BIG EAST Player of the Year and AP All-American Markus Howard.
 
Roster Changes
The coaching staff isn't the only thing that's new for the Great Danes. The roster has had a complete transformation from last year's squad, which made it to the America East Quarterfinals as the No. 5 seed. Nine new student-athletes are suiting up in the purple and gold for 2021-22 - De'Vondre Perry, Matt Cerruti, Gerald Drumgoole Jr., Paul Newman, Ny'Mire Little, Justin Neely, Aaron Reddish, Luke Fizulich, and Tairi Ketner. Returning for UAlbany is Will Amica, Trey Hutcheson, Jarvis Doles, Jamel Horton, Sam Shafer, and Chuck Champion.
 
Along with the coaching staff, these 22 men officially make up the 2021-22 UAlbany Great Danes. In total, 16 of these individuals are new to UAlbany.
 
Coaches' Poll
A completely new team, the Great Danes were picked to finish seventh in this year's America East Preseason Coaches' Poll, receiving 34 points. Stony Brook came in atop the list with 77 points and five first-place votes, just ahead of Vermont with 74 points and four first-place votes. New Hampshire rounded out the top three with 64 points and a single first-place vote.
 
Defending champion Hartford placed fourth with 56 points, UMBC placed fifth with 49 points, and UMass Lowell placed sixth with 43 points. Following the Great Danes' seventh-place spot was NJIT (23 points), Maine (16 points) and Binghamton (14 points).
 
Secure Your Tickets
This year marks a new chapter in history for the Great Danes, don't miss out! Season tickets for UAlbany basketball can be purchased by calling the UAlbany Ticket Office at (518) 442-DANE or by visiting UAlbanySports.com/Tickets.
 
Social Central
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.