ALBANY, N.Y. – The University at Albany men's basketball team hits the road this week, starting with a Wednesday night matchup at Maine. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN3 and broadcast on ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team in Albany.
 
Game Info
Wednesday, Feb. 23 – at Maine
The Pit in Memorial Gymnasium in Orono, Maine
7:00 p.m. EST
ESPN3 | ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team | Live Stats
 
Season Standings
The America East standings feature four teams tied for second place, with others close behind. Vermont has the first seed locked up with a record of 14-1 in conference play, but Stony Brook (ineligible for postseason play), UMBC, Binghamton, and UAlbany all sit tied for second with a mark of 8-7. Hartford is right behind (7-7), followed by New Hampshire (7-8). NJIT (6-9), UMass Lowell (5-9) and Maine (3-12) round out the pack.  
 
Leading the Pack

• The Great Danes are averaging 62.6 ppg, with opponents averaging 65.9 ppg. The team is shooting 41.9% from the field, 32.2% from three, and 71.4% from the charity stripe.
• In conference-only games, UAlbany sits second in the league defensively – allowing just 65.0 ppg. On the offensive side, the Great Danes sit in seventh place with 65.8 points scored per game.
• Matt Cerruti and Jamel Horton lead the team in scoring. Cerruti is averaging 11.4 points per game, shooting at a clip of.472 from the field and .454 from beyond the arc. Horton is averaging 12.3 per game, shooting .417 from the field and leading the team in assists with 106 on the year.
• Justin Neely, now a six-time America East Rookie of the Week, leads the team in rebounds with 118 on the season – averaging 4.7 per contest.

 
Last Time Out
The Great Danes grabbed a much-needed home victory over UNH on Saturday, celebrating Senior Day at SEFCU Arena.

• UAlbany shot 46.4% (26-56) from the field and 35.7% (5-14) from three-point range. UNH shot 46.9% (23-49) from the field and 30.0% (6-20) from three.
• Both teams finished with an even 30 rebounds. UAlbany had eight offensive boards.
• There were nine tires and 14 lead changes, though UAlbany had the lead for 76.9% of the game.
• UNH finished with nine turnovers compared to just two from UAlbany.
• Jamel Horton led the way with 24 points, adding five rebounds, three assists, and a block.
• Matt Cerruti scored 13, going 2-3 from deep.
• Paul Newman led the team in rebounds with seven.
   

Scouting Maine
The Black Bears sit in the bottom of the America East standings with an overall record of 6-20 and a conference record of 3-12. The team is averaging 61.8 ppg offensively while allowing 70.1 ppg to opponents. The Black Bears are shooting .412 from the field, .311 from three, and .709 from the charity stripe while averaging 31.4 rebounds per game. Vukasin Masic is the team's leading scorer, averaging 9.6 per night.
The last time the Black Bears hit the court was on Sunday, where new interim coach Jai Steadman led the team to its first win under his control. The Black Bears defeated NJIT in Maine, 65-61. In that game, The Black Bears committed only 6 turnovers in the contest while forcing 13 in the contest. Ja'Shonté Wright-Mcleish led the way for the Black Bears as he scored 17 points. Stephane Ingo (12 pts, 6 rebs) and Peter Filipovity (10 pts, 7 reb) were key contributors.

Last Time Against Maine
The Great Danes suffered a tough loss to Maine back on Feb. 9, falling 63-73 to the Black Bears in SEFCU Arena.

• 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.

#AEHoops Notes (2.21.22)

• The Catamounts rank 61st in the country in NET ranking, the best among regional peers.(AE, CAA, Ivy, MAAC, Patriot, Ivy).
• Vermont has won 16 of its last 17 games.
• UVM received a vote in the AP Top 25 this week.
• Six teams are within one game of second place in the standings with a week and a half left in the standings. Stony Brook, UAlbany, Binghamton and UMBC are all tied at 8-7, followed by UNH at Hartford at 7-7 and UNH at 7-8.
• Hartford, winner of four of its last five games, became the lone #AEHoops team to knock off Vermont, winning a 75-74 overtime thriller on Feb. 14.
• Binghamton's 11 wins are its most since the 2017-18 season.
• America East announced a change in #AEPlayoffs dates on Feb. 9 - Link
• 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 six times this year, earning back-to-back titles on Nov. 22 and Nov. 29, on Dec. 13, on Dec. 27, on Jan. 31, and most recently on Feb. 14. 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.