ALBANY, N.Y. – The University at Albany men's basketball team returns to the road this Saturday for a weekend matchup with the Hartford Hawks. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. The game will be available on ESPN3 and broadcast on ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team in Albany.
 
Game Info
Saturday, Feb. 5 – at Hartford
Chase Arena in Hartford, Conn.
4:00 p.m. EST
ESPN3 | ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team | Live Stats
 
Leading the Pack

• The team currently sits tied for fifth place in the conference with an AE mark of 5-5.
• The Great Danes are averaging 61.6 ppg, with opponents averaging 65.8 ppg. The team is shooting 40.4% from the field, 31.1% from three, and 71.1% from the charity stripe.
• In conference-only games, UAlbany sits fourth in the league defensively – allowing just 65.8 ppg. On the offensive side, the Great Danes sit in ninth place with 61.6 points scored per game.
• Matt Cerruti and Jamel Horton lead the team in scoring. Cerruti is averaging 11.0 points per game, shooting at a clip of.448 from the field and .438 from beyond the arc. Horton is averaging 11.7 per game, shooting .422 from the field and leading the team in assists with 83 on the year.
• Justin Neely, now a five-time America East Rookie of the Week, leads the team in rebounds with 105 on the season – averaging 5.3 per contest.

 
Last Time Out
The Great Danes hosted UMBC on Wednesday night at SEFCU Arena, falling 53-59 to the Retrievers.

 

• UAlbany shot 37.3% (22-59) from the field and 25.0% from three-point range. UMBC shot 41.1% from the field and 25.0% (8-11) from three-point range.
• The Retrievers edged out the Great Danes rebounding 34-33.
• UMBC finished with 11 assists, UAlbany with 10.
• Jarvis Doles and Jamel Horton led the way with 17 points each, followed by Paul Newman (6) and Chuck Champion (4).
• Champion scored his 1000th career point late in the first half on a mid-range jumper.
• On the rebound, Doles, Newman and Hutcheson led the Great Danes with five a piece.
• Matt Cerruti, Horton and Champion led UAlbany in assists, each with three.
• With a pair a piece, Hutcheson, Doles and Newman led the Great Danes in blocks.

Scouting Hartford
The Hawks come into Saturday's matchup with an overall record of 5-13, having gone 3-3 in conference play thus far. In conference games, Hartford has split series with Binghamton and New Hampshire while collecting another win against Maine and Falling to Vermont. Most recently, the team fell to UNH on Wednesday night on the road, 64-70. Junior Moses Flowers scored a game-high 27 points, including 23 in the second half to fuel a furious comeback bid.. Trailing by as many as 22, the Hawks pulled within four down the stretch before running out of steam in the closing minute.

On the year, Hartford is averaging 69.1 points offensively while allowing 73.2 on the defensive side. The team is shooting 45.6% from the field and 34.8% from three-point land. Three Hawks are averaging double-figures in Austin Williams (15.8), Moses Flowers (14.2) and Hunter Marks (12.3).

Last Time Against Hartford
UAlbany and Hartford last met on Feb. 28, 2021 in the America East quarterfinal round. The Hawks edged the Great Danes 83-77, and would go on to eventually win the conference championship.  

#AEHoops Notes (1.31.22)

• Vermont is off to a 7-0 start in #AEHoops play for the sixth time in its program history.
• The Catamounts, winners of nine in a row and 10 of their last 11, rank 70th in the country, behind only Iona among regional peers.
• Vermont has score 80-plus points in all seven of its conference games and has averaged 84.6 ppg during the stretch outscoring foes by an average of 18.0 ppg.
• UAlbany has won five of its last six games and leads the league holding teams to 63.8 ppg during conference play.
• Vermont and UAlbany square off tonight in Burlington.
• Stony Brook sits in second place in the conference standings at 5-2 having won three of its last four games.
• Binghamton is 5-4 in #AEHoops play. The five wins are the most the program has won in any of the last 12 years – with nine more games still to play.
• UMBC has won three-straight games for the first time since Nov. 23 – Dec. 1.
• 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.
 
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.
 
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.