ALBANY, N.Y. - The UAlbany women's basketball team will head on the road for a rematch of the 2023 WNIT First Round.
GAME INFORMATION
UAlbany at UMass
DATE: Tuesday, December 19
TIME: 12:00 PM
SITE: Mullins Center - Amherst, Mass.
RECORDS: UAlbany 9-2, 0-0 America East | UMass 2-9, 0-0 A10
SERIES RECORDS: 1-0, UMass leads
STATS:
UMassAthletics.com
STREAM: NESN+ (&
ESPN+)
INT'L STREAM: Not available
TICKETS:
UMassTix
LAST TIME OUT
- The Great Danes recently closed a three-game home stand with their fifth consecutive win.
- In a 77-38 victory over Stonehill, senior Kayla Cooper led the Great Danes in four out of five major statistics - 16 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, and five steals.
- Freshman Deja Evans followed close behind with 13 points, seven rebounds, and a team-high two blocks.
- Junior Meghan Huerter added 11 points to make it the second consecutive game with three in the double-digits.
- Dressing 10 players from the roster, all of them scored at least one field goal to help contribute to the score.
- As a team, UAlbany worked for a 50% scoring average from the field and from outside the arc.
GREAT DANE REWIND
- UAlbany nears the end of the non-conference season with nine wins and two losses.
- Seeing two teams for losses in November (Fordham (11.10) and #4 Stanford (11.26)), the Great Danes opened the season with a win over Merrimack (11.6) and a record-breaking victory over Sarah Lawrence (11.13) for the home-opener.
- After additional wins at St. Bonaventure (11.16) and Cornell (11.22), UAlbany hosted Siena for its third-straight Albany Cup victory in the Grand Opening of Broadview Center (12.2).
- With victories over CCSU (12.6), Marist (12.9), Dartmouth (12.12), and Stonehill (12.16), the Great Danes have won each game since opening Broadview.
- Kayla Cooper leads the Great Danes on all sides of the court - offense (14.5 points per game, .522 field goal percentage), defense (7.7 rebounds per game), and in transition (23 steals).
- Graduate student Sarah Karpell owns the team-high in assists with 33 while Deja Evans leads with 11 total blocks.
WATCH YOUR POCKETS
- UAlbany leads the America East with 9.18 steals per game (101 total) and first in turnover margin with 3.57.
- Turning defense into offense, the Great Danes have averaged 19.8 points off turnovers.
- Two Great Danes are ranked in the top 10 in steals in the conference:
AUTOMATIC SHOOTING
- The Great Danes lead the America East in Team 3-Point FG Percentage (38.1%).
- Accurate shooting has made UAlbany have the highest-scoring offense in the conference (65.7 ppg).
- UAlbany has leaders across all the shooting categories:
MILESTONE WATCH
- Kayla Cooper is 14 points away from scoring 1,000 career points. Averaging 14.5 points this season, Cooper could reach this milestone within the next two games.
- Junior Lilly Phillips is one game shy of recording her 10th career 10-point performance.
PLAY AS A TEAM, WIN AS A TEAM
- The Great Danes have utilized great teamwork to fuel their success so far this season.
- In 11 contests, the Great Danes have had five different players lead the team in points.
- As a team, UAlbany ranks first in the conference in 10 stats with at least one conference-high mark in all categories:
- 65.7 points per game
- 50.6 points allowed per game
- 15.1 scoring margin
- .360 opponent FG percentage
- .381 3PT FG percentage
- .782 opponent free throw percentage
- 30.1 opponent rebounds per game
- 6.5 rebounding margin
- 3.27 turnover margin
- 9.18 steals per game
BETTER BACK-UP
- UAlbany's bench has scored 19.3 points per game this season.
- Meghan Huerter leads the way, averaging 8.3 points (third on the team) while also ranking third on the team in rebounds with 3.5 per game. A knock-down shooter, she leads the team with a .472 percentage from outside the arc.
- Fellow junior Abby Ray is third on the team in offensive rebounds (18) and fourth with 16 assists.
- Recording 10 steals and three blocks, fourth and fifth on the team, respectively, sophomore Gabriela Falcão has had an impact on defense.
ABOUT UMASS
- After 11 contests in the 2023-24 season, the Minutewomen hold a 2-9 record.
- UMass opened the season with a home win over Saint Peter's (11.6).
- Going on a nine-game losing streak, the Minutewomen saw Northeastern (11.9), Maine (11.12), Harvard (11.16), Monmouth (11.19), Green Bay (11.23), #24 Washington State (11.24), Maryland (11.25), Yale (12.1), and Boston College (12.6).
- Most recently, the Minutewomen earned a victory against UMass Lowell over a week ago (12.10).
- Stefanie Kulesza leads the team with 12.3 points per game, 8.6 rebounds per game, and four blocks.
- Tori Hyduke helps the team in transition with a team-high 38 assists and 14 steals.
SERIES AGAINST THE MINUTEWOMEN
- UAlbany and UMass met for the first time in 2023 for the WNIT First Round game with a Great Dane loss.
- Kayla Cooper tallied 18 points and 11 rebounds to lead the team. Helene Haegerstrand followed with nine points.
DRIVE THE LANE WITH UALBANY HOOPS
- UAlbany will continue its partnership with ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team and City Line Bar & Grill for the third consecutive year.
- 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 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.
AROUND THE AMERICA EAST
- UAlbany holds the sole lead in the conference with a 9-2 record.
- Four teams hold five losses on the season.
- NJIT and Vermont are one game ahead to tie for second with seven wins. Bryant and Maine are currently tied for fourth with six wins.
- New Hampshire sits just below .500 with a 5-6 record.
- Binghamton (3-8), UMBC (2-8), and UMass Lowell (0-10) round out the conference.
AMERICA EAST CONTESTS THIS WEEK
- Wednesday
- New Hampshire at Saint Joseph's, 11 am
- Sacred Heart at Vermont, 11 am
- UAlbany at UMass, 12 pm
- UMBC at American, 12:30 pm
- Binghamton at Army, 1 pm
- Maine at Duquesne, 3:30 pm
- Bryant at Boston College, 7 pm
- Thursday
- Maine - Tulane Holiday Tournament, TBD
- Friday
- Harvard at UMass Lowell, 1 pm
UP NEXT: The Great Danes will return home after a short break for their final non-conference game against Navy (Dec. 30).
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 & Threads - @ualbanywbb
Facebook – facebook.com/UAlbanyWBB
