ALBANY, N.Y. - The UAlbany women's basketball team will close their longest conference road stretch with two away games.
GAME INFORMATION
UAlbany at UMass Lowell
DATE: Thursday, January 18
TIME: 11:00 AM
SITE: Tsongas Center - Lowell, Mass.
RECORDS: UAlbany 14-2, 3-0 America East | UMass Lowell 3-13, 3-1 America East
SERIES RECORDS: 20-11, UAlbany leads
STATS:
GoRiverHawks.com
STREAM:
ESPN+
INT'L STREAM:
AE.TV
TICKETS:
GoRiverHawks.com
UAlbany at Bryant
DATE: Saturday, January 20
TIME: 2:00 PM
SITE: Chace Athletic Center - Smithfield, R.I.
RECORDS: UAlbany 14-2, 3-0 America East | Bryant 9-8, 2-2 America East
SERIES RECORDS: 4-1, UAlbany leads
STATS:
BryantBulldogs.com
STREAM:
ESPN+
INT'L STREAM:
AE.TV
TICKETS:
BryantBulldogs.com
*records as of January 17
A WEEK IN REVIEW
- Last week, the Great Danes played in just one game after their "bye day".
- Seeing Binghamton on Saturday, UAlbany grabbed their third conference victory - their 10th consecutive win overall.
- Senior Kayla Cooper led the way with 23 points, 14 rebounds, and four assists.
- Junior Lilly Phillips followed with a Division I opponent career-high 16 points.
GREAT DANE REWIND
- Just one week after entering the CollegeInsider Mid-Major Top-25 Poll, UAlbany increased its ranking from number 22 to number 21.
- Three games into conference play, the Great Danes hold a 14-2 record with three America East wins.
- Going 4-2 in November, UAlbany found victories over Merrimack (11.6), Sarah Lawrence (11.13), St. Bonaventure (11.16), and Cornell (11.22) with losses to Fordham (11.10) and Stanford (11.26).
- Meeting a goal to go undefeated in December, the Great Danes added wins over Siena (12.2), CCSU (12.6), Marist (12.9), Dartmouth (12.12), Stonehill (12.16), UMass (12.20) and Navy (12.30).
- After beating conference opponents Bryant (1.4) and NJIT (1.6) at home, the Great Danes went on the road to defeat Binghamton (1.13)
- Kayla Cooper leads the Great Danes with 15.7 points per game and 27 steals. She also ranks second with 7.3 rebounds per game.
- Deja Evans is a staple on defense with a team-high 7.5 rebounds per game and 20 blocks.
- Graduate student Sarah Karpell serves as the team's playmaker with 52 assists.
UNDEFEATED DECEMBER
- The Great Danes powered through December without one loss.
- Seeing seven opponents, five at home, UAlbany was able to defeat each one by at least 10 points.
- Working as a team in each game, the Great Danes worked for several accomplishments throughout December.
- Four student-athletes earned double-digit points in two different contests:
- Four of the remaining five games had three student-athletes with double-digit points:
- CCSU (Dec. 6) - Cooper (14), Haegerstrand (14), Huerter (10)
- Dartmouth (Dec. 12) - Huerter (20), Haegerstrand (18), Cooper (16)
- Stonehill (Dec. 16) - Cooper (16), Evans (13), Huerter (11)
- Navy (Dec. 30) - Evans (26), Cooper (23), Haegerstrand (12)
- Three Great Danes tallied 20-point performances - Cooper (23 vs Marist (12.9) & 23 vs Navy) & Evans (26 vs Navy)
- Cooper has compiled three double-doubles (14 points & 12 rebounds against CCSU; 23 points & 13 rebounds against Marist; 16 points & 11 rebounds against Stonehill) while Evans added one in the final game of 2023 (26 points & 17 rebounds).
- Consistently improving from outside the arc, four Great Danes have shot 50% or above on multiple occasions:
- Meghan Huerter (5) - .500 (2-4) vs Siena, .750 (6-8) vs Dartmouth, .500 (3-6) vs Stonehill, .714 (5-7) at UMass, .500 (2-4) vs Navy
- Lilly Phillips (3) - .667 (2-3) at CCSU, .600 (3-5) vs Stonehill, .667 (4-6) at UMass
- Helene Haegerstrand (3) - .600 (3-5) vs Marist, .500 (4-8) vs Dartmouth, .500 (2-4) vs Navy
- As a team, UAlbany has shot at least 50% in four contests (Siena, Dartmouth, Stonehill, and UMass) with three games shooting 50% or higher from outside the arc (Dartmouth, Stonehill, and UMass).
HAPPY AT HOME
- Continuing the first conference road stretch of 2023-24, the Great Danes have yet to be defeated at home.
- After a record-breaking home opener against Sarah Lawrence at the "home away from home" Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium, UAlbany has defeated all of its opponents in Broadview Center.
- The Great Danes have lost just three games at home since the start of the 2021-22 season.
- Going undefeated at home in non-conference play, Maine took the second-to-last regular-season home game in February 2022.
- Flipping the book for the 2022-23 season, UAlbany fell to Colgate and Cornell at "home" (Saint Rose and HVCC, respectively) while Broadview Center was undergoing its transformational overhaul.
- The Great Danes have not fallen in a home contest since December 3, 2022 (Cornell).
AUTOMATIC SHOOTING
- The Great Danes lead the America East in scoring offense (68.1), scoring defense (50.6), field goal percentage (.443), field goal defense (.363), three-point field goal percentage (.396), and three-point field goal defense (.266).
- UAlbany has leaders across all the shooting categories:
MILESTONE WATCH
- Kayla Cooper is 12 assists away from 150 career assists.
- Meghan Huerter is 14 three-pointers away from 100 in her collegiate career.
- Huerter is just five points away from 150 points this season.
- Helene Haegerstrand is 78 points away from 1500 career points.
- Haegerstrand is also 30 rebounds away from 500 total career rebounds.
PLAY AS A TEAM, WIN AS A TEAM
- The Great Danes have utilized great teamwork to fuel their success so far this season.
- In 16 contests, the Great Danes have had six different players lead the team in points.
- As a team, UAlbany ranks first in the conference in 10 stats:
- 68.1 points per game
- 50.6 points allowed per game
- 17.6 scoring margin
- .443 team FG percentage
- .363 opponent FG percentage
- .396 3PT FG percentage
- .266 opponent 3PT FG percentage
- 28.6 opponent rebounds per game
- 7.6 rebounding margin
- 2.63 turnover margin
BETTER BACK-UP
- UAlbany's bench has scored 18.0 points per game this season (288 total).
- Meghan Huerter leads the way, averaging 9.1 points (third on the team) while also ranking third on the team in rebounds with 3.6 per game. A knock-down shooter, she leads the team, and the conference, with a .506 percentage from outside the arc.
- Fellow junior Abby Ray is third on the team in offensive rebounds (25) and is tied for fourth in assists with 24.
- Recording 13 steals and four blocks, fourth on the team in both, Gabriela Falcão has had an impact on defense.
ABOUT UMASS LOWELL
- The River Hawks were unable to win one contest throughout a difficult non-conference slate.
- Opening at Boston University (11.6), they fell by just two points. Following with losses to Rhode Island (11.10), Holy Cross (11.13), Le Moyne (11.18), CCSU (11.21), and Fordham (11.25), UMass Lowell held three of its November opponents to single-digit point victories.
- Seeing Boston College (12.3), Brown (12.5), UMass (12.10), Dartmouth (12.14), Harvard (12.22), and Colgate (12.29) throughout December, the River Hawks added six losses.
- After starting the conference season with a loss to Maine (1.4), UMass Lowell has earned a three-game win streak with wins over New Hampshire (1.6), NJIT (1.11), and UMBC (1.13).
- Mili Carrera leads the team with 10.4 points per game while holding the second-highest amount of blocks (12) and steals (14).
- Sydney Watkins leads on defense with 6.1 rebounds per game with team-highs of 55 assists and 51 steals.
- Rayne Durant holds a team-high 15 blocks and ranks second with 5.8 rebounds per game.
SERIES AGAINST THE RIVER HAWKS
- The Great Danes lead the series, 20-11.
- Current head coach, Colleen Mullen, owns a 7-3 record against UMass Lowell during her time with UAlbany.
- The River Hawks and the Great Danes met three times throughout the 2022-23 season.
- Sweeping UML in the regular season, UAlbany hosted the River Hawks for a quarterfinal contest on March 1, 2023. The Great Danes won, 59-51.
PAST CONNECTIONS
- Assistant coach Yvonne Hawkins previously coached the River Hawks' assistant coach, Stefanie Murphy-Thorpe (maiden name - Murphy). Hawkins, along with the rest of the coaching staff at Boston College, coached Murphy to win the Eagles' first ACC Rookie of the Year award in 2007.
- Head coach Colleen Mullen grew up near UMass Lowell. She would practice at Costello Athletic Center every day in the summers, attending UMass Lowell for both basketball and volleyball camps. When there wasn't an organized event taking place, the River Hawks coach would open the gym specifically for Mullen. Her family is also well-embedded within the Lowell community. Mullen's grandfather worked at the college for over 30 years while multiple aunts and uncles are alumni of UML. One of her aunts, Gail Beaudoin, is a current professor within the criminal justice department - a retired lieutenant in the Chelmsford police force, she has been teaching there for over 20 years.
ABOUT BRYANT
- Two weeks into the conference season, the Bulldogs are 9-8 with a 2-2 league record.
- After opening the season against Dartmouth (11.6), Bryant fell to Seton Hall (11.12) and defeated Stonehill (11.14) and CCSU (11.17).
- Seeing the conclusion of a four-game losing streak (Merrimack (11.21), Florida International (11.24), Tennessee State (11.26), and Brown (11.29)), the Bulldogs opened December with three consecutive wins - Sacred Heart (12.2), Loyola (12.6), and Fisher (12.13).
- During a lull in action, Bryant fell to Boston College (12.20) and beat Bridgewater State (12.30).
- The Bulldogs fell in their first two conference games - UAlbany (1.4) and UMBC (1.6) - but have since won two contests against Binghamton (1.11) and New Hampshire (1.13).
- Mia Mancini (15.5) and Mariona Planes Fortuny (15.4) lead the team with their respective points per game averages.
- Planes Fortuny also leads the team with 6.8 rebounds per game and 18 blocks.
- Kemari Reynolds (56 assists) and Martina Boba (31 steals) each own a team-high in their respective stats.
SERIES AGAINST THE BULLDOGS
- The Great Danes lead the series, 4-1.
- Current head coach, Colleen Mullen, is the only coach to lead the Great Danes in games against Bryant.
- The series began in 2019-20 with a UAlbany loss, 68-55, on the road in December.
- In their first season as an America East team (2022-23), the Great Danes swept the series over Bryant.
- UAlbany started the conference season of 2024 with a 19-point victory over Bryant (January 4).
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 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.
AMERICA EAST STANDINGS
- After one week of conference play, two teams hold the lead having won all three of their contests - UAlbany and Maine.
- Vermont and UMass Lowell are close behind with three wins in four contests.
- Bryant and UMBC sit even having tallied two wins and two losses.
- NJIT (0-3), Binghamton (0-3), and New Hampshire (0-4) are looking for their first conference win.
AROUND THE AMERICA EAST
- Maine's Adrianna Smith earned #AEHoops Player of the Week honors on Monday.
- Totaled 28 points, 15 rebounds, and four assists in a win over UNH.
- This is the second time Smith has won the award.
- Smith is 1st in the league in rebounding (10.9), 3rd in assists (4.4), and 6th in scoring (15.4).
- UAlbany ranks second in the nation in scoring defense at 50.6 ppg.
- The Great Danes haven't allowed a team to score 60 points since Nov. 26 at Stanford (L, 79-35). A span of 10 games
- UAlbany has held four different Division I programs to less than 40 points.
- UMass Lowell is 3-1 and off to its best start in league play since 2019-20.
- UML started the 2019-20 season 7-0.
- This year UML started the season 0-13 with one of the 4 hardest schedules in the league but has won three straight conference games.
- UML has won 6 of its last 8 #AEHoops contests overall going back to 2022-23.
AMERICA EAST CONTESTS THIS WEEK
- Thursday
- UAlbany at UMass Lowell, 11 am
- UMBC at Maine, 6 pm
- NJIT at New Hampshire, 6 pm
- Binghamton at Vermont, 6 pm
- Saturday
- UMBC at New Hampshire, 12 pm
- NJIT at Maine, 1 pm
- UAlbany at Bryant, 2 pm
- Binghamton at UMass Lowell, 2 pm
UP NEXT: The Great Danes will return home for a big week in Broadview Center. Starting off the week against Maine (Jan. 25), UAlbany will host New Hampshire on Saturday (Jan. 27).
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
