ALBANY, N.Y. - The UAlbany women's basketball team is set to open conference play with a week at home.
Opening conference play with Bryant on Thursday (Jan. 4), the Great Danes will host NJIT for Kids Day on Saturday (Jan. 6). Sponsored by United Way, fans will be able to buy a kids ticket for just three dollars with the purchase of an adult ticket.
Chalk Talks are back! Ahead of the game on Saturday, all fans will be welcome to join head coach
Colleen Mullen in conversation. This weekend's Chalk Talk will be located in the GDAC corner of the arena right as doors open at 1:00 pm.
GAME INFORMATION
Bryant at UAlbany
DATE: Thursday, January 4
TIME: 7:00 PM
SITE: Broadview Center - Albany, N.Y.
RECORDS: UAlbany 11-2, 0-0 America East | Bryant 7-6, 0-0 America East
SERIES RECORDS: 3-1, UAlbany leads
STATS:
UAlbanySports.com
STREAM:
ESPN+
INT'L STREAM:
AE.TV
TICKETS:
UAlbanySports.com
NJIT at UAlbany
DATE: Saturday, January 6
TIME: 2:00 PM
SITE: Broadview Center - Albany, N.Y.
RECORDS: UAlbany 11-2, 0-0 America East | NJIT 8-5, 0-0 America East
SERIES RECORDS: 7-1, UAlbany leads
STATS:
UAlbanySports.com
STREAM:
ESPN+
INT'L STREAM:
AE.TV
TICKETS:
UAlbanySports.com
UAlbany game notes (Bryant) |
UAlbany game notes (NJIT) |
Bryant game notes |
NJIT game notes
All UAlbany students are welcome to enjoy all UAlbany Athletics events for FREE with their student ID. Come out and support the Great Danes with the scan of a card - tactile or mobile.
*records as of January 3
LAST TIME OUT
- In the Great Danes' most recent game, a 31-point victory over Navy (Dec. 30), two student-athletes surpassed 20 points.
- Freshman Deja Evans led with 26 points and 17 rebounds to be named the America East Rookie and Player of the Week.
- Tallying her 1000th career point with her first basket, senior Kayla Cooper followed with 23 points.
- Both Cooper and Evans shot over 60% from the field.
- Graduate student Helene Haegerstrand made it three Great Danes with double-digit points as she tallied 12 points, including two three-pointers.
GREAT DANE REWIND
- UAlbany finished the non-conference slate with an 11-2 record.
- Going 4-2 in November, the Great Danes 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, UAlbany 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).
- Kayla Cooper leads the Great Danes with 15.1 points per game and 25 steals. She also ranks second with 7.3 rebounds per game.
- Deja Evans is a staple on defense with team-high 7.5 rebounds per game and 15 blocks.
- Graduate student Sarah Karpell serves as the team's playmaker with 46 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
- Heading into the 2023-24 conference season, 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).
WATCH YOUR POCKETS
- UAlbany is ranked second in the America East with 8.85 steals per game (115 total) and first in turnover margin with 2.69.
- Turning defense into offense, the Great Danes have averaged 19.5 points off turnovers (254 total).
- Two Great Danes are ranked in the top 15 in steals in the conference:
AUTOMATIC SHOOTING
- The Great Danes lead the America East in Team 3-Point FG Percentage (39.8%).
- Accurate shooting has made UAlbany have the highest-scoring offense in the conference (68.0 ppg).
- UAlbany has leaders across all the shooting categories:
PLAY AS A TEAM, WIN AS A TEAM
- The Great Danes have utilized great teamwork to fuel their success so far this season.
- In 13 contests, the Great Danes have had six different players lead the team in points.
- As a team, UAlbany ranks first in the conference in nine stats with at least one conference-high mark in all categories:
- 68.0 points per game
- 51.2 points allowed per game
- 16.8 scoring margin
- .359 opponent FG percentage
- .398 3PT FG percentage
- .783 opponent free throw percentage
- 29.8 opponent rebounds per game
- 6.6 rebounding margin
- 2.69 turnover margin
BETTER BACK-UP
- UAlbany's bench has scored 19.0 points per game this season (247 total).
- Meghan Huerter leads the way, averaging 8.8 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 .500 percentage from outside the arc.
- Fellow junior Abby Ray is third on the team in offensive rebounds (20) and tied for fourth with 19 assists.
- Recording 10 steals and four blocks, fourth on the team in both, Gabriela Falcão has had an impact on defense.
ABOUT BRYANT
- At the conclusion of the non-conference season, the Bulldogs are 7-6.
- 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).
- Mariona Planes Fortuny (16.0) and Mia Mancini (15.5) led the team with their respective points per game totals.
- Planes Fortuny also leads the team with 6.3 rebounds per game and 14 blocks.
- Tied with 15 steals each, Mancini (36) and Planes Fortuny (35) lead in transition with their respective assist totals.
SERIES AGAINST THE BULLDOGS
- The Great Danes lead the series, 3-1.
- 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 on December 20, 2019.
- In their first season as an America East team (2022-23), the Great Danes swept the series over Bryant.
ABOUT NJIT
- After 13 non-conference games, the Highlanders own an 8-5 record.
- In its first five contests, NJIT tallied four wins - Army (11.6), Merrimack (11.10), Rider (11.15), and Wagner (11.18) - with one loss to #10 Notre Dame (11.12).
- The next five saw a flipped record with four losses - Lafayette (11.21), Hofstra (11.25), Miami (12.3), and Sacred Heart (12.6) - and one win over FDU (11.29).
- Heading into their conference slate, the Highlanders own a three-game win streak after victories over Saint Peter's (12.12), Saint Francis U (12.15), and LIU (12.31).
- Alejandra Zuniga leads the team with 15.3 points per game and 30 assists.
- Trinity Williams leads the defensive efforts with 6.7 rebounds per game and 22 blocks. Madilyn Dogs follows with 6.5 rebounds per game and 15 blocks.
- Kenna Squier owns a team-high 28 steals.
SERIES AGAINST THE HIGHLANDERS
- The Great Danes lead the series, 7-1.
- Current head coach, Colleen Mullen, has led the Great Danes through four wins over NJIT.
- Seeing the Highlanders four times throughout the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, UAlbany swept both regular-season series.
- In 2022-23, the Great Danes won both contests with double-digit point margins.
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.
AROUND THE AMERICA EAST
- UAlbany leads the way as the only team to have reached double-digit victories in non-conference play.
- NJIT and Vermont follow tied with eight wins each. The Highlanders hold the slight lead with five losses to the Catamounts six.
- Bryant and Maine hold seven wins during their 13-game and 14-game schedules, respectively.
- Binghamton (5-8), UMBC (4-8), and UMass Lowell (0-12) round out the conference.
AMERICA EAST CONTESTS THIS WEEK
- Thursday
- New Hampshire at Vermont, 6 pm
- Maine at UMass Lowell, 6 pm
- UMBC at Binghamton, 6 pm
- Bryant at UAlbany, 7 pm
- Saturday
- Vermont at Maine, 1 pm
- NJIT at UAlbany, 2 pm
- New Hampshire at UMass Lowell, 2 pm
- UMBC at Bryant, 2 pm
UP NEXT: The Great Danes will continue their conference play at Binghamton on Saturday (Jan. 13).
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
