ALBANY, N.Y. - The UAlbany women's basketball team heads across town to face Siena for the annual Albany Cup.
 
GAME INFORMATION
 
UAlbany at Siena
DATE: Saturday, December 7
TIME: 2:00 PM
SITE: UHY Center - Loudonvill, N.Y.
RECORDS: UAlbany 7-0, 0-0 America East | Siena 2-4, 0-0 MAAC
SERIES RECORD: 14-11, UAlbany leads
STATS: SienaSaints.com
STREAM: ESPN+
INT'L STREAM: MAACSports.com
TICKETS: SienaSaints.com
 
UAlbany game notes (PDF)

*records as of December 6
 
LAST TIME OUT

• Coming out of a short break for Thanksgiving, the Great Danes continued their unbeaten streak with a win at Stonehill, 80-59.
• Graduate student Lilly Phillips shot 9-12, including 6-7 from the three, to total 24 points for a career-high.
• Fellow graduate students Kayla Cooper (13) and Kaci Donovan (12) added double-digit point totals.
• Cooper earned a double-double with a team-high 15 rebounds while leading with four assists and two steals.
• Freshman Martina Borrellas followed Cooper with five rebounds and shared Cooper's lead with four assists.

 
GREAT DANE REWIND

• In the team's best start since the 2013-14 season, UAlbany is unbeaten through the first seven games of the season. During the opening of the 2013 season, the Great Danes went 8-0.
• Going undefeated in November, UAlbany earned a double-digit season-opening victory against Rhode Island (11.8) while adding head coach Colleen Mullen's first win over a Power Four (Five) at Syracuse (11.20). Additional wins in November were against Dartmouth (11.13), Sacred Heart (11.16), Cornell (11.23) and RPI (11.27). 
• Most recently, the Great Danes continued to win at Stonehill on December 1.
• Kayla Cooper leads with 19.6 points per game, 8.9 rebounds per game, 15 assists, and 11 steals.
• Junior Gabriela Falcão owns a team-high nine blocks.
• Four-year Great Dane Lilly Phillips (10.7) makes it two Great Danes averaging double-digit points.
• As a team, the Great Danes are shooting .459 from the field, with a 37.0% accuracy from downtown, and .824 from the line.

 
MILESTONE WATCH

• Kaci Donovan (7 away) and senior Laycee Drake (11 away) are closing in on 100 career assists while Kayla Cooper has to earn 18 more assists for 200 in her career and Lilly Phillips is nearing 100 career steals (12 away).
• On a roll in recent games, Phillips is just 11 made three-pointers from 100 in her career.
• Donovan is 43 points away from joining the 1000-point club. Cooper is nearing 1500 points (28 points away).

 
MULLEN MAGIC

• The UAlbany Great Danes are off to a spectacular start in the 2024 season, fueled by the leadership of head coach Colleen Mullen. With a perfect record so far, the team is on the verge of history as they prepare for two pivotal matchups.
• A win against Siena would give the Great Danes an 8-0 start and tie the program's best start since the 2013-14 season.
• The historic 2013-14 season saw UAlbany dominate under Coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson. In the third year of what proved to be a six-year America East Championship win streak, the team went 15-1 in league play and hosted the conference finale.
• A victory in the following game at Boston University would secure a 9-0 record and mark the best start in UAlbany program history.

 
VIDEO GAME NUMBERS

• UAlbany is ranked 36th in the country in three-point field goal percentage (.370) and 47th in the country in field goal percentage (.459).
• The Great Danes lead the America East in nearly all shooting categories: scoring defense (53.9), scoring margin (15.1), field goal percentage (.459), three-point field goal percentage (.370), and free throw percentage (.824).
• UAlbany has leaders across all the shooting categories in the conference:
  • Kayla Cooper
    • 1st - 19.6 Points per game
    • 1st - .612 FG percentage
    • 2nd - 8.9 Rebounds per game
    • 3rd - .846 FT percentage
  • Kaci Donovan
    • 1st - .429 3PT FG percentage
    • 2nd - 2.1 3PT FG per game
  • Lilly Phillips
    • 9th - 1.6 3PT FG per game
    • 12th - 10.7 points per game
  • Meghan Huerter
    • 10th - 1.6 3PT FG per game

 
COOP-SANITY

• The 2024-25 season has been unforgettable for Kayla Cooper, whose explosive performances have ignited "Coop-sanity" across the America East. The five-year Great Dane ranks in the nation in five different stats as well as leading the league in multiple categories.
• Cooper was named AE Player of the Week in the first three weeks of the season - a feat only accomplished once before by the Great Dane's all-time leading scorer, Shereesha Richards. She is the first athlete in the conference to achieve this accomplishment since Blanca Milan (Maine) in 2019.
• National rankings:
  • 15th - .612 FG%
  • 27th - 19.6 points per game
  • T28th - 3 double-doubles
  • 75th - 8.9 rebounds per game
• In the America East:
  • 1st - points per game
  • 1st - FG%
  • 2nd - rebounds per game
  • 3rd - .846 FT%
  • 8th - 1.6 steals per game
  • 20th - 2.1 assists per game
  • 21st - 0.4 blocks per game

 
IN THE RECORD BOOK

• Kayla Cooper is ranked in the record book in four different stats.
  • 6th - 1472 points
  • 7th - 13.0 points per game
  • 4th - 812 rebounds
  • T7th - 7.2 rebounds per game
• In 2023-24, two Great Danes put up single-season numbers good enough to be ranked in program history.
  • Kayla Cooper
    • 7th - 509 points
    • 10th - 15.9 points per game
    • 8th - .528 field goal percentage
  • Meghan Huerter
    • 2nd - .459 three-point field goal percentage

 
ABOUT SIENA

• The Saints are 2-4 on the season.
• After four consecutive losses to open the season (Army (11.6), Washington (11.10), Pennsylvania (11.13), and Fordham (11.23), Siena has won their two most recent contests at CCSU (11.26) and against UMass (12.1).
• Three Saints are averaging above 10 points per game - Teresa Seppala (17.0), Ahniysha Jackson (14.2), and Anajah Brown (10.7).
• Seppala also leads with 7.0 rebounds per game and eight steals while Jackson leads with 18 assists.
• Myriam Traore holds a team-high four blocks. Seven Saints have earned at least two blocks.
• As a team, Siena is shooting .362 from the field, including 29.2% accuracy from downtown, with a .689 free throw percentage.

 
SERIES AGAINST THE SAINTS

• The Great Danes lead the all-time series, 14-11.
• UAlbany is currently on a three-game win streak over Siena. Current four-year Great Danes and locals, Lilly Phillips and Abby Ray, have beaten the Saints in all three Albany Cups of their career.
• Under head coach Colleen Mullen, UAlbany is 3-1 against Siena. The Saints won the first contest against Mullen, 52-46, in 2019. The Massachusetts native has coached the team to three wins since (2021, 2022, and 2023).

 
PAST CONNECTIONS

• Current senior Meghan Huerter has close family ties to the men's basketball program at Siena. Her father, Tom Huerter, was a Saint for four years, including during the 1988-89 season during Siena's NCAA Tournament run that saw an upset over Stanford. Her brother, Thomas Huerter Jr, continued the family legacy and played for Siena as well. Her mother, Erin, is also a Siena graduate.

 
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 fourth consecutive year.
• Coaches Colleen Mullen and Dwayne Killings, along with select student-athletes, will join ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team's Dan Bahl and Michael Johnson Jr. 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 Killings, 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

• Four weeks into the season, the Great Danes are the only remaining undefeated team in the conference.
• Bryant follows with just one loss in eight games.
• Three team are just above .500 with a 5-4 record - Binghamton, New Hampshire, and UMBC.
• Vermont, Maine, and NJIT following the top five teams with 4, 3, and 2 wins, respectively.
• UMass Lowell rounds out the conference looking for their first win.

 
AROUND THE AMERICA EAST

• New Hampshire's Eva DeChent was named the Player of the Week.
  • DeChent averaged 24.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, & 2.0 blocks in a 1-1 week.
  • Had 34 points, six rebounds, and two blocks in a seven-point win over Dartmouth.
  • Averaging 18.8 ppg this year after averaging 2.0 ppg at URI last year.
• Binghamton's Abby Misier was honored as the Rookie of the Week
  • Averaged 6.0 points and 1.5 rebounds in a 2-0 week
  • Had eight points, two rebounds, and one steal in a 16-point win over Patriot League preseason favorite Loyola.
• UAlbany is a perfect 7-0 this season.
  • The Great Danes rank second in the league in scoring (69.0), second in scoring defense (53.9), and first in scoring margin (15.1).
  • Beat Syracuse, 73-0, at the Dome last month.
  • Six different players are averaging at least 5.5 ppg, led by Kayla Cooper who leads the league at 19.6 ppg on 61% shooting.

 
*written by the America East; as of December 3
 
AMERICA EAST CONTESTS THIS WEEKEND

• Saturday
  • Manhattan at Vermont, 12 pm
  • UMass Lowell at Le Moyne, 12 pm
  • Army at New Hampshire, 1 pm
  • Marist at Bryant, 2 pm
  • UAlbany at Siena, 2 pm
• Sunday
  • UMBC at Saint Francis, 2 pm

 
UP NEXT: The Great Danes will close their three-game road streak at Boston University on Tuesday, December 10.
 
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