ALBANY, N.Y. - The UAlbany women's basketball team remains undefeated in conference play as they hit the road for matchups against UMBC and NJIT.
 
GAME INFORMATION
 
UAlbany at UMBC
DATE: Thursday, January 23
TIME: 11:00 AM
SITE: Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena - Baltimore, Md.
RECORDS: UAlbany 16-3, 6-0 America East | UMBC 7-9, 0-4 America East
SERIES RECORD: 30-14, UAlbany leads
STATS: UMBCRetrievers.com
STREAM: ESPN+
INT'L STREAM: AmericaEast.TV
TICKETS: TicketMaster
 
UAlbany at NJIT
DATE: Saturday, January 25
TIME: 1:00 PM
SITE: Joel & Diane Bloom Wellness and Events Center (WEC) - Newark, N.J.
RECORDS: UAlbany 16-3, 6-0 America East | NJIT 6-12, 3-2 America East
SERIES RECORD: 10-1, UAlbany leads
STATS: NJITHighlanders.com
STREAM: ESPN+
INT'L STREAM: AmericaEast.TV
TICKETS: Vivenu
 
*records as of January 21
 
LAST WEEK IN REVIEW

• The Great Danes stay at the top of the America East as the only team to remain undefeated through three weeks of conference play. They picked up wins against Bryant and Binghamton last week.
• With their 15-point victory over Bryant on the road, UAlbany extended its win streak against the Bulldogs to six. UAlbany was led by two double-digit scorers - graduate students Kayla Cooper (17) and Jessica Tomasetti (12). Tomasetti grabbed an impressive team-high nine boards.
• The Purple and Gold hosted Binghamton on Saturday afternoon and delivered a dominant team performance to secure the win. Driven by a 20-point, seven-assist outing from Cooper and a milestone first career double-double from graduate student Kaci Donovan, the Great Danes showcased their depth and teamwork. UAlbany shot an efficient 50% from the field and recorded a season-high 24 assists.

 
GREAT DANE REWIND

• UAlbany ended the non-conference season with just three losses while securing the best 10-game start in Division I history (9-1).
• The team's first loss of the season came in its crosstown matchup at Siena (12.7). The second two came against Power-Four teams at the end of the calendar year - Wisconsin (12.20) and #6 LSU (12.29).
• 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). 
• The Great Danes added wins against Stonehill (12.1), Boston U (12.10), St. Bonaventure (12.14), and Merrimack (12.16) in December.
• UAlbany has kicked off conference season with six consecutive wins - Vermont (1.2), UMass Lowell (1.4), New Hampshire (1.9), Maine (1.11), Bryant (1.16), and Binghamton (1.18).
• Kayla Cooper leads with 17.3 points per game, 7.2 rebounds per game, 58 assists, and 30 steals.
• Kaci Donovan follows with 12.5 points per game and 3.5 rebounds per game. Freshman Martina Borrellas has also notched 3.5 rebounds per game.
• Graduate student Lilly Phillips is second on the team with 34 assists while Jessica Tomasetti is close behind Cooper with 24 steals.
• Junior Gabriela Falcão owns a team-high 24 blocks.
• As a team, the Great Danes are shooting .455 from the field, with a 35.4% accuracy from downtown, and .778 from the line.

 
MILESTONE WATCH

• About a minute and a half into the second quarter of the home game against Binghamton, Jessica Tomasetti grabbed her 500th career rebound.
• Senior Meghan Huerter is seven points away from 500 career points.
• Lilly Phillips is nearing several career milestones - she is two assists away from 200 in her career, three steals away from 100, and seven field goals away from 250.
• Senior Laycee Drake is four assists away from making it 100 in her career.

 
MAKIN' HISTORY

• The Great Danes are at the end of a spectacular performance in the non-conference season, fueled by the leadership of head coach Colleen Mullen.
• After defeating St. Bonaventure on Saturday (12.14), UAlbany sealed the best 10-game start in Division I program history with just one loss. 
• Previously, the best 10-game start in Division I program history was 8-2, including one season under head coach Colleen Mullen. Five teams earned the 8-2 start: 2012-13, 2013-14, 2015-16, 2017-18, 2023-24.

 
HAPPY AT HOME

• The Great Danes have paved the way for a historic season with an incredible record at home as they remain undefeated through the 2024-25 season in the Broadview Center.
• UAlbany has lost just five 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 of the 2021-22 season.
• 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 fell only twice during the 2023-24 season at home; both times being against Vermont.

 
ABOUT UMBC

• The Retrievers are currently 7-9 on the season with a 0-4 conference record. 
• UMBC opened the season with a loss to Maryland (11.4) before securing wins against Notre Dame of Maryland (11.6) and Morgan State (11.17). They added another victory against American (11.20). 
• The Retrievers ended their non-conference season on a 4-1 run and picked up wins against Iona (11.30), Towson (12.4), Saint Francis (12.8), and Bryn Athyn (12.29). 
• UMBC is one of two teams who remain winless in the conference season. 
• Leading the team, Jordan Lewis averages 11.4 points per game. 
• Carmen Yánez tops the charts with 54 assists while Jaliena Sanchez owns a team-high 22 steals.
• Jaden Walker anchors the defensive efforts with 5.7 rebounds per game and eight blocks. 
• As a team, the Retrievers are shooting 38.1% from the field, including 29.0% from beyond the arc, and have a free-throw percentage of 71.7%.

 
SERIES AGAINST THE RETRIEVERS

• The Great Danes lead the series, 30-14.
• Head coach Colleen Mullen has led the Great Danes to a 9-3 record in matchups against UMBC during her tenure.  
• UAlbany has won all matchups against the Retrievers since the start of the 2021-22 season.

 
PAST CONNECTIONS

• Current UAlbany senior Laycee Drake is in her first season as a Great Dane after transferring from UMBC.
• The New York native started all 29 games as a sophomore after playing in 20 games as a freshman. She averaged 5.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game as a Retriever. Her junior season was cut short with an injury after just one game in uniform.

 
ABOUT NJIT

• The Highlanders are 6-12 on the season with a 3-2 record in league play.
• Both NJIT and the Great Danes faced Sacred Heart and Merrimack. UAlbany secured victories against both opponents while NJIT only picked up a win over Sacred Heart. 
• The Highlanders opened the season with a win over Saint Francis (11.4) before dropping the next two games. They added another victory against Sacred Heart (11.13). 
• After nine consecutive losses, NJIT ended the year with a 29-point victory over LIU (12.30).
• The Highlanders began their America East play with three consecutive wins against Binghamton (1.2), UMBC (1.9), and UMass Lowell (1.11) before dropping two against Maine (1.16) and New Hampshire (1.18).
• Leading the conference, Alejandra Zuniga averages 18.1 points per game while facilitating 62 assists. 
• Trinity Williams is a staple on defense with two team-highs - 7.0 boards per game and 12 blocks. Madeline Dogs is right beside Williams in blocks.
• Enya Maguire serves the team in transition with 24 takeaways.
• As a team, the Highlanders are shooting 42.5% from the field, including 32.6% from beyond the arc, and have a free-throw percentage of 63.1%.

 
SERIES AGAINST THE HIGHLANDERS

• UAlbany leads the series, 10-1.
• Current head coach, Colleen Mullen is a perfect 7-0 against the Highlanders since they joined the America East during the 2021-22 season.
• The Great Danes only loss to NJIT came in the 2008-09 season. 
• Last year, UAlbany knocked the Highlanders out of the America East tournament as the hosts in a 15-point quarterfinal victory.

 
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

• After week three of the conference season, UAlbany remains the only undefeated team to lead the league with a perfect 6-0.
• Vermont comes up in second with just one loss to UAlbany (4-1).
• Maine (4-2) and NJIT (3-2) round out the top four at the moment.
• Binghamton remains even at 3-3 with Bryant (2-3) and New Hampshire (2-4) under .500.
• UMBC (0-4) and UMass Lowell (0-5) are looking for their first AE win.

 
*written by the America East; as of January 13
 
AMERICA EAST CONTESTS THIS WEEK

• Thursday
  • UAlbany at UMBC, 11 am
  • New Hampshire at Bryant, 5 pm
  • Vermont at NJIT, 6 pm
  • UMass Lowell at Maine, 6 pm
• Saturday
  • UMass Lowell at New Hampshire, 1 pm
  • UAlbany at NJIT, 1 pm
  • Bryant at Binghamton, 2 pm
  • Vermont at UMBC, 2 pm

 
UP NEXT: The Great Danes end their road trip at Binghamton (2.1) in a one-game week.
 
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