ALBANY, N.Y. - The UAlbany women's basketball team aims to close out the season on a high note with back-to-back home games against UMBC and NJIT.  
 
On Thursday night, the Great Danes will debut special edition jerseys in support of Autism Awareness as they take on UMBC.  
 
Saturday marks the final home game of the regular season, featuring a special Senior Night celebration to honor our graduating players. Plus, the first 250 students in attendance will receive a free t-shirt for Breast Cancer Awareness.
 
GAME INFORMATION
 
UMBC at UAlbany
DATE: Thursday, February 27
TIME: 6:30 PM
SITE: Broadview Center - Albany, N.Y.
RECORDS: UAlbany 22-5, 12-2 America East | UMBC 14-12, 7-7 America East
SERIES RECORD: 33-23, UAlbany leads
STATS: UAlbanySports.com
STREAM: ESPN+
INT'L STREAM: AmericaEast.TV
TICKETS: Ticket Return
 
NJIT at UAlbany
DATE: Saturday, March 1
TIME: 7:00 PM
SITE: Broadview Center - Albany, N.Y.
RECORDS: UAlbany 22-5, 12-2 America East | NJIT 11-16, 8-6 America East
SERIES RECORD: 39-18, UAlbany leads
STATS: UAlbanySports.com
STREAM: ESPN+
INT'L STREAM: AmericaEast.TV
TICKETS: Ticket Return
 
All UAlbany students are welcome to enjoy all UAlbany Athletics events for FREE with a valid game ticket. Download the UAlbany Sports app to claim your ticket today.
 
*records as of February 25
 
LAST WEEK IN REVIEW

• The Great Danes added two more to the win column with road victories against Maine and New Hampshire.
• On Thursday, graduate student Jessica Tomasetti led the Great Danes with a double-double as she tabbed a season-high 17 points and a career-high 12 rebounds in a win against Maine. 
• A true team effort, eight of the nine players who saw action tacked on at least two points in the match-up.
• Graduate student Kayla Cooper led among all scorers with 22 points while shooting 64% from the field in UAlbany's 18-point victory over New Hampshire on Saturday. 
• As a team, UAlbany scored 20 points off turnovers, 12 fastbreak points, and 32 points in the paint.

 
GREAT DANE REWIND

• With one week remaining in the regular season, UAlbany is 22-5 with a 12-2 conference record.
• The Great Danes ended the non-conference season with just three losses while securing the best 10-game start in Division I history (9-1).
• During the 2024 portion of the schedule, UAlbany competed against three Power-Four teams. The team beat Syracuse (11.20) and fell to Wisconsin (12.20) and #6 LSU (12.29).
• The Great Danes went undefeated throughout the month of November.
• UAlbany kicked off the conference season with six consecutive wins. UMBC broke the win streak with an upset on the road (1.23).
• Since the loss in Maryland, the Great Danes have completed regular-season sweeps over Bryant, Binghamton, UMass Lowell, Maine, and New Hampshire and split the regular-season series against Vermont.
• Kayla Cooper leads with 17.6 points per game, 7.0 rebounds per game, 85 assists, and 42 steals.
• Graduate student Kaci Donovan follows as the team's second-leading scorer averaging 11.3 points per game.
• Jessica Tomasetti ranks second in rebounds with 4.2 per game, in assists (49) and in steals (30).
• Junior Gabriela Falcão owns a team-high 29 blocks.
• As a team, the Great Danes are shooting .450 from the field, with a 33.5% accuracy from downtown, and .766 from the line.

 
MILESTONE WATCH

• Jessica Tomasetti hit 1,250 career points with a shot from beyond the arch with only 18 seconds remaining in the Great Danes' match-up against Maine on Thursday.
• Lilly Phillips notched 750 points in her career with the first basket of the third quarter during UAlbany's victory over New Hampshire on the road.
• Senior Laycee Drake is three assists away from making it 100 in her career.
• Junior Gabriela Falcão needs six more blocks to hit 50 career blocks. 
• Tomasetti is also 17 field goals away from 500 in her career.
• Kaci Donovan is nearing two milestones - she is 11 three-pointers away from 200 in her career and 57 points away from 1,250.

 
GREATNESS RANKED

• Kayla Cooper is the only player in the nation averaging 17.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.5 steals, all while shooting an efficient 50% from the field, making her a key all-around contributor.
• The team has been dominant defensively and ranks ninth in the nation in scoring defense by allowing just 53.4 points per game while also holding opponents to 25.9% from three, the 12th-best mark in the country.
• Their success is reflected in their .815 winning percentage, tied for 33rd nationally, while their efficiency on offense has led to a 45.0% field goal percentage, ranked 49th in the country.
• Strong free-throw shooting has also been a factor as they convert at a .766 rate, ranked 29th nationally, helping them close out games effectively.

 
MULLEN MAGIC

• Head coach Colleen Mullen won her 20th game of the season against UMass Lowell on February 13.
• The win marked Mullen's fourth consecutive season with 20+ wins.
• She is the second UAlbany women's basketball coach to achieve four 20-win seasons, both consecutive and overall. Former head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson was the first to do this for the women's basketball program during the 2014-15 season.
• Throughout the history of both UAlbany basketball programs, Mullen is just the third coach to achieve four consecutive 20+-win seasons. UAlbany men's basketball's Will Brown was the second UAlbany basketball coach to achieve four consecutive 20-win seasons in 2017-18.
• The legendary Doc Sauers was the first UAlbany basketball coach to achieve four 20-win seasons. He is the only UAlbany basketball coach to achieve this accomplishment without doing so in consecutive seasons. 
  • Brown earned his fourth 20-win season in 2014-15. The 2014-15 season would prove to be the first of his four-year 20-win season streak.
• Overall, Mullen's arrival at four 20-win seasons is the second fastest in UAlbany basketball history. Taking seven seasons to accomplish this, she is behind only Abrahamson-Henderson who did it in five seasons. 

 
HISTORY MADE

• The Great Danes finished 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 14-12 on the season with a 7-7 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 started the conference season with four consecutive losses before winning five games throughout their next six contests.
• Overall, the Retrievers have swept UMass Lowell and Bryant with splits against New Hampshire and Maine. Binghamton and NJIT won both games in their regular season series against UMBC.
• Leading the team, Jordan Lewis averages 11.9 points per game. 
• Carmen Yánez tops the charts with 78 assists while Jaliena Sanchez owns a team-high 37 steals.
• Jaden Walker anchors the defensive efforts with 6.1 rebounds per game and 15 blocks. 
• As a team, the Retrievers are shooting 38.4% from the field, including 30.4% from beyond the arc, and have a free-throw percentage of 74.1%.

 
SERIES AGAINST THE RETRIEVERS 

• The Great Danes lead the series, 30-15.
• Head coach Colleen Mullen has led the Great Danes to a 9-4 record in matchups against UMBC during her tenure.  
• UAlbany won all matchups against the Retrievers since the start of the 2021-22 season until earlier this season when UMBC defeated the Great Danes in Baltimore.

 
PAST CONNECTIONS

• Current UAlbany senior Laycee Drake is in her first season as a Great Danes 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 11-16 on the season with an 8-6 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 before dropping four-straight contests.
• NJIT has won five of their last seven matchups.
• Overall, the Highlanders swept UMBC and UMass Lowell and split the series against Binghamton, Bryant, New Hampshire, and Maine.
• Alejandra Zuniga averages 16.9 points per game while facilitating 96 assists. 
• Trinity Williams is a staple on defense with two team-highs - 5.6 boards per game and 29 blocks.
• Enya Maguire serves the team in transition with 41 takeaways.
• As a team, the Highlanders are shooting 42.5% from the field, including 32.1% from beyond the arc, and have a free-throw percentage of 64.0%.

 
SERIES AGAINST THE HIGHLANDERS

• UAlbany leads the series, 11-1.
• Current head coach, Colleen Mullen is a perfect 8-0 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 before the Highlanders joined the America East.
• Last year, UAlbany knocked the Highlanders out of the America East tournament as the hosted 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

• UAlbany leads the pack with a 12-2 record. The Great Danes and Vermont (11-3) share the guaranteed top-two spots in the AE Tournament.
• Maine and NJIT are tied for third with an 8-6 record.
• UMBC and Bryant stay at an even 7-7 to round out the middle of the conference.
• The Black Bears, Highlanders, Retrievers, and Bulldogs are battling for a top-four seed and chance to host a quarterfinal.
• Binghamton (6-9) and New Hampshire (4-11) have clinched spots in the America East tournament and are battling for the seven seed.
• UMass Lowell (1-13) has been eliminated from playoff contention with two games remaining.

 
AMERICA EAST CONTESTS THIS WEEK

• Thursday
  • New Hampshire at Maine, 6 pm
  • UMass Lowell at Bryant, 6 pm
  • NJIT at Vermont, 6 pm
  • UMBC at UAlbany, 6:30 pm
• Saturday
  • UMass Lowell at Binghamton, 2 pm
  • UMBC at Vermont, 2 pm
  • Maine at Bryant, 2 pm
  • NJIT at UAlbany, 7 pm

 
UP NEXT: The Great Danes are to host the America East quarterfinals on Thursday, March 6 at 6:30 pm. The opponent is still to be determined.
 
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