cwdickens

James Madison is 4-0 with two wins over top 25 team including previous #3 North Carolina. Feb 25 (Sun) 12:00 PM at #3 James Madison Harrisonburg, Va. Watch: ESPN+ Live Stats History

I imagine Mark Benson, Vic Cegles, President Rodriquez and sports development have discussed this avenue; however, how far they have gone with this, only a select group knows. If MBB team does not make the playoff, top it off with 4 more losses, your suggestion will likely move forward. The clock is clicking.

More often than not, the last 8 minutes or so, the wheels fall off. Whether fatigue sets in, foul trouble, players making the wrong shot at the wrong time, the MBB team cannot finish a game, nor does our coach possesses the skill set. UAlbany MBB is now 2-8 in the last 10 conference games. My last thought, as our players return to their student housing, they are not thinking, we are our going to get tonight's opponent next year. Our players are likely thinking right now, how do I salvage my basketball career and where am I going to play next year? I imagine very few players and assistant coaches will return.

Feb 23 (Fri) 4:30 PM at #9 Tennessee Knoxville, Tenn. SECN+ Live Stats Preview History Feb 24 (Sat) 12:00 PM at #9 Tennessee Knoxville, Tenn. SECN+ Live Stats Preview History Feb 25 (Sun) 1:00 PM at #9 Tennessee Knoxville, Tenn. SECN+ Live Stats Preview History

Feb 23 (Fri) 5:00 PM at NC State Raleigh, NC TV: ACCNX ACCNX Live Stats Tickets History Feb 23 (Fri) 7:30 PM Appalachian State Raleigh, NC Live Stats History Game One against NC State may be available via ESPN+

From today's Times-Union: UALBANY WOMEN’S BASKETBALL UAlbany out to avenge rare loss By Pete Dougherty Jim Franco/Times Union archive UAlbany’s Sarah Karpell, right, said the Danes have been working hard on getting back on defense, something Vermont took advantage of in a game on Feb. 1. ALBANY — Here’s something new for the University at Albany women’s basketball team. For the first time, the Great Danes are preparing for an opponent they lost to earlier in the season. UAlbany (22-3, 11-1 America East), tied atop the America East standings with Maine, seeks to avenge its lone conference loss Thursday night, facing Vermont at Patrick Gymnasium in Burlington. “We’re definitely making adjustments, but so are they,” graduate forward Helene Haegerstrand said. “We’ve made adjustments, even if it was a win or a loss, for every game, because you play each other twice. The second game’s always a lot different.” The Catamounts defeated the Great Danes 64-59 on Feb. 1 at Broadview Center in Albany. “We’re disappointed that we didn’t get the win in Broadview because it’s our home court,” UAlbany coach Colleen Mullen said. “We play well here. We let that one slip away, but we didn’t play particularly well and we still were in a position to win the game.” Vermont (18-9, 10-3) had an early 8-0 run and led the final 37 minutes and 15 seconds. The Catamounts, who shot 48 percent against UAlbany, subsequently lost games to Maine and Binghamton. A loss Thursday night likely takes them out of contention for the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament, which begins in 15 days. “It’s the biggest game of the year because it’s the next one we have,” Mullen said. “They’re all big. We have to beat UMass Lowell (on Saturday). We’ve got to beat New Hampshire. We’ve got Maine. But the fact that they have that win on us, you want to get the split. We don’t want to be swept by them, so our players are going to be ready, they’re going to be focused.” The Danes could get a boost if junior guard Meghan Huerter, who leads the nation in 3-point percentage (.490), returns. Huerter has missed the past three games with an upper-arm injury. “We’re hopeful that she’s going to play,” Mullen said Wednesday. “Not having her on the floor makes it a lot harder for us to get our posts touches, because they’re crowding the paint,” point guard Sarah Karpell said of Huerter. “When she’s out there, teams are face-guarding her, they’re chasing her around the 3-point line, which makes it easier for our bigs to get open shots.” Beyond that, the Danes are hoping to reverse some disturbing recent trends. For starters, while UAlbany continues to allow a Division I-best 51.0 points per game, Vermont caught the Danes’ defense slow in getting back a few times in the earlier meeting. “Transition defense was a really big one for us,” Karpell said. “We were not getting back, and they were sprinting on us. We’ve been working on that the past couple of days and just focusing on stopping the ball earlier and just making them work on defense.” Another issue has been slow starts. UAlbany trailed at halftime of its past three games, needing second-half rallies to beat Binghamton, NJIT and UMBC. “We have still yet, in a 22-win season, to truly play four quarters,” Mullen said. “That’s something that’s been an Achilles’ heel for us. We need a great start. They started off extremely strong the last game and dictated the tempo. We can’t allow that. We can’t be jogging back.” UALBANY AT VERMONT When: 6 p.m. Thursday Where: Patrick Gymnasium, Burlington, Vt. TV: ESPN+ (streaming)

I chuckled heartly when I read the article title caption because the season will be over by the time Killings, the team and the mind set are in sync. UALBANY MEN’S BASKETBALL Danes gradually changing mindset By Pete Dougherty Jim Franco/Times Union archive UAlbany’s Ny’Mire Little, shown against UMBC on Feb. 3, said of the team’s current mindset, “Whatever we’ve got, we’ve got to figure it out.” Jim Franco / Times Union archive UAlbany’s Tyler Bertram shoots over a UMBC defender on Feb. 3. Bertram is shooting 48 percent from 3-point range at home and 23 percent on the road. ALBANY — Three weeks have passed since Jonathan Beagle left the University at Albany basketball program, no public explanation given and no indication that he will return. As the games have passed, the 6-foot-10, 240-pound shadow that Beagle’s absence has cast over the Great Danes seems to be fading. They have moved on and seem to be adjusting to life without the reigning America East Rookie of the Year, who left “for personal reasons.” UAlbany returns to the court Thursday night to face Vermont, the last America East opponent to face Beagle, who played the first eight minutes and eight seconds of the Danes’ 81-59 loss Feb. 1 at Burlington and has not been seen on the court since. “We’re playing better as a team now with the absence of Jonathan,” point guard Sebastian Thomas said Wednesday. “We’re coming together more, (playing) more team defense. We’re sharing the ball a little bit better, playing a little bit harder.” It hasn’t been an easy transition without Beagle, whose 9.5 rebounds per game continues to lead the conference and 12.5 points ranks 15th. He has missed the past four games. The Danes got their only victory post-Beagle last Thursday, a wire-to-wire 25-point home victory over NJIT, and played well in spurts Saturday in an 80-75 loss at UMBC. “Like I tell the guys in the locker room, we’ve got to adjust, we’ve got to adapt,” said Ny’Mire Little, a redshirt sophomore guard who serves as a tricaptain. “It’s all about moving on, whether we got players, we don’t got players, whatever we’ve got, we’ve got to figure it out. “It’s getting closer to the end of the season, so our mindset is just get into playoffs and trying to get as many games as we can. I told the guys just stay together, don’t let no distractions distract us, and ever since we’re getting closer and closer and better and better in games.” UAlbany (12-14, 3-6 America East) is camped in fifth place, two games behind fourth-place New Hampshire and a half-game in front of Binghamton and UMBC, tied for sixth. Four of the Danes’ five remaining regular-season games are against teams currently in the top four of the standings. In addition to Beagle, the Danes have played the past five games without starting junior forward Marcus Jackson, who has a hand injury. Coach Dwayne Killings indicated for the first time Wednesday that Jackson may not be able to return this season. “The first games, as our personnel changed, our guys were a little frustrated,” Killings said. “We were all trying to figure out, OK, what’s next? We caught our breath, and I think we found a refreshing way to play for our guys. We’ve had good practices where they’ve been really competitive, really focused. “Offensively, we’re more guard-oriented. The ball moves better. I don’t think that we’ve forced certain things to happen. We’ve been at times, though, a little careless with the basketball. We have this urgency to make plays vs. OK, let’s read the defense and get the best opportunity we can out of it, but I’ve been pretty happy.” In Saturday’s loss UAlbany got big games from Thomas (30 points) and junior forward Aaron Reddish (21 points, 10 rebounds), but Killings is seeking more scoring from others. Amar’e Marshall and Tyler Bertram were held to five points apiece. Bertram is shooting 48 percent from 3-point range at home and 23 percent on the road. “It just wasn’t the night that we wanted out of Tyler and Amar’e,” Killings said. “We need those guys to be consistent. Tyler shot the ball unbelievably here, so that’s pretty promising for tomorrow night, but we need him to shoot the ball consistently, no matter where we play.” VERMONT AT UALBANY When: 7 p.m. Thursday Where: Broadview Center, Albany TV/Radio: ESPN+ (streaming), WTMM 104.5 FM

Colgate had the advantage of real game experience; Penn is part of what I believe is DI MLAX power conference where for a handful of the talent finds its way there, in particular Yale, Cornell, Penn with Princton and Harvard not far behind. After watching Colgate - Yale, is Colgate a top 20 team. Not Likely, a Patriot Conference champ, more likely just like UAlbany may be the America East champs, only if they can mature quickly.

I strongly suspect we will see the new America East brand on display this evening at Broadview Center and all the America East Basketball venues. The Binghamton WLAX displayed the new brand at their home game yesterday. A former UAlbany player & relative is an assistant coach for Bearcats WLAX, which is why it caught my attention.

I came to conclusion this evening, that Yale MLAX is at a different level of lacrosse. After a short period of sloppy play and going down to Colgate 4-1, Yale bought out their Bulldog mentality and outscored Colgate 12-2. The final score was Yale 21 - Colgate 11. Yale's defense is relentless, and you can conclude that our youth is going to show on April 19 in New Haven.

A win is necessary to keep pace with the Maine Bears...and earning a split with Vermont...Vermont has lost twice at home this season Feb 22 (Thu) 6:00 PM AE at Vermont Burlington, Vt. ESPN+ Live Stats Tickets History

A reminder that Colgate and Yale MLA game at Casey Stadium. I have not seen a reason for the neutral site game however Yale noted that this rivalry has meet previously in Florida on 3 occasions. Their first meeting in lacrosse occurred in 1929.

Interesting, something to show to a potential new member. Is the America East Conference shopping for a new institution and/or institutions to join the conference? Would seem so....

I too, watched the entire game. Their youth shows.

So, I guess you are watching Young Sheldon and Ghosts on Thursday night, CBS-2. (LOL) I am going, hoping not to see a Great Dane Train Wreck.

No issues here and the Dane Train is rolling now, UAlbany is only down 1.

Apparently, ESPN+ is having technical difficulties with feed from Penn.

UAlbany has lost the last 6 matchups with the UVM Catamounts, will this UAlbany MBB team end the streak? The UAlbany MBB team needs the win to make the playoffs That being said, there will be a respectful number of the Vermont fans in the Broadview Center, asking the question: What is wrong with the State of Vermont, the UVM community needs to have a facility like UAlbany' Broadview Center? By the way, after las week's turnout, I expect more Vermont fans in the Broadview Center. Feb 22 (Thu) 7:00 PM AE vs Vermont Albany, N.Y. Broadview Center Live Stats Tickets History

From Inside Lacrosse: The Wildcats’ loss moved Boston College into the No.1 spot, earning 23 first-place votes, while the Fighting Irish jumped six spots into the second slot with one first-place vote. Northwestern checked in at No. 4 with one first-place vote.

From Inside Lacrosse: Notre Dame, the preseason No. 1, is still on top of the Inside Lacrosse Media Poll at Week 2 after putting up more than 40 goals in two games. The trio of the Irish, Duke and Virginia all seem to be battling for first-place consideration until one falls.

Penn comes into this game 0-1, was ranked #19 however now unranked after losing on the road to Georgetown 12-9. Feb 20 (Tue) 2:00 PM at Penn Philadelphia, Pa. ESPN+ Live Stats History

Brown comes into this game 1-0, with a road win over #22 UMass-Amherst 15 to 14. Feb 20 (Tue) 2:00 PM vs Brown Albany, N.Y. John Fallon Field AE.tv Live Stats History

Last night's comeback win allowed to keep pace with Maine: 2023-24 Women's Basketball Standings 2023-24 Women's Basketball Standings SCHOOL CONF CPCT. OVERALL PCT. STREAK UAlbany 11-1 .917 22-3 .880 W4 Maine 11-1 .917 18-8 .692 W6 Vermont 10-3 .769 18-9 .667 L1 Bryant 6-7 .462 13-13 .500 W1 Binghamton 6-7 .462 11-15 .423 W2 UMass Lowell 4-8 .333 4-20 .167 L2 UMBC 4-9 .308 8-17 .320 L5 New Hampshire 3-9 .250 9-16 .360 L3 NJIT 1-11 .083 9-16 .360 L2

The current AE MBB standings: 2023-24 Men's Basketball Standings 2023-24 Men's Basketball Standings SCHOOL CONF CPCT. OVERALL PCT. STREAK Vermont 11-1 .917 21-6 .778 W3 Bryant 9-3 .750 17-10 .630 L1 UMass Lowell 8-3 .727 17-7 .708 W1 New Hampshire 6-5 .545 14-10 .583 L1 UAlbany 4-7 .364 12-14 .462 L1 Binghamton 4-8 .333 12-13 .480 W1 UMBC 4-8 .333 9-18 .333 W2 Maine 3-8 .273 11-15 .423 L3 NJIT 3-9 .250 7-17 .292 L2

Sorry, forgot to ask why Colgate and Yale, selected UAlbany for a game site. I ask on Wednesday.