ualbany wbb WBB Game 23 / Conference Game 9 Jan 28 (Sat) 1:00 PM The Pit In Memorial Gymnasium Orono ME

[cwdickens]

Let us not forget, UAlbany has a team getting it done in the classroom as well as the basketball court!

 

Go Great Danes!!

 

Jan 28 (Sat) 1:00 PM

AE

at 

Maine

America East

 

Orono, ME The Pit in Memorial Gymnasium

TV: ESPN3 Radio: 92.9 The Ticket

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[cwdickens]

UALBANY WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

 

Close win wake-up call for Danes before Maine

Fourth-quarter rally kept UAlbany unbeaten in league for showdown

 

By Abigail Rubel

Jim Franco / Times Union

UAlbany grad student Ellen Hahne, center, and teammate Grace Heeps combined for 13 fourth-quarter points in a win over New Hampshire.

Photos by Jim Franco / Times Union

Above, UAlbany junior Kayla Cooper drives to the basket against New Hampshire on Wednesday. Cooper finished with 14 points and nine rebounds in the come-from-behind victory.

At left, sophomore guard Lilly Phillips, a Cambridge High School alum, drives to the hoop vs. New Hampshire, which was outscored by the Great Danes 20-5 in the fourth quarter.

TROY — With the University at Albany women’s basketball team down two points at the end of the third quarter against a New Hampshire team that had yet to win an America East game, the nervousness suffusing the Hudson Valley Community College gym was palpable.

Perhaps the only people who weren’t worried were the Great Danes themselves. Senior guard Grace Heeps drained back-to-back 3s to start the fourth, giving UAlbany (14-8, 8-0 America East) a lead they wouldn’t relinquish on Wednesday night.

“It’s not great to be down the whole game, scare everyone in the audience. I mean, we knew we were going to win, but we don’t want to scare the whole crowd, keep it interesting if we don’t have to,” Heeps said with a smile after the 65-52 win in which UAlbany trailed for nearly 30 minutes.

Heeps and fifth-year guard Ellen Hahne combined for 13 points in the final quarter as UAlbany outscored UNH 20-5.

“You could see it in their eyes. They didn’t play scared. They knew who they were, they played confidently and across the board, it was contagious,” UAlbany coach Colleen Mullen said. “That mentality takes a very long time for players to feel that way. When you lose consistently and you’re building a program, you’re trying to always teach your team to play to win instead of (playing) afraid or holding on, protecting a lead or protecting your record.”

UAlbany started slowly, letting the Wildcats get out to a 10-2 lead after three minutes, and trailed by seven points at halftime. The Danes regained some ground in the third before the explosive fourth period.

“We needed to realize that we can do that. We can come from behind. We can execute down the stretch. We can make big plays,” Mullen said.

The close call against UNH was a wake up call for the Great Danes, who mostly cruised through their first seven games. Their next game, at Maine Saturday, is unlikely to be the same.

“We haven’t had a game like that in a while,” junior guard Kayla Cooper said Thursday morning. “I think it was definitely something we needed because we know Maine’s not going to be an easy opponent.”

The two teams last met in the America East title game — UAlbany emerged with the championship in its first win over Maine in Mullen’s tenure as head coach. The Black Bears (10-9, 6-1) sit in second place in the conference, a game and a half back of the Great Danes.

“We were a different team in that fourth quarter. I think if there was another quarter, we would have ended up winning by 30, so I’m hoping that we can start off at Maine where we left off (Wednesday) night,” Mullen said.

UAlbany is still looking to put together a four-quarter performance. The Great Danes have struggled in at least one period in all but their first win at UNH.

“We know we’re a good team, we know what we’re supposed to do, but I think when every team comes out aggressive to us, if we are not ready to respond or don’t have that aggressiveness from the start, we get a bad start and then we have to do the refocusing,” Hahne said. “We haven’t really been able to make the adjustments we have to do, which makes us kind of have bad quarters or bad halves.”

“We need to play better than we played (Wednesday) to go up there and beat them on their home floor. And I know we will,” Mullen said.

▶› Abigail.Rubel@- timesunion.com A @abigail_rubel

[cwdickens]

Women's Basketball Heads North to Maine

[jimbo]

After a dreadful first quarter, the ladies are down by 1 at the start of the 4th. 

[jimbo]

Ladies battled back....lost by 1.....really bad last play with 6 sec left. Didn’t get a shot off. 

[UAalum72]

Haegerstrand shooting 4-15 was probably the difference. Hahne's drive at the buzzer was just late, and didn't go in anyway

[tnehurley]

I have no problem with our last possession. Hahne going to the basket usually results in good things. I do have a problem with Haegerstrand’s defense on Maine’s game winning hoop. AWFUL. Also, no 3’s the entire game, and Morgan Haney misses 2 more big FT’s, and we lose by 1. We’ll have to get them back at our place. Tough way to lose.

 

 

 

[mainejeff]

That was a typical Maine/Albany game....the 2 teams really go at it.....still the best rivalry in AE women's basketball IMO.

[jimbo]

3 hours ago, tnehurley said:

I have no problem with our last possession. Hahne going to the basket usually results in good things. I do have a problem with Haegerstrand’s defense on Maine’s game winning hoop. AWFUL. Also, no 3’s the entire game, and Morgan Haney misses 2 more big FT’s, and we lose by 1. We’ll have to get them back at our place. Tough way to lose.

 

 

 

I have to disagree on the last play, but it is what it is. Very hard fought game.