Men's Basketball Lose on the Road to Delaware 71-60

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information

Newark, Del. -- Herb Courtney scored 19 points and Alphonso Dawson added 18 in leading Delaware to a 71-60 victory over UAlbany on Wednesday evening at Bob Carpenter Sports Center.

Delaware (2-4) took command early in the final period by turning a three-point halftime lead into a 40-30 cushion with 16:18 remaining. Courtney, a 6'7" forward, made three free throws, before Dawson canned a 3-pointer from the right corner. Dawson, a freshman, had 14 of his 18 points in the second half.

UAlbany (4-3) sliced that double-figure lead in half on several occasions, including 52-47 with 7:55 to play when Jerel Hastings converted a jump hook in the lane. But the Blue Hens responded with nine of the game's next 10 points to pull away. Dawson made a left-baseline jumper and Brian Johnson followed with a three-pointer from the left wing to ignite that decisive run.

The Blue Hens, who made 30 of 47 from the free throw line, scored their final 14 points from the charity stripe. Sam McMahon was the third Delaware player in double figures with 11. Johnson added nine points and five assists for the Blue Hens, who converted 16 UAlbany turnovers into 22 points.

Brian Connelly posted career-highs with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Brian Lillis added 12 points for the Great Danes, who made just 2-of -18 from beyond the 3-point arc. UAlbany lost for the second straight time after winning four in a row.

"We were outworked on both ends of the floor and we got what we deserved, a loss,” said UAlbany head coach Will Brown, whose team falls to 1-3 on the road this season. “They played harder and smarter than us. We had poor execution and we are not good enough to turn the ball over that much."

UAlbany trailed early in the contest, but came back to take a 16-14 lead when Brent Wilson drilled a three-point field goal from the right corner. Delaware later went on an 11-2 run to go back in front. Courtney buried a long-range jumper to give his team the lead. Dawson made consecutive baskets, before Johnson's driving shot in transition built a 27-20 advantage.

The Blue Hens, who were coming off a victory in their conference opener on Monday, took a 31-28 lead to the locker room. The Great Danes, who had 10 first-half turnovers, stayed close at the break behind the play of Connelly. The 6-foot-6 junior had 12 points in the period on 6-of-10 shooting.

"They got to every loose ball,” added Connelly, who scored in double-digits for the third straight game. “They beat us up on the offensive glass and got rebounds off missed free throws. We didn't seem to have any energy at the start. They made some shots early and gained confidence. We hung our heads at times."