UAlbany Men's Basketball Rolls Past St.Francis Heading Into Christmas Break

Courtesy: UA Sports

Brooklyn, N.Y. – Anthony Raffa had 14 points and Brian Connelly added 13 as UAlbany recorded its second consecutive road win in a 68-56 triumph over St. Francis, N.Y. in a non-league contest on Monday, Dec. 22 at Peter Aquilone Court.

UAlbany (8-4) went on a 15-2 run to begin the second half to pull away. The Great Danes, who are off to their best start after 12 games as a Division I program, ripped off eight unanswered to begin the stanza. Brett Gifford converted on the left baseline and Billy Allen scored off a tip-in of a Connelly miss to ignite that stretch. Connelly, who tied a season-high scoring total, buried a 15-footer from the right elbow for a 40-25 advantage.

Will Harris, a transfer from Virginia who was not in the starting lineup for the first time this year, helped push the lead to 47-27 with 14:34 left. Harris, who scored all 13 of his points after the intermission, converted a cut in the lane and then made a rare four-point play. The 6-foot-6 junior banked in a three-point field goal as he was fouled by St. Francis’ Ricky Cadell.

St. Francis, N.Y. (3-7) made a run at the lead in the late stages of the contest. Stefan Perunicic, a 6’6” freshman from Serbia, nailed one of his four 3-pointers from the right corner, before Justin Newton delivered another long-range jumper. Cadell, a sophomore guard, split a pair of free throw to close the gap to 59-49 with 4:11 to play. However, the Great Danes held off their opponent at the charity stripe. Jerel Hastings made two foul shots and Harris added another for a 68-53 cushion two minutes later.

“Our pressure bothered them and we came out with good energy in the second half,” said UAlbany coach Will Brown, whose team has four road wins before the month of January for the second time at the Division I level. “We were soft around the basket in the first half, but we attacked the rim better after that point. They caused some problems by going small with four guards. We just have to maintain our composure better down the stretch.”

In a first half that featured three lead changes and three ties, UAlbany broke a 12-12 deadlock when Tim Ambrose connected on a three-point play when he was fouled after scoring with an offensive rebound. Connelly then hit a left-hander in the lane off a high-low entry pass from Allen.

The Terriers would close the gap when Perunicic and Cadell sank consecutive three-point field goals from the top of the arc. Jamaal Womack was later fouled on a 3-point attempt. He made two of three foul shots to get his club within 25-24 with 2:15 remaining. However, the Great Danes ended the half with seven of the period’s final eight points. Hastings, a 6’5” senior, canned a 6-foot jumper and followed up a missed layup, while Allen drilled a three-pointer from the right wing for a seven-point cushion at the break.

Nigel Byman, a junior college transfer, had a career-high 14 points and grabbed six rebounds for the Terriers, who lost for the first time at home this season. Perunicic finished with 12 points. Kayode Ayeni, the team’s top scorer and rebounder, went down with an apparent right knee injury with just two minutes gone in opener period and did not return. UAlbany’s Raffa, who collected six rebounds and made 8-of 10 from the line, reached double figures for the sixth time in his last seven games. The Great Danes shot 46.8 percent and were over the 40-mark for the first time since Nov. 29.

"We needed to keep focusing on defense and rebounding because we know in the end, that's what wins games, and our shots started to fall,” explained Connelly, whose team held St. Francis to 37.7-percent shooting. “Our defense helped our offense get started. I think it was so close in the first half because we forced a lot of turnovers, but we didn't capitalize."