University of Albany Men's Basketball Rolls Over Hartford In America East Action - UAlbany Sports

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information

Albany, N.Y. – Will Harris had 19 points and 10 rebounds as UAlbany pulled away in the second half for a 59-50 America East Conference victory over Hartford on Wednesday, Jan. 28 at SEFCU Arena. The Great Danes avenged a 10-point loss in the first meeting of the season between these teams.

Hartford (6-16, AE 2-6) built a 34-29 advantage early in the final period after Clayton Brothers canned a three-point field goal and Michael Turner split a pair of free throws. UAlbany (13-8, AE 5-3) stormed back with eight unanswered, including two conventional three-point plays. Mike Johnson was fouled on a follow shot in the lane, before Jerel Hastings was hit while converting a fastbreak layup.

The Hawks, who have dropped five in row, drew even at 37 apiece when Turner came up with his own three-point play as he scored off a back-cut to the hoop. But the Great Danes responded with 11 of the game’s next 13 points. Tim Ambrose, one of three UAlbany players in double figures with 11, knifed his way to the basket on the left baseline and Hastings delivered a slam dunk in transition in breaking the tie. Freshman guard Anthony Raffa later sank a 3-pointer from right of the key and nailed a 14-foot baseline jumper that helped extend the lead to 48-39 with 3:48 remaining.

The Great Danes, who lost at Hartford, 64-54, in the conference opener on Jan. 3, maintained their advantage at the free throw line over the final minute. Jimmie Covington, a 6-foot-7 senior who had five points and a season-best six rebounds off the bench, made 3-of-4 from the line during that span. Raffa, who contributed 10 points and five rebounds, added three more from the charity stripe.

“This is a brutal match-up for us,” said UAlbany coach Will Brown, whose club held the visitors to 33.9-percent shooting on 19-of-56 attempts. “Every time they shoot a three, I cringe. We did a good job of making the right guy shoot three’s and limited (Morgan) Sabia’s and (Jaret) von Rosenberg’s attempts. We were more focused than the first time we played them.”

In the first half, the Hawks jumped out to a 13-6 lead as Sabia drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the arc. The 6-foot-8 sophomore finished with 13 points, all in the opening half. UAlbany rallied with nine consecutive points, as Ambrose put his team in front with a driving layup. The opening twenty minutes featured six lead changes and three ties. Turner, who totaled 14 points and six rebounds, made a long-range jumper with three seconds left to give his team a 26-25 lead at the intermission.

“You never want to lose to the same team twice,” explained Harris, who had 16 first-half points and has reached twin figures in eight straight contests. “We worked on some things that we messed up on the first time. Mike Johnson has been our savior the last two games with his energy and defense. He has been scrappy and diving on the floor.”

Jaret von Rosenberg, one of the conference’s top scorers, had 13 points for the Hawks, who reached last year’s America East tournament championship final. UAlbany’s Johnson, a junior guard, had a productive 22 minutes as a non-starter with three points, five rebounds and three assists.

“Time is the difference between that first game and now,” Covington offered. “They are a tough team to guard and we did what we had to do. Mike and Raffa have done a better job at point guard. We just need to be consistent and not on a roller coaster.”