Basketball Drops Second Meeting With Vermont Before Capacity Crowd at Patrick Gym

Burlington, Vt. - Marqus Blakely scored 14 points to lead three players in double figures, as Vermont ended a three-game losing streak with a 64-46 triumph over UAlbany on Saturday, Jan. 30 before a capacity crowd of 3,266 at Patrick Gymnasium.

Vermont (15-8, AE 6-3) reversed a halftime deficit with 11 unanswered to start the final period. Evan Fjeld, a junior forward who had 10 points, six rebounds and six blocked shots, put his team ahead, 30-29, with a pair of free throws. Blakely, the two-time America East player of the year, put back a missed shot with a slam dunk to end that outburst.

The Catamounts, who used full-court pressure to build its lead, pushed out to a 43-30 advantage with 14:04 remaining on two conventional three-point plays. Fjeld was fouled as he followed a missed free throw with an offensive rebound basket. Ben Crenca, a freshman center, added the second as he scored by moving toward the basket from left of the lane.

UVM held the visitors to 24-percent shooting, on 6-of-24 attempts, in the second half and expanded its margin to 54-34 with 8:00 to play. Garvey Young was fouled as he finished a fastbreak off a pass from Joey Accaoui for a three-point play. Accaoui had 11 points and three assists off the bench.

"We put them at the free throw line in the second half and that allowed them to set up their press," said UAlbany coach Will Brown, whose team suffered its fifth consecutive setback. "After controlling tempo in the first half, we were on our heels. That set the tone for the rest of the game."

In the first half, Vermont took an 11-10 lead when Blakely scored on the left baseline. The Great Danes responded with six straight points, as Scotty McRae completed that spurt with two free throws. UAlbany (6-18, AE 1-8) pushed out to an eight-point cushion as Tim Ambrose connected on a back-door cut. The Catamounts followed with a 9-1 run and sliced the deficit to 26-25 on Accaoui's three-pointer from the right side. Derrek Tartt made a foul-line jumper and split two foul shot attempts as UAlbany took a 29-25 lead to the break.

"We caught the ball in bad spots (against the press)," explained freshman guard Mike Black, one of three UAlbany players with seven points. "They trapped us and we didn't do a good job of passing the ball to the middle."
Logan Aronhalt and Fran Urli each had seven points and six rebounds for the Great Danes, who dropped their eighth straight on the road. Vermont also won the first meeting this season, 71-54, at SEFCU Arena.

Paw Prints: UAlbany had won three in a row at UVM's Patrick Gymnasium after earning its first-ever victory there in the 2007 America East Conference championship game ... the Great Danes scored 17 points in the second half, a season-low for any period ... Will Harris made his first appearance since injuring his left knee on Jan. 19th ... the senior forward had four points in nine minutes off the bench.

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information