New Hampshire Holds Off Men's Basketball, 67-59

Durham, N.H. - Alvin Abreu and Dane DiLiegro each had 13 points as New Hampshire held off UAlbany, 67-59, in America East Conference play on Wednesday, Jan. 13 at Lundholm Gymnasium.

New Hampshire (6-8, AE 1-2) tallied the opening six points of the second half, and grabbed a 42-26 advantage when DiLiegro scored on a follow shot in the lane. The 6-foot-9 and 240-pound junior grabbed 13 rebounds to record his third double-double of the season. The Wildcats, who ended a three-game skid, including two close decisions against league opponents, later ran off seven unanswered to post their biggest lead, 50-33, with 12:01 remaining.

UAlbany (5-12, AE 0-3) then reeled off 15 consecutive points to get back into the contest. The Great Danes went to a zone defense that held UNH scoreless for seven-plus minutes. Meanwhile, Logan Aronhalt, who had 10 of his 12 points in the second half, was a key figure in the run. He hit a fastbreak layup and later scored on a backdoor cut to slice the deficit to 50-48.

The Wildcats, who have won six of seven home games this season, regrouped when DiLiegro delivered a slam dunk off a feed from Abreu and Colbey Santos drilled a three-pointer from the left corner. The Great Danes were still in the hunt in the last minute, trailing 61-57, but Tim Ambrose's full-court pass was picked off.

Russell Graham, who had 11 points, sank two free throws to help seal the outcome.

"We dug ourselves a nice hole," UAlbany coach Will Brown explained. "We can't seem to get the right combinations going on the same night. Will Harris was aggressive and put pressure on their defense. But the timing of their (made) shots hurt us."

In the opening period, New Hampshire ran off eight straight points to take a 14-6 lead. James Valladares canned a three-point field goal and Santos followed with another basket. UAlbany later closed within 17-16 when Will Harris buried a 24-footer from the top of the arc. Harris finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds, his seventh career double-double.

The Wildcats stretched out to a five-point margin, before Harris hit another three-pointer from the right side off an inbounds pass. But UNH responded when Radar Onguetou sank a long-range shot and Alvin Abreu connected a drive on the left baseline for a 30-23 lead. Abreu later beat the shot clock with a 3-pointer from the right wing to give his team an eight-point halftime cushion.

"The zone defense made them use more of the clock," said Harris, who made 7-of-12 from the field after going scoreless against Vermont three days ago. "They had to hunt and search for their shots. It was effective. I didn't show up the last game and had planned to be aggressive; try and make things happen."

New Hampshire's Santos and Onguetou were the fourth and fifth players in double figures with 10 points apiece. UAlbany's Ambrose had eight of his 10 points in the final period.

Paw Prints: The Great Danes have lost five consecutive road games ... Will Harris recorded his first double-double of the season and scored 20-plus for the sixth time this year ... Logan Aronhalt's 12 points were one off his career-high total ... UAlbany shot less than 37 percent from the field for the third game in a row ... UAlbany leads the UNH series, 11-9, but the Wildcats have won three straight.

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information