Danes snap nine-game skid with home win over UMBC

Posted: Feb 15, 2023 / 11:56 PM EST

Updated: Feb 16, 2023 / 05:42 AM EST

TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — The University at Albany men’s basketball team used a total team effort to secure an 81-74 home victory over UMBC Wednesday night. Five Great Danes finished in double figures, led by seven-time America East Rookie of the Week Jonathan Beagle with 16 points and 15 rebounds. The victory snapped a nine-game losing streak.

Head Coach Dwayne Killings: “I was really proud of our guys today. We have 120 minutes left of our regular season, and we have a lot to do with it in order to extend our season the way we want. We took our first step in doing that tonight.”

Key Stat Lines

Jonathan Beagle posted a commanding double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds. The rookie added a team-high four assists and team-high two steals.
Gerald Drumgoole Jr. also finished with 16 points, adding two rebounds and two assists while going 5-11 from the field.
Trey Hutcheson was lights-out from three, hitting four long balls and finishing with 14 points – a season-high.
Sarju Patel scored all of his 13 points in the second half, aiding the Great Danes down the stretch. He finished with a team-high two steals.
Da’Kquan Davis posted 12 points and tied the team-high with four assists.
UAlbany shot 46.0% (29-63) from the field and went 10-30 from three. UMBC shot 35.6% (21-59) from the field and went 6-25 from beyond the arc.
UAlbany won the rebounding war, 41-32.
UAlbany finished with 12 turnovers, UMBC had eight.

How it Happened:

UMBC jumped out to the early lead with a 7-0 run to start the game, forcing a UAlbany TO just a minute and a half in. UAlbany answered after the stop in play with a three-pointer from Trey Hutcheson.
Following a nice feed from Gerald Drumgoole Jr., Marcus Jackson sank a close jumper to make the score 7-5 heading into the first media TO.
The Great Danes would take the advantage following another three from Hutcheson, but UMBC fought back to take a 14-12 lead heading into the second media TO. Hutcheson and UMBC’s Matteo Picarelli led all scorers with eight points each.
The Great Danes would then use a 10-5 scoring run to take a 22-19 lead. The run featured four points from Aaron Reddish and six from Jonathan Beagle. Beagle threw down a two-handed slam before the U8 media TO, with both teams going back to their benches.
The UAlbany lead was pushed to seven points, 32-25, by the final break before the half. Hutcheson his hit third three-pointer of the night while Beagle became the second UAlbany player to hit double-figure scoring numbers.
UMBC ended the half on a 10-5 run, closing the gap to just two points heading into the locker room, 37-35.
UAlbany shot 44.8% (13-29) from the field and went 5-15 from three-point range. UMBC shot 40.6% (13-32) from the field and went 3-13 from three.
The first half featured five lead changes and four ties, with each team leading by as much as seven points.
The second half got off to a hot start for UAlbany, with the Great Danes going 4-5 from the field including a dunk from Beagle and a three from Drumgoole Jr. UMBC was forced to call TO three minutes in following another deep ball from Drumgoole Jr., increasing the Great Dane lead to seven points, 49-42.
Sarju Patel scored the next four for UAlbany, pushing the score to 53-45 in favor of the Great Danes by the next media TO with 15:13 remaining.
UAlbany took the first double-digit lead of the game, 58-48, following a Patel layup with just under 13 minutes remaining.
By the U12 media TO the scoreboard read 61-52 in favor of the Great Danes. Sarju Patel continued to have a hot hand, reaching 11 points in the second half after being held scoreless in the first.
With 6:30 remaining, the Great Danes found themselves up 12 points, 70-58, following a pair of free throws from Beagle.
Da’Kquan Davis pushed the lead back to 12 points for UAlbany, 74-62, with 3:26 on the cock following an and-one after driving the lane, getting the bench and crowd on its feet.
UMBC scored seven-straight in just over a minute to bring the score to 75-69 with 2:01 remaining. Craig Beaudion hit a pair of free throws and Picarelli hit a layup and a three-pointer.
UAlbany was able to hold on over the last two minutes at the free throw line, taking the 81-74 victory.
UAlbany shot 47.1% (16-34) from the field in the second half, going 5-15 from three. UMBC shot 29.6% (8-27) from the field and went 3-12 from three.