Five UAlbany WBB Players Score Double Digits in 90-68 Home Win over Hartford
ALBANY, N.Y. – Shooting 56.7% in the game, the UAlbany women’s basketball team took down Hartford 90-68 on Friday at the SEFCU Arena for its 12th-consecutive victory.
With the win, UAlbany (21-3, 11-0 AE) wins its 34th-consecutive conference game, the longest active streak in Division I women’s basketball.
“I am happy and relieved, everyone put together a good game,” said UAlbany head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson. “When [Shereesha Richards] got into foul trouble, Tammy [Phillip] and Megan [Craig] stepped up and got those points.”
Five UAlbany players earned double digit scoring, led by Tammy Phillip, earning career-highs with 19 points and six steals, adding 13 rebounds for her first double-double.
”We took it as one game at a time, and we are real thrilled for the win,” said Phillip.
Megan Craig also earned a double-double, number four of the season, with 17 points and 11 rebounds off 8-12 shooting. Imani Tate earned a new career-high with 16 points, adding four boards, while Shereesha Richards scored 13 points for her 24th-consecutive double digit scoring game, tying a UAlbany record. Sarah Royals nearly had a double-double with 12 points and nine assists, adding three steals.
“We want to win however we can, and we tried to keep the gas pedal down and pressure hard,” said Royals.
“This game was a great game to see how we play as a team,” added Richards. “Going into March, we all need to stay up, and we did today.”
For Hartford (9-14, 6-4 AE), Morgan Lumb scored 16 points off the bench, also leading the team in rebounding with five. Alyssa Reeves shot 4-6 for 10 points.
Early in the game, UAlbany focused on finding baskets in the paint while Hartford looked for space on the perimeter. Three early UAlbany layups countered by long Hartford jumpers made the score 9-7 UAlbany in the first four minutes.
Phillip came alive in the post in the following minutes, hitting three baskets, including a long jumper from behind the free throw line, on a personal 7-0 run. Royals added a layup as UAlbany charged ahead 18-7 with 13:13 in the first.
At 21-12, UAlbany hit four layups in a row, with three from Richards, adding two Margarita Rosario free throws to built the advantage 31-12.
Both sides went back and forth with pressure defense. The Great Danes did not allow a Hartford field goal in the final five-and-a-half minutes of the first half, capping the period with a pair of Tate layups to go into the locker room up 47-25.
Following an exchange of points to start half two, Craig and Richards helped spur a streak of 10-straight points, ended with an Erin Coughlin three, to send UAlbany up 59-28.
Hartford started to hit shot from three, including Lumb hitting a pair, as UAlbany responded with shots under the basket. Seven points straight for Hartford, sandwiched by two Reaves jumpers, brought the Hawks within 21 points of the home team: 72-51 UAlbany, 9:09 left in the game.
The Great Danes did not allow a field goal in the next four minutes, using a couple of Phillip layups to build the lead to 80-51 with 5:40 remaining. UAlbany did not trail by fewer than 24 until the final seconds of the game, taking the victory 90-68.
UAlbany will hit the road for the next couple of games, taking on UMBC in Baltimore on Tuesday, February 11th at 7 p.m.
