The University of Maine men’s and women’s basketball teams continued America East play on Saturday afternoon against Albany. The men hosted the Great Danes, while the women were hoping to bounce back after their first conference loss to Binghamton on Thursday as they continued their road trip in New York against the first place Danes.
In the men’s game at Memorial Gym on Skip Chappelle Court in Orono- Maine shot over 56% from the floor and knocked down 11-23 from three-point range for their second consecutive conference victory 87-66 over visiting Albany.
Maine scored the first six points of the game, and Albany only held one lead at 10-8 on a layup by Justin Neely almost seven minutes in. Christopher Mantis would hit a three-pointer about a minute later to put the Black Bears up for good. They built their advantage to as many as 13 in the first half and 43-31 at the break. Maine put it away when they opened the second half on a 10-2 run in the first 3:31 capped off by another Mantis shot from long distance to stretch the lead to 20. They would lead by as many as 24 to improve to 2-1 in the America East.
Mantis led four players in double figures in the Maine win with 17 points (5-8 three-pointers). Jaden Clayton and AJ Lopez had 16 points a piece. Clayton added seven assists. Kellen Tynes once again filled up the stat sheet with 10 points, seven assists, five steals, and two rebounds. Logan Carey chipped in nine points and four assists off the bench, while Quion Burns contributed seven points and nine rebounds. Kacper Klaczek led Albany in the loss with 16 points and seven rebounds, and Amar’e Marshall put in 15 points with four rebounds and four assists. The Great Danes fall to 9-9 and 1-2 in America East. Maine (10-8 overall) goes for their third straight win when they hit the road to New Jersey Institute of Technology on Thursday at 11 a.m.
In the women’s game at the Broadview Center in Albany- Maine couldn’t hold an eight point third quarter lead, as Albany rallied getting a go-ahead layup by Lily Phillips with 2:41 left in the game to stay unbeaten in America East in a 60-55 victory.
Maine senior guard Sera Hodgson was feeling it all afternoon starting in the first quarter when she knocked in a pair of three-pointers sparking her team to an early 8-0 advantage. Albany took their first lead of the afternoon at 15-14 in the second on a three-pointer by Meghan Huerter. The Black Bears would jump back in front with a 9-2 run at 25-18 on a layup and three-pointer by Asta Blauenfeldt, and a layup by Caroline Bornemann. But the Great Danes came right back to get within 29-27 at halftime. A pair of three-pointers by Hodgson and a layup by Bornemann extended to the biggest lead of the day for Maine to start the third quarter at 37-29, and the guests led 43-39 heading to the fourth. Huerter dialed up a three-pointer to push Albany back into the lead 50-47 for the first time since the second quarter with 5:25 left to play. The last lead for the Black Bears came on a Hodgson layup about a minute later, but the hosts ended the game on a 10-4 run that included the layup by Phillips and also five points from Kayla Cooper to improve to 14-3 and 4-0 in conference play.
Hodgson and Bornemann each had 16 points in the loss for Maine. Hodgson was 4-7 on three-pointers, and Bornemann hauled in 11 rebounds to record a double double. Asta Blauenfeldt put in 15 points. Cooper led four players in double figures for Albany with 14 points and five rebounds. Phillips had 13 points, while Huerter and Jessica Tomasetti finished with 11 points a piece. The Black Bears fall to 7-10 and 2-2 in America East and return home to Orono at Memorial Gym on Skip Chappelle Court to host NJIT on Thursday night at 6 p.m.
