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ALBANY, N.Y. – The 2015-16 America East regular season co-champions will meet at the SEFCU Arena to determine the league’s champion as 1-seed UAlbany and 2-seed Maine battle on Friday, March 11th at 4:30 p.m. on ESPNU. The winner earns the league’s automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.
The game will be nationally televised on ESPNU and WatchESPN with Eric Frede and Katie Smith on the call. In addition, the game will be broadcast on radio in the Albany area on WOFX Fox Sports 980 with Rodger Wyland on the play-by-play.
Tickets for the America East title game are $40 for courtside seats, $30 for chairbacks, $25 bleachers and $10 for kid bleachers.
UAlbany and Maine split the regular season title with each going 15-1 in America East play.
UAlbany, the four-time defending America East Tournament champion, defeated Vermont and Binghamton to earn the title game berth, standing at 26-4 overall. Maine, in its first America East title game since 2004, had wins over New Hampshire and Stony Brook to enter Friday at 26-7 overall.
UAlbany stands with four America East titles overall after winning as many in the last four years,
bringing a 13-game winning streak in tournament play into Friday. UAlbany won last year’s title as a 2-seed with a 84-75 victory at home over 5-seed Hartford. In 2004, 1-seed Maine defeated 3-Boston University 68-43 in West Hartford.
The two sides split during the regular season with UAlbany winning 64-59 at home on January 16th and Maine winning in Bangor 65-53 on February 14th. UAlbany has won 11 of the last 13 matchups against the Black Bears, with Maine leading the overall series against the Great Danes 18-15.
UAlbany has won its last 16 games at home, with Maine being the last to defeat the Great Danes at SEFCU with a 52-44 victory on February 1st, 2015. UAlbany is 1-2 against Maine in the America East Tournament: the two last met on March 12th, 2009 as 8-seed UAlbany beat 9-seed Maine 63-43 in West Hartford.
UALBANY EARNS SHARE OF AE SEASON TITLE 4TH-STRAIGHT YEAR: For the fourth-straight season, UAlbany has earned at least a share of the America East regular season title, finishing with a 15-1 record. UAlbany tied with Maine, which also went 15-1, for first place in the league. In those four years, UAlbany combined for a 60-4 record in conference play.
UAlbany earned the 1-seed over Maine for having the higher rating percentage index (RPI), the fourth tiebreaker on the list. Going into the league tournament, UAlbany’s RPI was 52 while Maine’s was 69.
GOING FOR AMERICA EAST HISTORY: In the 2015-16 season. the UAlbany women’s basketball team will look to do what no other America East team has done, win five straight conference tournament titles.
UAlbany became just the second women’s basketball program to earn four straight America East titles last season, tying the achievement recorded by Maine from 1993-96.
No America East basketball program, men’s or women’s, has won five straight tournament titles in conference history.
RICHARDS EARNS THIRD STRAIGHT PLAYER OF THE YEAR, CARTER NAMED SIXTH PLAYER OF THE YEAR TO HIGHLIGHT AMERICA EAST AWARDS: Shereesha Richards is just the second player to earn America East Player of the Year three times while Tiana-Jo Carter earned Sixth Player of the Year to highlight the annual conference yearly awards.
Richards joins Chantell Alford of Boston University as the only three-time America East Player of the Year honorees; Richards is the only to earn Player of the Year three times outright, with Alford earn co-player honors in 2012-13. As a program, UAlbany has had a Player of the Year the last four years, with Ebone Henry sharing the award with Alford in the 2012-13 season.
Richards and Tate each were selected to the America East All-Conference First Team and the All-Defensive Team. Zakiya Saunders was placed on the America East All-Conference Second Team while Cassandra Edwards was selected to the league’s All-Academic Team.
RICHARDS NAMED TO NAISMITH MIDSEASON 30 TEAM: On February 11th, Shereesha Richards was named to the Naismith Trophy Midseason 30 for Women’s College Player of the Year.
She is the first UAlbany player to advance this far in the Naismith Trophy List and is a two-time member of the 50-player watch list. Richards was not chosen as one of the 10 semifinalists on March 3rd.
UALBANY STAYS TO #7 IN MID-MAJOR POLL: UAlbany held to #7 in the 16th week of the College Insider Women’s Mid-Major Top-25, released on March 1st. It is the 26th consecutive poll, dating back to last season, where the Great Danes are in the top-20 of the poll.
The Great Danes picked up 533 points in the poll, released every Tuesday. UAlbany is currently the highest-ranked mid-major in the state of New York and the highest ranked mid-major from the America East Conference.
RICHARDS CLIMBING AMERICA EAST SCORING LADDER: Shereesha Richards stands with 2,372 points in her collegiate career, ranking 4th in America East women’s basketball history in scoring. She joined the 2,000-point club vs. Vermont on January 9th, 2016.
Former Maine standout Cindy Blodgett is the league’s all-time leader in scoring with 3,005 points from 1994-98.
America East All-Time Scoring List
1. Cindy Blodgett, Maine (1994-98): 3,005 points
2. Rachel Bouchard, Maine (1987-91): 2,405 points
3. Jamie Cassidy, Maine (1996-00): 2,380 points
4. Shereesha Richards, UAlbany (2012-): 2,372 points
SAUNDERS EARNS UALBANY SEASON ASSIST RECORD: Zakiya Saunders is racking up stats as UAlbany’s point guard, leading the America East and standing third in Division I with 7.2 assists per game, over two higher than any other player in the conference. She stands with 215 assists, a program record, through 30 games and is tied for fifth in program history with 346 career assists.
The UAlbany single season assists record was 159 by Sarah Royals in the 2013-14 season. The America East single season record is 234 assists by Amy Vachon of Maine in the 1998-99 season.
BULLIES ON THE BOARDS: UAlbany has been dominant on the glass, outrebounding its opponents by a margin of +11.8, ranking first in the America East and sixth in Division I. This season, UAlbany has outrebounded its opponent in 29 out of 30 games, with Tennessee as the exception. In America East play, UAlbany outrebounded opponents by a +14.0 margin.
SCOUTING THE UALBANY GREAT DANES: UAlbany is hosting its fifth America East title game in as many years including the last two as a non-predetermined site.
With the highest scoring offense in the America East at 71.4 points a game, the Great Danes have the top two scorers in the league in a pair of America East All-Conference First Team players: three-time America East Player of the Year Shereesha Richards is the league’s leading scorer, earning 23.5 points and 8.1 rebounds a game at forward, while junior guard Imani Tate is league’s leader in steals per game, averaging 18.3 points, 4.1 assists and 3.1 steals a contest. Junior guard Zakiya Saunders picked up America East All-Conference Second Team honors with 11.4 points and a league leading 7.2 assists a game.
SCOUTING THE MAINE BLACK BEARS: Maine, along with UAlbany, has earned a share of the last two America East regular season titles. As a program, Maine has won the America East Tournament seven times.
As team, Maine has the top ranked scoring defense in the America East, allowing 49.7 points per game. America East All-Conference First Team junior guard Sigi Koizar leads the team with 17.6 points and 3.9 assists per game, shooting 43.3% from three-point range. Senior forward Liz Wood, a three-time all-conference player, leads the team in rebounds and steals, averaging 9.5 points, 7.5 boards and 2.5 steals a contest. Senior forward Bella Swan made the all-conference third team, shooting 48% for eight points and 5.4 rebounds a contest.
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UAlbany Game Notes - Maine 3-11 |
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Maine Game Notes - UAlbany 3-11 |
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