THE BASICS:

RESULT: UAlbany 84, Hartford 39
RECORDS: Hartford (11-18, 7-9 AE); UAlbany (24-4, 15-1)
LOCATION: SEFCU Arena (Albany, N.Y.)
ATTENDANCE: 1,647

THE LEAD: Sophomore Darby Lee scored in double figures for the fifth time in six outings on Sunday afternoon, but a hot-shooting UAlbany squad proved to be too much as the University of Hartford women's basketball team dropped an 84-39 decision in its season finale at SEFCU Arena. Behind 5-for-7 shooting from the field and a 7-for-9 effort from the charity stripe, Lee had a team-best 17 points for the Hawks, who enter the upcoming America East Championship as the sixth seed.

UAlbany built a comfortable cushion by halftime behind 66.7 percent shooting (22-of-33) in the first two quarters. Imani Tate led four Great Danes in double-figures with a game-high 28 points.

FIRST HALF:
The Hawks kept pace with the Great Danes in the opening quarter, as it was a one-possession game in favor of the home team late in the stanza. With UAlbany holding the slight edge at 14-11 with 12 seconds left, Tate beat the buzzer with a putback to extend the advantage to 16-11. Despite seeing limited time on the court due to foul trouble, Lee paced Hartford's offense with six points.

The first 31 seconds of the second quarter saw an exchange of buckets by both sides before the Great Danes picked up the pace. Capitalizing on turnovers, UAlbany kept Hartford off the scoreboard for two and a half minutes and pushed its lead into double digits using an 8-0 run. Freshman Jalay Knowls stopped the bleeding with a nice jumper from the free-throw line with 5:50 remaining, but the struggles would continue for the Hawks. UAlbany ended the half with a 19-3 run to take a 45-18 lead into the locker rooms.

Tate netted 12 of her 20 first-half points in the second half to lead all scorers at the break. Lee was the Hawks' scoring leader with seven points.

SECOND HALF:
The third quarter featured just six made field goals by both sides, with most of the scoring taking place from the free-throw line. Hartford and UAlbany combined for 25 attempts from the stripe during that stretch, with the Hawks going 9-for-13 to the Great Danes' 12-for-12 effort. Neither team was able to put together a substantial run, but UAlbany built its lead up to 32 points at 64-32.

UAlbany continued to apply the pressure in the final quarter. The Great Danes held the Hawks to seven points during that stretch and took their largest lead of the game with one minute remaining. Lee contributed four of her points during that stretch to finish as the Hawks' scoring leader for the fifth time in the last sixth outing.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Sophomore Janelle Harrison added five points for the Hawks while junior Alyssa Reaves contributed four.
• Hartford struggled from the floor, combining to shoot 28.6 percent overall (12-of-42).
• From the charity stripe, the Hawks shot 70.6 percent, going 12-of-17.
• Lee went 7-for-9 from the line, while Harrison and freshman Lindsey Abed went 3-for-4 and 2-for-2, respectively.
• UAlbany was hot in first half, shooting 22-of-33 for 66.7 percent.
• The Great Danes cooled off in the second half to finish off the game at 57.6 percent from the field.
• Albany's full court pressure forced the Hawks into 27 turnovers, which translated into 40 points for the Great Danes.
• Drilling a three-pointer in the final quarter, rookie Kelly Douglass extended her streak from long range to six games. She has knocked down at least one three-pointer in nine of her last 10.

 
UP NEXT:                                                                     
The Hawks enter the America East Championships as the sixth seed and will take on the third-seeded Stony Brook Seawolves in the quarterfinal round on Saturday, March 5. The first two rounds of the tournament will be held at the Events Center, located on the campus of Binghamton University in Vestal, N.Y. The time of the contest is still to be determined.