THE BASICS:

RESULT: UAlbany 80, Hartford 62
LOCATION: SEFCU Arena (Albany, N.Y.)
ATTENDANCE: 2,715
RECORDS: Hartford (9-22, 4-12 America East); UAlbany (19-12, 10-6)


THE LEAD:
Jason Dunne led the Hartford men's basketball team with 16 points, but a strong defensive effort lifted UAlbany to an 80-62 win over the Hawks on Saturday. The two teams will have a rematch on Wednesday night in the America East Quarterfinals, just as they did a year ago.
 
Last season as the No. 7 seed, the Hawks knocked off the second-seeded Great Danes to end UAlbany's string of three-straight America East Championships.
 
Joe Cremo (25) and David Nichols (21) each posted 20-plus points in the victory for UAlbany, while Dallas Ennema (11) also finished in double figures with an outstanding start on his senior night. The home squad shot 17-for-32 (.531) from the field in the second half to earn the win.
 
Hassan Attia had nine rebounds and three blocks in a losing effort for the Hawks.

FIRST HALF:
The Hawks got out to a quick start, with a Dunne three and an Attia layup putting their lead at 5-0. The teams battled back and forth, but the Hawks pushed the advantage to 10-4 after a Jack Hobbs three-ball. But UAlbany then went on a 14-2 run, turning a six-point deficit into a six-point lead.
 
The Great Danes eventually pushed their lead to nine, at 24-15, but the Hawks were able to cut it to five after two quick buckets by Andrew Ramirez and Dunne. UAlbany then got back-to-back buckets to regain a nine-point edge before a J.R. Lynch layup sent the visitors to the locker room down seven, 31-24.
 
SECOND HALF:
The home squad started strong out of the break, with back-to-back buckets pushing the lead to double digits for the first time. The teams traded points over the next several minutes, but the Great Danes were able to push the lead to 15 on a layup at the 15:26 mark.
 
A three-ball by Jalen Ross sent the Hawks on an 8-0 run, though, culminating in a Dunne three that cut the lead to just seven, 43-36. But UAlbany was able to get a quick three back from Cremo and pushed its lead back to 12. From there, the Great Danes continued to counter every Hartford basket, and were able to come away with the victory.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Dunne's 16 points marked his fifth-straight game in double figures and seventh in the last eight. He hit multiple threes for the fifth-consecutive contest.
• Ross finished with nine points in the game, snapping a string of 41 games in a row in double figures. He now has 554 points on the season, the eighth most in Hartford's Division I history and the 11^th most across all Divisions.
• Attia delivered three blocks for his 13^th game with at least three blocks. He now has 59 on the season, third most in Hawks history behind Vin Baker's final two seasons.
• Hartford saw seven different players dish out assists and nine different players snare rebounds in the contest.

 
UP NEXT:
The Hawks enter the America East Tournament as the No. 6 seed and will return to Albany to face the third-seeded Great Danes on Wednesday, March 1. Tipoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. for the opening-round matchup.