RECORDS: UAlbany 4-0, 0-0 America East | Syracuse 2-3, 0-0 ACC
SHORT STORY: For the first time since 2016, the Great Danes upset a Power-5 team with a last-minute three-pointer from Lilly Phillips, Wednesday night.
COACH COLLEEN MULLEN: "Tonight was an incredible win for our program and I am so happy for our administration, players, and staff. The players executed the game plan for 40 minutes and never stopped believing. I am proud of the focus and execution we played with tonight."
KEY STATS
Graduate student Kayla Cooper led the Great Danes with 21 points and 10 rebounds. This was her third consecutive game with at least 20 points.
Freshman Delanie Hill tallied a team-high five assists. Cooper followed with four.
Graduate students Kaci Donovan and Lilly Phillips shot 3-6 from the three to help tally 17 and 14 points, respectively.
As a team, the Great Danes outshot the Orange with 28 total field goals, including nine three-pointers.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After one basket from each team on their third possession, neither UAlbany nor Syracuse could score a field goal for nearly three minutes.
With eight points in 69 seconds, Syracuse took a 12-3 lead with 4:30 remaining in the first quarter.
The Orange continued to build its lead throughout the remainder of the quarter and ended the first ahead, 21-11.
UAlbany opened the second quarter with a fire. Allowing just one layup, and scoring 11 points, in over three minutes of action, the Great Danes trailed by just one point, 23-22.
After nearly three minutes of defensive action, the teams traded points for the final four minutes of the quarter and UAlbany entered halftime down by just one point, 31-30.
The back-and-forth action that closed the second quarter continued for the first four minutes of the second half.
A three-pointer from Lilly Phillips at 5:44, a defensive stop, and a second consecutive three-pointer from Kaci Donovan at 5:09 gave the Great Danes some distance and a four-point lead, 42-38.
The next minute of action saw both Phillips and Donovan add a three-pointer each for a 48-40 advantage with 3:47 on the third-quarter clock.
UAlbany continued with its near-10-point lead for an additional two minutes but five consecutive points from Syracuse made it a two-point game, 53-51, headed into the final quarter.
The fourth quarter contained nine lead changes and five ties.
Back-and-forth scoring put five of the lead changes in the first two minutes of the quarter.
Delanie Hill gave the Great Danes a one-point lead with 5:47 on the clock but four made free throws from the Orange changed the tide.
Traded baskets created three ties in 90 seconds as Syracuse would score for a two-point lead and UAlbany would answer to tie the score.
Phillips missed a three-pointer with 47 seconds remaining and the game continued tied at 70.
Hill quickly stole the ball back but Cooper fouled out to turnover the ball.
Syracuse's Georgia Woolley made what could have been a game-winning three-pointer but instead, she was called for a foul and the ball belonged to the Great Danes with just 11 seconds on the clock.
Scrambling to get the ball to an open player, Donovan dribbled into the arc and found Phillips, standing in the corner and ready to down a three-pointer for her team's victory.
With the basket made by Phillips, Syracuse had just over three seconds to respond. Sophie Burrows got the shot off, after a ball-advancing timeout from Coach Jack, but it did not go in and the Great Danes took the victory, 73-70.
NEXT: UAlbany will return home to host Cornell for Swifties Night on Saturday, November 23.
