UAlbany Begins Its 12th America East Conference Schedule Vs. UMBC. America East Opener

. America East OpenerUAlbany opens up conference play on Wednesday, Jan. 2 against UMBC at SEFCU Arena. This is the 12 season for the Great Danes in the America East and are 5-6 in conference openers. When UAlbany begins conference play at SEFCU Arena, it is 4-2. The last time UMBC and UAlbany faced off on January 2 in a conference season opener, the Retrievers took the contest 67-62 in Albany   2. Three's A Party Co-captains Jacob Iati (16pts), Mike Black (14pts), and Luke Devlin (15pts) all finished in double-digits in their win over Brown, 57-50, on Dec. 31 at SEFCU Arena. When the Great Danes have three players finish in double-digit scoring for a game, they are a perfect 6-0 on the season. Devlin has now strung together back-to-back games of 10 points or more in a game. 3. Stellar Non-Conference FinishFollowing the win over Brown on New Years Eve, UAlbany finished up non-conference play (except for the Bracket Buster) with 11 wins, which is the highest amount and best start in program history. The six-game winning streak earlier in the season tied-for the third best streak in program history. 4. Fearless Free-Throw ShootersWhen the clock strikes two minutes or less in the second half, UAlbany is almost unphased when it needs to put opponents away from the free-throw line. In nine of the 11 Great Dane wins (did not take a free-throw in the final two minutes versus Duquesne or Washington), the team is shooting 84.5 percent (49-58) from the charity stripe. Iati has led the charge with the most free-throw attempts and makes (16-20) and Hooley has the best percentage, shooting 91.7 percent (11-12). 5. Fifth Straight Week In Mid-Major Top-25With the 10-point win on the road against Navy on Dec. 28, the Great Danes moved up to 20th in the College Insider Top-25 Mid-Major poll. This marks the fifth consecutive week that UAlbany has been in the top 25 in the poll.