Great Danes seek seventh straight win
By ANDREW SANTILLO
ALBANY — It’s been nine days since the University at Albany men’s basketball team took the floor.
It’s been 32 days since the Great Danes last lost.
UAlbany hopes to continue its hot play on Friday despite its longest break between games of the season.
The Great Danes ( 9- 2), ranked No. 21 in the College Insider Mid- Major Top 25, go for their seventh straight victory when they host Quinnipiac 7 p. m. tonight at SEFCU Arena.
Only 20 Division I teams in the nation have doubledigit wins already this season, something UAlbany is looking for as it continues the best start in the program’s 14- year Division I history.
“It really is all about fine tuning things, no matter how good you are,” guard Peter Hooley said. “We could be 11- 0 and there’s still room for improvement.”
The players had the past week off from games, as they took their finals for fall semester classes. They also continued trying to get better during practice sessions.
“It gave us all a chance to get better,” Hooley said. “We had a little bit of rest at the start, but these last few days we’ve really gotten after it and gotten better.”
There are a lot of storylines for this game. Eric Eaton, an assistant coach with the Bobcats (3-6), was the associate head coach for UAlbany and with the team when the Great Danes made back-to-back trips to the NCAA tournament ( 2006 & 2007). Jon Iati, an assistant for UAlbany, worked for the last five seasons as an assistant at Quinnipiac. He will have the scout for tonight’s game.
“He would have to know them as well as anybody,” UAlbanycoachWillBrownsaid.
Iati’s younger brother, Jacob, has been a one of the biggest reasons for the Great Danes’ strong start. Iati has knocked down 41 3-pointers, which had him tied for third in the country entering play on Thursday.
“He’s making shots,” Brown said. “He wants to take big shots. He’s got a swagger about him right now. But I don’t think that’s going to change if he has a bad game. He’s carrying himself like he’s the best shooter in the country.”
Jacob Iati’s averaging 16.3 points per game, and has averaged 3.7 treys per game this season, making at least one in every game this year.
“You see how hard Iati works in the offseason,” Hooley said. “He’s always in here shooting. He’s never taking a break, so you wouldn’t expect anything less.”
Quinnipiac, which has accepted a bid to join the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference next season, is one of the stronger teams in the Northeast Conference. The Bobcats lost in double overtime to UConn ( 89- 83) and defeated Iona 98-92, in overtime.
The Bobcats have a talented frontcourt, led by Ike Azotam, who leads the team in scoring ( 13.7 ppg) and rebounding ( 9.4 rpg).
“It’s real simple. It’s going to come down to toughness,” said Brown.
Quinnipiac also is strong on the glass, averaging plus-5.8 in the rebounding battle, a stat usually UAlbany controls.
“We have to do a great job on the glass if we’re going to win this game,” said Brown.
The Great Danes are 4-0 at home this year, something they are focused on keeping in tact.
“Knowing that we have the ( postseason) tournament here especially, we have to protect this house,” Hooley said. “We want people to come in and know they haven’t lost.”