BOSTON – UAlbany used some late-game heroics to earn a pair of three-point victories and stretch its win streak to five last week and the Great Danes one of four AE programs with seven or more wins this year.
The Great Danes took down Bucknell 65-62 on the road in OT and then Sacred Heart 60-57 to improve to 7-2 overall. Vermont and NJIT both improved to 8-3, as the Catamounts won twice and NJIT went 1-1. Bryant lost its third straight, but sits at 7-3 overall.
Vermont (83) owns the best NET rating in the league, while UAlbany is close behind at 87. This marks the second straight year UAlbany has been under 100 in December, as they were at 96 last year. Bryant ranks third in NET at 143, while NJIT is at 182 and UMBC is fifth at 202. The America East is 1 of 2 mid-major conferences that has all of its schools ranked better than 300 in NET.
The Week That Was
- The Great Danes are off to another hot start with their two victories last week for a 7-2 mark. Last year they started 7-0 and 10-1 on the way to a 26-7 overall record and America East regular season title.
- Vermont took care of business this past weekend, beating Bucknell 64-48 at home and then nearly doubling up CCSU 85-48. The Catamounts lead the conference in scoring margin at 18.0 points per game.
- Binghamton beat San Diego and then Buffalo last week to improve to 5-3 overall, while UMBC won in its only contest of the week, 66-48, against Morgan State to 4-5 this season.
- New Hampshire earned a gritty 65-61 win over Merrimack while Maine beat Boston University 54-45.
Looking Ahead
- It’s a light week of action with just 11 non-conference games on the schedule.
- Maine faces a pair of tough tests against Fairfield and Quinnipiac on the road, while UAlbany travels to Colgate and then hosts Boston U.
- NJIT hosts Dartmouth while UMBC welcomes Loyola (Md.) in tough tests for both squads.
- Binghamton looks to keep its win streak going against Marist, while Vermont seeks to do the same against Sacred Heart.
- UMass Lowell plays at Depaul and then hosts LIU.
America East Links
Fans will once again be able to watch every #AEHoops game this season regardless of where they live! The majority games will air on The AE on ESPN, either ESPN+ or ESPN3, in the United States. Games will also be available internationally on AmericaEast.TV. Those games will be available on computers, OTT devices and the brand new America East app, which is available on all IOS and Android devices and can be found by searching ‘America East Conference’ in app stores.
2025-26 Weekly Award Winners (Dec. 8)
Player of the Week
Ava Locklear, NJIT – So., Forward, Tiffin, Iowa
- Averaged 21.0 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game.
- Recorded 24 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks in a tight loss to Monmouth.
- This is Locklear’s first #AEHoops Player of the Week of her career.
Rookie of the Week
Kennedy Austin, UMBC – Fr., Guard, Waldorf, Md.
- Scored 19 points with six rebounds and one steal in an 18-point win over Morgan State.
- Finished perfect 7-for-7 on free throws and leads her team in scoring at 13.3 points per game.
- This is Austin’s second #AEHoops Rookie of the Week honor.
Weekly Award Winners
Nov. 11 – Player of the Week: Alejandra Zuniga, NJIT; Rookie of the Week: Amaya Stewart, UAlbany
Nov. 17 – Player of the Week: Maddie Rice, UMass Lowell; Rookie of the Week: Heidi Williams, UMBC
Nov. 24 – Co-Player of the Week: Nia Scott, Bryant; Co-Player of the Week: Bella Pucci, Binghamton; Rookie of the Week: Amaya Stewart, UAlbany
Dec. 1 - Player of the Week: Adrianna Amith, Maine; Rookie of the Week: Kennedy Austin, UMBC
Dec. 8 - Player of the Week: Ava Locklear, NJIT; Rookie of the Week: Kennedy Austin, UMBC
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Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference and its social media channels, @AmericaEast.
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