Danes falter in second half

PHOTOGRAPHER: USA Today

Cincinnati guard Justin Jenifer and University at Albany guard Marqueese Grayson battle for a loose ball Monday during the Bearcats' 74-51 win at Fifth Third Arena.

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For one half, UAlbany stayed stride for stride on the road with Cincinnati, the No. 24 team in the country.

But it was race too long. The Bearcats turned a two-point game into a route, sprinting past the Great Danes 74-51 in its second game of the Tip-Off Tournament.

UAlbany (1-1), which opened the season by beating Penn State on the road, led for nearly half of the first period against Cincinnati (2-0), holding the Bearcats to nine field goals and trailing 29-27 at intermission. But Cincinnati opened the second half with a 21-4 run in the second half and did not relinquish the lead.

“They gave us trouble running our offense tonight, and had us play fast, at times too fast,” UAlbany coach Will Brown said in a statement. “For a good 25-27 minutes, outside of the turnovers we did a nice job, but I think they wore us out a bit.”

The Great Danes were led by David Nichols (13 points, six assists, three steals, four rebounds). Joe Cremo scored 12 points and had four rebounds, while Greig Stire scored six and added a half-dozen boards.

Jacob Evans III finished with 19 points and three steals for Cincinnati. Kyle Washington got 13 points while Jarron Cumberland had 11 points.

The rebounding statistics were nearly identical, with Cincinnati having a 34-33 edge.

Each side started with long possessions, draining the shot clock down. Washington got a free throw and a turnaround jumper for the only points in the opening 3:30. UAlbany kept Cincinnati at bay on the perimeter and down low, then attacked with Cremo. Cremo hit a jumper, then a reserve layup to give UAlbany a 4-3 advantage five minutes in.

Cincinnati attacked with full court pressure, forcing steals up top the arc. This led to four fast break plays in a row and an 8-0 Cincinnati run.

Stire ended the run with a putback layup, then Marqueese Grayson hit the three from the wing to get UAlbany within two. Next play, Nichols added a layup in traffic and one, plus two Travis Charles free throws completed a 10-0 run, giving UAlbany a 14-11 lead.

Each defense continued to play strong as the sides continued to exchange the lead. Nichols had strong drives to the basket off screens, with the team adding free throws, where Cincinnati countered with layups and the occasional three.

A mini 5-0 run, started by a Cumberland three, sent the home team up four late in the first. Charles grabbed an offensive rebound and put the ball back in to pull UAlbany within two at the half, down 29-27.

Out of the locker room, Cremo hit a layup down the baseline, then Nichols added a steal, sprint and score to give UAlbany the lead. Cincinnati took back the advantage with a free throw as both teams went for over three minutes with a field goal.

Then the Bearcats put on their track shoes.

Cincinnati continued to run fast break plays, with Evans leading a 7-0 run to push the Bearcats up by eight. Mike Rowley ended the run with a layup, but Cincinnati added another 6-0 run to make it 47-35 Bearcats with 11:58 remaining.

UAlbany tried to slow down the pace of play as Cincinnati continued to push quickly. The Great Danes started going back and forth with the Bearcats, but could not close the gap. Cumberland started another run for Cincinnati with a three as the home team led 70-46.

UAlbany has a quick turnaround, taking on Oneonta for the home opener on Wednesday at the SEFCU Arena.

UAlbany returns to the Tip-Off Tournament this weekend with a game against Grand Canyon in Connecticut on Saturday.

UALBANY (51)

Rowley 1-1 0-0 2, Stire 3-5 0-0 6, Cremo 4-10 4-4 12, Grayson 1-3 0-0 3, Nichols 6-16 1-1 13, Anderson 0-1 0-0 0, Andrews 2-5 0-0 5, Lands 1-4 2-7 4, Ennema 0-0 0-0 0, Charles 2-3 2-2 6. Totals: 20-49 9-14 51.

CINCINNATI (74)

Clark 1-6 0-0 2, Washington 6-8 1-5 13, Evans 5-11 7-8 19, Caupain 3-6 2-2 8, Johnson 2-6 0-0 4, Moore 3-8 0-0 6, Jenifer 2-5 1-2 6, Scott 2-3 0-0 4, Brooks 0-1 1-2 1, Cumberland 4-6 1-1 11, Tobler 0-1 0-0 0. totals: 28-61 13-20 74.

UAlbany 27 24 — 51

Cincinnati 29 45 — 74

Three-point goals: UAlbany 2-14 (Cremo 0-3, Grayson 1-1, Nichols 0-5, Anderson 0-1, Andrews 1-4), Cincinnati 5-21 (Clark 0-1, Evans 2-7, Caupain 0-2, Johnson 0-4, Moore 0-1, Jenifer 1-2, Cumberland 2-4). Rebounds: UAlbany 33 (Stire, Charles 6 each), Cincinnati 34 (Moore 5). Assists: UAlbany 8 (Nichols 6), Cincinnati 16 (Caupain, Jenifer 5 each). Total fouls: UAlbany 19, Cincinnati 16. A — 5,864.