Men’s Basketball Snaps Losing Streak Against Vermont
- theaspeic
- 7 hours ago
- 3 min read
By Carter Schum | January 26th, 2026
On Monday, Jan. 19, the University at Albany Men’s Basketball team defeated the University of Vermont Catamounts 75-68.
“It's the best win I've been a part of since I've been here,” Head Coach Dwyane Killings said.
The Catamounts led early, opening the game on an 11-2 run in the first five minutes. An Amir Lindsey layup accounted for the Great Danes’ offense in the early first half, putting points on the board. Vermont star Gus Yalden had four points early on and was proving to be a problem on defense for UAlbany.
UVM continued to be all over the Great Danes, despite UAlbany finally being able to knock down some shots. The Catamounts seemed to have an immediate response, leading 16-8 with 11:39 remaining in the first half.
The Great Danes were able to find momentum on offense, as better shot selection and quicker passes trimmed Vermont’s lead to 23-17, with 7:23 left to play in the first half.
This run continued, as UAlbany then took its first lead of the game. The Great Danes led 27-25 with 4:18 left in the first half, via a fast-break finish from Miles Rose.
In the final three minutes, UAlbany closed with energy and structure, finishing the first half on a 25-8 run to take a 37-29 lead at halftime.
Lindsey topped the scoring charts in the first half with 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range. Zacharie Matulu recorded seven points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds in the first half.
For Vermont, Yalden scored 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting. TJ Hurley was second in scoring, adding seven points.
The second half began with Ben Johnson knocking down a corner 3-pointer to cut UAlbany’s lead down to 37-32. The Catamounts nearly forced a turnover on a jump ball on the ensuing possession, however Killings called a timeout with 19:03 remaining to prevent this.
UVM showed renewed energy similar to its opening minutes, however with 15:13 remaining in the game, the Great Danes led 44-38.
This run for the Great Danes continued, as 3-pointers began to fall for UAlbany. Lindsey and Isaac Abidde would knock down triples from the corner, pushing the lead to 54-41 with 11:49 remaining, forcing Vermont to call a timeout.
The high point of the game came with 8:58 left in the second half, as after forcing a turnover, Matulu delivered an alley-oop pass to Abidde, who finished with a dunk to make the score 63-45.
UVM would not go down without a fight, responding with a quick 5-0 run, forcing Killings to call another UAlbany timeout with 7:13 remaining as the scoreboard read 63-50 in favor of the Great Danes.
UAlbany then controlled nearly two straight minutes of possession, securing several offensive rebounds in a row, capped off by a layup from Lindsey.
The Catamounts stayed in the game, as another 5-0 run shaved the Great Danes’
lead to 65-60, with only 1:53 left to play.
Lindsey drew a shooting foul with 1:06 left to play, and made both free throws, bringing the score to a close 67-63. However, Sean Blake answered with a 3-pointer for Vermont.
Fall made two free throws to push the lead back to six points with 45 seconds remaining. Blake answered again, this time scoring on a finger roll to make the score 69-65.
Fall returned to the line and made two more free throws to bring the score to 71-65 with 37 seconds remaining.
Vermont missed a 3-pointer in transition, and fouled Lindsey again to send him to the line. He made both shots once again to make the score 75-65.
Johnson was fouled attempting a 3-pointer with 5.7 seconds remaining, but despite making all three shots, the horn sounded with the Great Danes securing a 75-68 victory.
Lindsey ran the show for UAlbany as he recorded 24 points, including going 9 of 10 from the free throw line while playing all 40 minutes. Abide and Fall both added 16 points.
Yalden led the scoring for Vermont with 21 points.
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