Tyler Jones scored 23 points and the UAlbany Great Danes beat the Manhattan Jaspers 72-68 on Thursday night at Draddy Gymnasium.
UAlbany never trailed. The game was tied twice, but Manhattan did not hold a lead at any point. The Great Danes led 32-31 at halftime, then outscored the Jaspers 40-37 in the second half. UAlbany's largest lead was 9 points.
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The free-throw line made the difference. UAlbany went 21-of-30 from the line, while Manhattan made 9 of 18. Jones hit 9 of 12 free throws and finished 6-of-15 from the field, 2-of-6 from 3-point range, with 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals in 38 minutes.
Zacharie Matulu added a double-double for UAlbany with 15 points and 10 rebounds, hitting 3 of 8 shots from beyond the arc. Ollie Engen played all 40 minutes and had 12 points and 8 assists.
Dusan Eric led Manhattan with 16 points off the bench on 7-of-12 shooting in 19 minutes. Novak Manojlovic scored 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting, and Ognjen Stankovic had 10 points and 7 rebounds.
Manhattan shot better from the field, 27-of-59 (46%) to UAlbany's 23-of-56 (41%), and held a 36-30 edge in points in the paint. But the Jaspers committed 14 turnovers to UAlbany's 10, and the Great Danes had a 14-7 advantage in fast-break points. Both teams made 5 3-pointers.
UAlbany improved to 2-0. Manhattan fell to 0-2.
