Bryant Bulldogs Face Albany Great Danes in America East Semifinal Showdown

Smithfield, Rhode Island – The Bryant Bulldogs are set to face the Albany Great Danes in the second America East Conference semifinal at 9 p.m. ET tonight. The winner of this clash will advance to the conference tournament final to meet the victor of the earlier matchup between Vermont and Maine.

This season has seen the Bulldogs excel, clinching the regular season title with a commendable 14-2 record in conference play. However, they will be looking to avenge one of their four losses, which came against Albany back on February 6. The Bulldogs are hoping to avoid a repeat performance in what promises to be an intense contest.

Albany’s Byron Joshua has been a standout performer, recently reaching over 20 points in three of his last five games, including a 22-point effort in a convincing win against Bryant last month. For the Great Danes to pull off an upset tonight, they will need Joshua to deliver a similar performance.

On the other side, Bryant’s Rafael Pinzon, who has been the team’s leading scorer this season with an average of 18.7 points per game, aims to replicate his impressive 22-point showing from the previous tournament round against UMBC. Despite their strong season, Bryant has raised eyebrows as a double-digit favorite in this matchup, especially considering their effective field goal percentage ranks 185th nationally.

Albany’s unique ability to create extra scoring opportunities may prove crucial. The Great Danes lead the nation in generating +5.5 extra scoring chances per game, largely due to their impressive turnover-forcing ability, ranking among the top 50 teams in college basketball. This statistic will be significant against a Bryant team that turns the ball over on 15.7% of its possessions.

The oddsmakers have set Bryant as a 10.5-point favorite, yet analyst sentiment suggests that Albany may cover the spread. A BetMGM report mentions that new users can create an account and, should they lose their initial wager, receive their stake back in bonus bets.

As of now, a total of eight teams are participating in the America East postseason tournament, after NJIT finished last in the standings. The conference has traditionally been dominated by Vermont, who has clinched five of the last seven America East Tournaments. However, this season marks the first time since 2016 that Vermont is not sharing the regular-season championship title and the second time since that year that they aren’t the top seed.

Bryant holds the distinction of being the top seed this year, with the Bulldogs appearing ready to make a strong postseason push and possibly earn their first NCAA Tournament berth at the Division I level. While Vermont and Bryant lead the standings, it remains to be seen how challengers like UMass Lowell and the Great Danes will perform in this exciting tournament.

With a history of competitive matchups and an unpredictable tournament format, fans can expect a thrilling game this evening as the Bryant Bulldogs square off against the Albany Great Danes.