Coming off of back-to-back wins, Quinnipiac men’s basketball looked to extend its winning streak Tuesday night at home against Albany, however, they fell short 58-54 in a tight game.

“They got downhill and drove it more than we did,” head coach Tom Moore said. “They had us on our heels offensively.”

Despite the pressure of playing against an experienced team, senior guard Giovanni McLean and junior guard Daniel Harris led the way for the Bobcats.

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McLean totaled 10 points in the first half on 5-10 shooting while Harris grabbed eight rebounds, six of which came on the defensive end.

Additionally, secondary support came from freshman forward Abdulai Bundu. Of his five first half points, three were scored on a hard-nosed play when he drew a foul and converted on the free throw.

“Abdulai came in and gave us really good minutes, a real spark” Moore said. “Abdulai did it, he was out there just playing. He wasn’t afraid, he ripped on one guy, took it strong to the rim, he was on the offensive glass, he was running, he was in the battle, and that’s refreshing for a freshman.”

At the end of the first half, the Bobcats saw themselves on top 26-23 over the Great Danes.

After a defensive first half, the second half was in need of some offense. Harris took charge and exploded for 17 points in the second half (19 total) while shooting 58% from the field.

“Just playing the basketball game sometimes you just go with the flow of the game,” Harris said. “Sometimes it just happens, the ball goes in the basket.”

Although things were going the right way for Harris, the rest of the team struggled offensively to break through the changing defenses from Albany.

“In the second half they played like a much more experienced and settled team,” Moore said. “They put a huge seed of doubt in our play-calling and perimeter guys’ decision making.”

After a pair of three-pointers and free throws from Albany guard Ray Sanders, the game would be decided in the final minutes of play.

Late defensive miscues from the Bobcats led to a wide open layup for Albany’s Evan Singletary which left the Bobcats no choice but to send the Great Danes to the line.

Luckily, a few missed free throws from Albany and a layup from sophomore forward Chaise Daniels brought Quinnipiac back to a 53-53 tie.

Once the Bobcats regained complete offensive possession in a 56-53 game, Harris was sent to the foul line. Harris drained his first free throw, but on his second shot, tried to force a lane violation by faking the shot.

“Coach said we wanted to get a miss,” Harris said. “I was thinking, ‘what if I can get a violation and get another shot?’”

Unfortunately for Harris, his fake free throw threw off everybody and ultimately lead to a violation against Quinnpiac sophomore forward Samuel Dingba.

Albany would add a pair of free throws to close out the game, and handed Quinnipiac their first loss since November 18th against Vermont.

Next up, the Bobcats will hit the road to face the Niagara University Purple Eagles who look to snap a losing streak of their own.