BOSTON -- Senior guard Yirsy Quéliz scored 20 points, 12 of them in the fourth quarter, but the Northeastern women's basketball team fell to the UAlbany Great Danes, 65-61, in its season opener on Monday night at the Cabot Center.
The Huskies had three players score in double figures, led by Quéliz, who shot 7-of-16 from the field and knocked down four three-pointers. Camryn Collins added 16 points and a team-high four assists, and Justice Tramble chipped in with 12 points, five rebounds and two steals.
Northeastern out-rebounded UAlbany 40-38, with Morgan Matthews and Maya Summerville each grabbing seven boards behind Bukvic's eight. Summerville's seven rebounds, in under 12 minutes, were a career high. The Huskies pulled down 12 offensive rebounds to UAlbany's six and scored nine second-chance points to the Great Danes' seven.
Three newcomers made their Northeastern debuts. Anja Bukvic started and led the team with eight rebounds, and Summer Bostock finished with three points and four rebounds. Amanda Smith recorded an assist in just over two minutes of action, setting up Bostock's three-pointer that gave the Huskies a 29-26 lead late in the second quarter.
The Great Danes were led by Alexia Bujold, who scored 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting and went 7-of-7 at the free-throw line. Noa Lopez Tallon added 19 points off the bench on a perfect 6-of-6 from three-point range, accounting for six of UAlbany's seven made threes. UAlbany's bench outscored Northeastern's, 27-5.
The Huskies forced 11 UAlbany turnovers and converted them into 12 points. Northeastern shot 32.3 percent from the field (21-of-65), including 8-of-26 from three-point range.
UAlbany jumped out to a 5-0 lead before Northeastern answered with a 9-0 run, capped by Collins' driving layup, to take a 9-5 lead with six minutes left in the first quarter. The Great Danes responded with a 6-0 stretch, and Northeastern went more than four minutes without scoring before Tramble's layup with 22 seconds left. UAlbany led 16-13 after one.
Collins powered a 20-15 second quarter for the Huskies, scoring 11 points on a 3-for-3 showing from three-point range. Her three-pointer with 5:13 remaining gave Northeastern a 23-22 lead, and she tied the game at 26-26 with another three a little over a minute later. Bostock's three put the Huskies up 29-26, and Tramble scored the team's final four points of the half to send Northeastern into the locker room with a 33-31 lead. Collins had 15 of her 16 points before the break.
UAlbany outscored Northeastern 20-14 in the third quarter while shooting 53.3 percent. Quéliz's three-pointer tied the game at 39-39 and Matthews' layup knotted it again at 41-41, but Lopez Tallon hit two threes in a 39-second span to push the Great Danes' lead to 49-43. UAlbany took a 51-47 edge into the fourth.
Northeastern opened the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run, with Quéliz's three-pointer and free throw followed by two Summerville free throws, to take a 53-51 lead with 6:26 to play. UAlbany answered with a 5-0 run and later stretched its lead to 61-55 on Lopez Tallon's fast-break three-pointer. Quéliz scored six straight points, finishing with a three-pointer assisted by Matthews, to tie the game at 61-61 with 1:55 remaining. Lopez Tallon hit another three on UAlbany's next trip, and the Huskies missed their final five field-goal attempts. The Huskies outrebounded UAlbany 17-9 in the fourth quarter and scored five second-chance points to none.
UAlbany now leads the all-time series 6-5. The teams were meeting for the first time since Dec. 28, 2014, when the Huskies won 70-67 in Albany.
Up next, the Huskies travel across town to Boston University on Friday, Nov. 6, for a 6 p.m. tip.
