Virginia Basketball vs. Albany Game Preview, Score Prediction

The Virginia Cavaliers will look to get their season back on track and snap a two-game losing skid when they host the Albany Great Danes in the final non-conference game of the regular season. Wednesday night's contest at JPJ marks the final opportunity for the Hoos to get themselves straightened out before going full speed into ACC play, a conference schedule that will take them all the way into March.

Read on for a full preview of Virginia vs. Albany, including details on the game, an opponent scouting report, game notes, and a score prediction.

Game Details

Who: Virginia Cavaliers (8-2, 1-1 ACC) vs. Albany Great Danes (5-9, 0-0 America East)

When: Wednesday, December 28th at 6pm ET

Where: John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Virginia

How to watch: ACC Network

How to stream: fuboTV (Start your free trial)

How to listen: SiriusXM 136 or 193, SXM App 955 | Virginia Sports Radio Network - click here for affiliates

All-time series: Virginia leads Albany 1-0

Last meeting: Virginia defeated Albany 84-57 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on March 16, 2007

Opponent Scouting Report: Albany

2022-2023: 5-9, 0-0 MAAC
Notable results: at Loyola Chicago 68-56 L, at Providence 93-55 L, at Saint Joseph's 99-79 L, at Towson 67-62 L, at Northern Illinois 83-78 W, at UMass 87-73 L

The second season of Albany basketball under head coach Dwayne Killings has not gotten off to a great start, as the Great Danes are just 5-9 nearly halfway through their regular season sate. Albany has had only one game against a major conference opponent, a 93-55 loss at Providence on December 10th. That loss to the Friars dropped Albany to 3-8 on the season, but the Danes have been playing much better basketball as of late, winning two of their last three games, including a 76-59 win over Long Island and an 83-78 victory at Northern Illinois last Tuesday. Like Virginia, Albany comes into this game having not played in over a week.

Albany is ranked 318th in the NET rankings and 326th on KenPom. It's not the most impressive resume, but the Danes do have some talent and experience, so the Cavaliers will have to take care of business if they want to achieve the resounding victory they're looking for in order to pick up some momentum entering the new year.

The Danes are led by 6'5" senior Gerald Drumgoole Jr., who averaged 14.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. He has scored 20 or more points five times this season, including a 23-point effort last time out. Drumgoole is also the team's best three-point shooter at 39.6% and he has already taken 100 threes this season. For context, Armaan Franklin has taken the most three-point attempts for Virginia with 43.

6'10" freshman forward Jonathan Beagle is Albany's second-leading scorer at 11.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. He shoots 50.4% from the floor and has also hit five threes this season, posing as just enough of a threat from beyond the arc to stretch the floor. Beagle will be an interesting matchup for Kadin Shedrick, who is looking to reassert himself after playing just 10 minutes and scoring only two points at Miami last week.

Aaron Reddish, a 6'7" sophomore and the younger brother of former Duke star and current New York Knick Cam Reddish, averages 8.4 points per game and shoots 36.1% from three. Albany also gets notable contributions from 6'1" graduate guard Da'Kquan Davis (7.9 ppg), 6'6" sophomore forward Justin Neely (8.0 ppg), and 6'3" graduate guard Sarju Patel (6.9 ppg).

Game Notes

Virginia and Albany meet for just the second time ever.
UVA defeated Albany 84-57 in the lone previous matchup in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament. J.R. Reynolds had 28 points and Sean Singletary scored 23 points in Virginia's win.
Virginia is ranked No. 13 in the latest AP Top 25 poll.
UVA is looking to snap a two-game losing streak, while the Great Danes have won two of their last three games.
Wednesday's game against Albany is Virginia's last non-conference game of the regular season.
UVA is 7-1 in non-conference play, with the lone defeat coming against Houston on December 17th.
Tony Bennett is 324-119 (.731) in 14 seasons at Virginia. He needs three wins to surpass Terry Holland (326-173 in 16 seasons) as UVA's all-time winningest head coach.

Prediction

This game is Virginia's final opportunity to work out the kinks before submerging completely into ACC play and the Cavaliers certainly have a lot to figure out on both ends of the floor. Tony Bennett has made it clear that the team's defensive breakdowns especially at critical moments are his biggest concern, while the team's shocking drop-off in three-point shooting and the injury to Reece Beekman have cratered Virginia's offensive production since the team's hot start to the season. This is the literal definition of a "tune-up" game and the Cavaliers are hopeful that a strong performance on both ends of the floor will give them the big win they need to get the train back on the tracks heading into conference action.

Score prediction: Albany 55, Virginia 78

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