UAlbany women's basketball off to hot start under Morrone, but tough opponents await

UAlbany head coach Kelly Morrone talks to the media after beating Manhattan on Thursday, Nov. 5, at the Broadview Center in Albany, NY. (Jim Franco/Times Union) (Jim Franco/Times Union) Kelly Morrone has five pillars that define what her University at Albany women's basketball program is all about: Character, connection, trust, a "never back down" mentality and an unbreakable spirit."This week," Morrone said, "is testing that unbreakable spirit pillar."The Great Danes are off to a 3-0 start in Morrone's first season at the helm, but things are about to get a whole lot tougher. UAlbany flew south Tuesday to play a top-25 Ole Miss team in a 7 p.m. contest Wednesday at The Sandy and John Black Pavilion in Oxford, Miss., and the team will follow that up Monday by traveling to Piscataway, N.J. to face Rutgers.Two games in less than a week against teams from the SEC and Big 10 are certain to test the Great Danes."You see games like this, and you see some of the scores around the country," Morrone said. "Every team wants to compete. What do you do when all of a sudden you feel overwhelmed by size or speed? You just can't back down. You've got to keep your spirit up and understand that it's a great opportunity to grow as an individual player, as a position group, or as a team in general.""There's lots of different ways to win in these games," she added.Against Ole Miss, UAlbany will face a team that's ranked 21st in the latest AP poll and 24th in the coaches' poll. The Rebels have won their first two games by an average of 31.5 points.The Great Danes, on the other hand, started their season by pulling out close wins over Northeastern and Manhattan by a combined five points before a more comfortable 77-57 win Sunday on the road against Mount St. Mary's."We had eight quick turnovers (on Sunday) that kind of smacked us in the face," Morrone said. "But, once we settled in and really started making some shots and doing a great job of defensive rebounding and using the whole floor, it was really nice to see the ball go through the hoop and to get a bit of a lead and know how to keep it."Morrone praised the strong play from forward Madison Roman, who followed the Great Danes' coach from her previous job at Merrimack, and freshman Alexia Bujold. Sophomore Emma Zuccon, one of the team's two returning players from 2025-26, played a huge role in Sunday's win, scoring 13 points and grabbing seven rebounds in 14 minutes while Roman battled foul trouble.Bujold snapped up America East Rookie of the Week honors for her role in UAlbany's 3-0 start. The freshman from Quebec has scored in double figures in all three of the Great Danes' contests so far, averaging 17.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. She had her first collegiate double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds against Mount St. Mary's."I try and not even bring it up to her. I don't want anything to change or to get in her way," Morrone said. "She's been really steady, but that's how she is in practice, too. She hasn't been up or down all summer or fall."After its two upcoming road games against Power 4 conference opponents, UAlbany will get a chance to be settled at home for a bit. Between Nov. 18 and Dec. 8, the Great Danes play five out of six games at home at Broadview Center, and the only road game in that stretch is a quick hop over to Loudonville to face Siena on Dec. 5."It'll be nice to settle in and really take our time in those home games," Morrone said. "We're getting through the epicenter of the tough schedule that we have this week."SubscribeThere’s more to Albany with the Times Union. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at UAlbany women's basketball off to hot start under Morrone, but tough opponents await.