ORONO – The University of Albany’s 58-49 win against the University of Maine men’s basketball team was a first in a lot of ways for the Great Danes’ program.

Sunday afternoon’s game was their first win at Alfond Arena, first ever against the Black Bears after coming into Alfond with an 0-7 mark against Maine, and first consecutive conference win since joining the America East in 2001.

“They’re a very good team and we knew it,” said Maine coach Ted Woodward. “They have several potential all-conference players on their roster. Our guys know they’re not the Albany they used to be.”

Indeed they aren’t. In fact, the win breaks a fourth-place tie with Maine and vaults the 8-7 Great Danes into third with a 4-2 conference mark. Maine is also 8-7, but 3-3 in AE play.

“Where we’re at right now is a lot different than where we’ll be in February,” said Albany coach Will Brown. “I think we’ll get much better as the season goes.”

That’s not idle boasting. Even with the loss of starting point guard Jon Iati (shoulder surgery) for the season, the Danes can still bring plenty of weapons to bear:

. Jamar Wilson, the AE’s 2003 rookie of the year is back with a vengeance after missing last season with knee surgery. The sophomore guard, who scored 18 points, is sixth among AE scorers despite moving to the point.

. Lucious Jordan, a junior transfer guard from Loyola College (Maryland), is fifth among AE scorers. He scored a game-high 19 Sunday, grabbed six boards, and played superlative man-to-man defense on sharpshooter Maine guard Kevin Reed, who was held to 0-for-8 shooting from the field and two total points.

. Levi Levine, a junior forward who was on the AE all-rookie team with Wilson in 2003, had a solid all-around game with eight points, nine rebounds and three steals.

. Kirsten Zoellner, a junior transfer from Boston College, has been a big presence inside. The 7-foot-1 center had foul trouble Sunday, but has helped keep opposing teams from going inside with impunity.

Sunday’s game was all about defense. The Danes’ suffocating man-to-man defensive pressure prevented Maine from getting into a transition game, forced Maine to play halfcourt most of the time, and harassed Bears outside shooters all game.

“They played pretty good “D” and made us play further out than we like,” said Maine leading scorer Ernest Turner, who finished with 13 points.

“One of our big goals was Turner, who we felt was that one guy who could break us down off the dribble,” Brown said. “We felt if we could keep him out of the lane, we’d be fine because their shooters live off his penetration and kick-outs.

“We wanted to keep him on the perimeter, make him a jump-shooter and limit his penetration, we could limit their shooters too.”

Reed was especially limited as he was held nine points below his scoring average.

“They really got into him,” Woodward said. “He missed a couple looks, but they made it uncomfortable for him by pressuring the ball and using good weakside defense. They were right there all the time.”

Joe Campbell had another typical solid all-around game for Maine. The forward-guard from Bangor had 13 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks, three assists, and a steal.

Maine started the second half with a 7-0 run to go up 35-28, but Albany responded with an 11-2 run fueled by Jordan (seven points). No more than three points separated the teams until the Danes made a decisive 10-0 run over four minutes to take a 54-43 lead with 1:21 left.

GREAT DANES 58, BLACK BEARS 49

Albany (8-7) Maine (8-7)

Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP

Levine 2 8 4 6 8 Dubois 2 4 5

St. Hillaire 1 6 2 2 4 Campbell 3 13

Zoellner 0 3 0 0 0 Turner 5 14 13

Jordan 8 19 1 2 19 Hight 2 4 5

J. Wilson 3 8 12 13 18 Reed 0 8 2

Johnson 0 0 0 0 0 Bruff 1 3 3

Lillis 0 2 2 2 2 Flavin 0 1 0

Wyatt 0 0 0 0 0 Jackson 0 3 0

B. Wilson 3 6 0 0 7 Ahvenniemi 4 8

Totals 17 52 21 25 58 Totals 17 48 12 15 49

Albany 28 58

Maine 28 49

3-pt. goals – Albany (3-10): Jordan 2-3, B. Wilson 1-4, Lillis 0-1, J. Wilson 0-2; Maine (3-19): Campbell 2-4, Turner 1-6, Hight 0-1, Jackson 0-2, Reed 0-6

Attendance: 2,339