Preview: Albany Visits Bryant in America East Showdown SMITHFIELD, R.I. (Interstat) — Two teams seeking momentum in a tightly packed America East Conference will meet Thursday when the Albany Great Danes visit the Bryant Bulldogs. The matchup at Chace Athletic Center features teams with identical league records and similar overall struggles. Albany (7-16, 3-5 America East) and Bryant (7-15, 3-5) both enter having won just two of their last six games. The Great Danes will look to replicate their dominant performance from the first meeting this season, a 71-46 home win over Bryant on Jan. 10. In that game, Albany’s Okechukwu Okeke posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Okeke remains a key player for Albany, coming off a 19-point effort in a narrow 68-65 loss to Maryland-Baltimore County last Saturday. Bryant arrives with some confidence after a high-scoring 92-84 victory over New Hampshire, also on Jan. 31. Timofei Rudovskii led the way with 23 points in that win. The guard has been a consistent offensive threat for the Bulldogs, scoring 20 points in the previous loss to Albany. Both teams have struggled to find consistency. Albany’s recent three-game skid includes two close road losses at Maine and New Hampshire. Bryant’s win over New Hampshire snapped a three-game losing streak that included a narrow 63-60 defeat at Binghamton. The game represents a critical opportunity for either squad to climb back to .500 in conference play and gain positioning before the final month of the regular season. Albany’s defense, which held Bryant to 46 points in January, will be tested by a Bulldogs offense that just put up 92. Following this contest, Albany will host Massachusetts-Lowell on Saturday. Bryant will remain at home to face Maine the same day.