Just two more wins.

That’s all it will take for the top-seeded Albany Great Danes to play for the America East Championship on their home court, where they went 7-1 in America East play this year.

But the home-court advantage of being the tournament’s top seed is still a long ways away. The Great Danes (18-10, 13-3 AE) will have to endure a tough road to reach the finals, starting Saturday evening with a 6 p.m. tilt against the winner of Friday’s UMBC/Stony Brook matchup.

The Great Danes went 4-0 against the conference’s eighth and ninth-seeded teams this year, but in the postseason, there is no such thing as an easy game, especially when playing on the court of your biggest rival. If the Bearcats win their noon matchup with Maine, expect the BU Zoo to show up en masse to open up the possibility of an Events Center final game.

Albany is led by star two-guard Jamar Wilson, who finished second in the league with 17.6 points per game, behind only Hartford’s Kenny Adeleke (20.5). Their top big man is lanky seven-footer Kirsten Zoellner, who ranks 11th in the league in rebounding with 5.2 boards per game.

If they face off against UMBC, expect the Retrievers to pound the ball inside to their big man, John Zito. He averages almost three offensive rebounds per game and could give Zoellner problems on the glass. Zito had 16 points in UMBC’s season-ending 76-61 loss to Albany last Saturday, and a game-high 12 rebounds in UMBC’s other loss at Albany on Jan. 25.

Albany dominated the Retrievers last weekend thanks in large part to a career day from sixth man Jon Iati, who shot 6-of-10 from three-point range and 7-of-8 from the line for 29 points in only 21 minutes. But focusing on Iati could cause all kinds of matchup problems elsewhere, as Wilson is one of the league’s top scorers.

Ninth-seeded Stony Brook could present problems for the Great Danes. The teams’ Dec. 23 matchup saw Stony Brook go on a 14-1 run to give the Seawolves a late lead. Although the Danes’ strength shined at the end of the game to pull out a 63-58 win, this early-season thriller was evidence of the parity that represents this year’s America East.

Stony Brook’s first-year head coach Steve Pikiell has had to deal with the loss of graduated big man Cori Spencer. Power forward Mike Popoko, who is more of an outside shooter, leads the guard-oriented Seawolves with 5.4 rebounds per game. Mitchell Beauford leads the team with 14.2 points per game, seventh in the conference.

For those who think Albany will simply cruise into Sunday’s semifinal, 2004’s tournament is evidence that no team is safe: eighth-seeded Stony Brook, albeit with a very different roster than the one they have now, shocked top-seeded Boston 62-58 in the quarterfinal round. The only other eight-over-a-one upset came in 1988, when No. 8 New Hampshire defeated top-seeded Siena 70-63.

Last year, as the tournament’s top seed, Vermont obliterated ninth-seeded UMBC 76-61 in a game that wasn’t really that close. Vermont would eventually go on to shock Syracuse in the first round of the NCAA tournament, but no team in the America East is in the position that last year’s Catamounts held.

Assuming the Bearcats take care of No. 7 Maine in Saturday’s first game, the added motivation of a possible Binghamton-hosted Championship should inspire some BU fans to fill the student section and continue their storied chants against players like Zoellner.

In this quarterfinal game, the Great Danes should have enough firepower to overcome whoever they face and advance to the semis. Look for Albany to pull ahead early, silence a scattered BU Zoo crowd, and win this one fairly easily — but Sunday afternoon’s tilt with either Hartford or New Hampshire could prove a different story.

Fun Facts:

Although this 6 p.m. game between Albany and either UMBC or Stony Brook might not sound that appetizing to you, the BU Zoo, I strongly encourage everyone who attends at noon to return and root on the underdog here. Especially if Stony Brook wins Friday, I don’t think you can completely count out an upset in this game. And how could you pass up the chance to scream at Kirsten Zoellner one more time before he graduates?

Additionally, you’re probably not as likely to attend Friday night’s opening session, but if you need encouragement, think about how amazing the Stony Brook dance team and the UMBC cheerleaders were at last year’s tournament. Boy, their dancing and cheering talents were exhibited beautifully, weren’t they?