A University at Albany student from Wantagh died yesterday after being shot in the head as he walked to his off-campus home, an upstate police spokesman said.

Detectives are investigating why Richard Bailey, 22, a University at Albany senior, was shot Monday night, and they have not determined a motive for the crime, an Albany police spokesman, Det. James Miller, said yesterday.

"Right now everything is being looked at, and nothing's being discounted," Miller said.

Bailey was walking alone around 11:20 p.m. on South Lake Avenue and Yates Street, blocks from his off-campus house, when he was hit once with a bullet, Miller said.

Detectives haven't found any witnesses. But a passing motorist heard the shooting.

"She heard the shot fired, she looked over, saw him on the ground and she called 911," Miller said. "When officers got there, he was unresponsive."

The student was taken to Albany Medical Center. He was brain dead, authorities said, and died about 14 hours later, after being taken off life support.

James Tuffey, chief of the Albany City Police, said no property was taken from Bailey and no gun has been recovered.

Police are seeking two men seen riding bikes near the shooting area. While they are not suspects, detectives want to talk to them.

Bailey's family had traveled from Long Island immediately after the shooting to be near him, police said. An autopsy was to be performed yesterday afternoon, authorities said.

In a statement, the university said the campus is mourning Bailey and is planning a vigil for tonight at 7.

"We extend our deepest condolences to his family, friends and loved ones. No words can truly express the sadness and grief that the university community is experiencing at this time," the statement read.

Bailey was a sociology/criminal justice major who had just recently taken the exam for the New York City Police Department, said Christine Bouchard, the university's vice president for student success.

She said Bailey was shot just after watching a football game between the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots.

No one answered the door at Bailey's family's home on Wheelbarrow Lane in Wantagh.

Neighbors and Albany authorities said Bailey's father is a retired New York Police Department officer.

On Bailey's block, a neighbor who did not give his name, collapsed onto his car in shock. "He was just home," the neighbor said.

On the Levittown block where Bailey's grandmother has long lived, neighbors recalled an athletic boy they watched grow up.

Michael Basile, 22, of Levittown, a demolition worker, said Bailey would "come down and play with us, hang out with us" while visiting the grandmother since the two boys were 6 or 7 years old.

They attended MacArthur High School in Levittown together, he said, and Bailey was a strong athlete.

"He was a great kid," Basile said as he scoured childhood photo albums for memories of his fallen friend. "There are no words. It's just - it's just a tragedy."

This story was supplemented with an Albany Times-Union report.