Salem International (9-12) 44-46--90
Daemen (22-5) 57-56--113

AMHERST, N.Y. – Senior Jim Regan (Williamsville, N.Y./Nichols) scored 26 points and junior Casey Sheehan (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena) added 24 to lead the Daemen College men's basketball team to a 113-90 victory over Salem International University here today. Regan scored 17 of his points in the first half, while Sheehan netted 15 second-half points.

Daemen has won 11 of its last 12 games and improved to 22-5 on the year. Daemen is ranked third in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division I poll released yesterday. SIU, a NCAA Division II independent, dropped to 9-12.

Regan, who was honored before the game in recognition of his final home game, connected on 10 of 13 shots and also grabbed 11 rebounds.  Sheehan also dished out 11 assists.

Six players reached double figures for the Wildcats. Sophomore Jordan Greene (Fort Edward, N.Y./South Glens Falls) had four three-pointers and totaled 19 points, while sophomore Aaron Davis (North Tonawanda, N.Y./North Tonawanda) netted 11 points in just 11 minutes off the bench. Junior Mark Coppola (Williamsville, N.Y./Williamsville South) netted 10 points and handed out nine assists, while sophomore Gerald Beverly (Rochester, N.Y./Gates Chili) totaled 10 points and three blocks.

Five players reached double figures for Salem International. Junior Jonathan Roper paced the Tigers with 18 points, while sophomore Jamal Robinson added 14.

Daemen wasted no time in getting the capacity crowd into the game, as Regan opened the scoring with a three-pointer from the top of the key and Daemen took a 5-0 lead when Beverly threw down a two-handed slam off a nice pass from junior Kadeem Johnson (Syracuse, N.Y./Henninger).  A layup by Regan five minutes into the half gave the hosts a 16-4 lead, but the Tigers answered with a three-pointer by senior Raymar Porter and later cut the lead to eight points, 17-9, following a jumper by junior Walter Brock.

The teams traded baskets for the next three minutes and the Wildcats held a 21-12 lead when the hosts put together a 10-3 spurt. Coppola and Greene drained three-pointers during the run and a layup by Regan capped it.

SIU chipped away at the lead and got it down to 10 points, 38-28, with just over seven minutes left in the half, but the Wildcats answered with four straight points and later regained a 15-point lead, 46-31, when Regan converted a layup off a pass from Sheehan with 4:24 left before intermission. Daemen took a 57-44 lead into halftime.

SIU opened the second half with five unanswered points and cut the lead to eight points, 57-49. That would be as close as the Tigers would come, as Daemen put together a 19-8 run and took a 76-57 lead when Sheehan converted a conventional three-point play with 13:46 left. Sheehan drilled two three-pointers and scored 13 points during the rally. Daemen maintained a double digit lead the rest of the way and took its largest lead of the game, 109-80, following a triple by Greene with 3:02 remaining.

Daemen shot 61-percent (20-33) from the field in the first half and was 40-for-71 (56%) overall. The Wildcats drained 10-of-25 three-point attempts and also made good on 23-of-32 free throws.  SIU shot just 39-percent (29-75) from the field, but canned 26-of-38 free throws.

Daemen posted a 50-28 edge in points in the paint, while the Tigers finished with a 46-42 advantage in rebounding.

Daemen is idle until Sunday, Jan. 3 when it travels to Niagara College (Ont.) for a 2 p.m. game. The Wildcats opened the 2012-13 season with a 108-67 victory over Niagara on Oct. 24.