AMHERST, N.Y. - Trailing by 10 points with 2:30 to play, the Daemen College men's basketball fought to the bitter end, making it a one-possession game on five occassions but it wasn't in the cards today as the Wildcats dropped their East Coast Conference season opener to visiting University of the District of Columbia, 89-84, at Lumsden Gymnasium.

The loss drops Daemen to 2-4 overall this season, and it's the first time in the Wildcats' brief ECC history (since 2013) that the team has started 0-1 in league play.  The visiting Firebirds, meanwhile, completed an impressive weekend sweep of the ECC's two Western New York teams.  UDC defeated Roberts Wesleyan College 90-77 in Rochester on Friday evening, and today's win moves them to 4-6 overall (2-0 ECC) with all four of their victories coming in their last five outings.

Kasim Chandler, a 5-foot-11 guard who transferred from Division I Quinnipiac University, paced the Firebirds today with a team-high 21 points, while adding five rebounds, four assists and two steals.  Chandler played the full 40 minutes and went 11-for-15 from the charity stripe in the game, including 9-for-13 in the final two minutes.

UDC also got great production from 6-foot-3 junior guard Virgil Fleming who flirted with a triple-double (17 points, nine rebounds, seven assists).  Fleming shot 6-for-8 from the field, including 3-for-4 from three-point range, and added three steals and two blocks to his stat-stuffing effort.

Jayone Troutman chipped in with 16 points and seven boards, while Martin Campbell came off the bench to reach double figures as well (12 points).

The Wildcats were led once again by the duo of Torrence Dyck (Rochester, N.Y./San Jacinto College) and Arif Mehmetaj (Jamaica, N.Y./SUNY Delhi).  Dyck recorded his first double-double of the season, and the third of his career, with 26 points and 11 boards, while adding a season-high seven assists.  Mehmetaj posted 24 points, eight rebounds and a career-high four blocks.  It's the fourth time this season that Dyck and Mehemtaj have each gone over 20 points in the same game.

Sophomore guard Nick Petrucelli (Hicksville, N.Y./Thomasville Prep) posted his second double-figure scoring game of the season (10 points) while grad-student Ryan Grandits (Kenmore, N.Y./Medaille College) and freshman Jay Sarkis (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena) split 16 points for the Wildcats.

Daemen used a quick 8-0 spurt out of the under-12-minute media timeout in the first half, breaking a 13-13 tie.  Freshman guard Darius Garvin (Elmira, N.Y./Notre Dame) sparked the run with a highlight-reel step-back three-pointer, which was followed by a fastbreak layup and three-pointer, both from Dyck.  The eight points came in a 43-second span and prompted a UDC timeout at the 10:14 mark.  It looked then as if the Wildcats might open this one up early, but to the Firebirds' credit, they regrouped and scored the next eight points themselves to knot the score once again (21-21).

The lead would change hands eight times total in the first half.  UDC would score eight of the last 12 points in the period, including a pair of trifectas from Fleming to lead 34-33 at intermission.

The Wildcats seized control early in the second half, opening the frame with a bucket by Petrucelli to regain the lead.  Petrucelli's jumper sparked an 11-6 spurt that saw the Wildcats lead 44-40 at the 15:35 mark on another Dyck triple.

But, Dyck was whistled for his fourth personal foul at the 14:58 mark, forcing the Wildcats' leading scorer to the bench for an extended period of time.  The 6-foot-5 wing player didn't return until the 8:48 mark, and when he did, Daemen was trailing 59-55.  The UDC run would continue despite Dyck's return to the game, scoring eight unanswered to extend its lead to 12 at 66-57 with 6:59 to play.  Chandler made a pair of layups in the spurt, which was briefly interrupted by a Sarkis three-pointer for the Wildcats.  But, UDC would maintain at least a seven-point edge for the next several minutes.

Campbell would split a pair from the charity stripe at the 2:30 mark, putting the Firebirds ahead 76-66.  Dyck answered with a lay-in at the other end, and following a UDC turnover, Sarkis knocked down his second triple of the game to cut the deficit in half at the 2:01 mark.

The parade of Chandler free throw attempts woudl commence with 1:40 to play.  After he connected on a pair of freebies at the 1:24 mark to put the guests ahead 80-73, the Wildcats would get back into it with a four-point possession.  Sarkis attacked the basket and drew the fifth and disqualifying foul on Campbell who was subsequently assessed a technical foul.  Mehmetaj made good on the technical free throws and Sarkis converted his two from the original foul, making it just a three-point deficit (80-77).

Fleming put the Firebirds back ahead by four by splitting a pair of free throws with 49 ticks left, but Dyck answered with another layup eight seconds later, making the score 81-79.  Troutman converted a pair of free throws on the next UDC possession to push it back to a two-possession game.

As the final minute dragged on, Mehmetaj hit a three-pointer to pull Daemen with one (84-83) with 29 seconds to go.  Geran Pope made one-of-two free throws for UDC, leaving the door open for Daemen to tie or take the lead, but Dyck's three-point attempt from the right wing was off the mark on the Wildcats' next possession.  Chandler hauled down the rebound in traffic and was fouled immediately.  His subsequent free throws essentially sealed the deal for the Firebirds.

Daemen shot 43-percent from the field (31-for-72) but just 33-percent from three-point range (6-for-18).  The Wildcats were plagued by turnovers today, coughing it up 19 times in the game.

UDC, who came in as the top scoring team in the ECC, shot 49-percent for the game (31-for-63), including 55-percent in the second half (17-for-31).

The game today came less than 24 hours after Daemen took out Edinboro University, 88-79, in a non-conference affair, but the Wildcats couldn't complete the weekend sweep to even its overall record.  The Wildcats were also without starting guard Supreme Hannah (Rochester, N.Y./Eastridge) who missed his second-straight game with an injury.

The loss today also marked the Wildcats' third home loss of the season, marking their most in a single year since going 9-7 at Lumsden Gymnasium in 2010-11.  The Wildcats suffered just three total home losses from the start of the 2011-12 season through the end of last season, piling up 47 home-court victories in that span, including 44-straight at one point.

Daemen closes out the 2015 portion of its schedule by visiting Dowling College (Friday, December 18) and University of Bridgeport (Sunday, December 20) in a pair of ECC clashes next weekend.