Jeff Redband's 44 three-pointers have helped Daemen to a No. 9 ranking in the East Region

Men's Basketball 1/29/2018 1:43:00 PM By Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications

Wildcats Hold Steady At #9 In Regional Poll

D2SIDA MEN'S BASKETBALL EAST REGION MEDIA POLL WEEK 10 - JANUARY 29, 2018
Rank	School	Pts.	Record	Previous
1.	Bridgeport (5)	59	17-4	1
2.	Le Moyne (1)	55	16-5	2
3.	St. Thomas Aquinas	48	18-4	3
4.	St. Anselm	40	16-4	6
5.	St. Rose	36	16-5	5
6.	Bloomfield	30	16-4	4
7.	Dominican	22	14-6	T-7
8.	Merrimack	21	14-7	T-7
9.	DAEMEN	13	14-7	9
10.	Roberts Wesleyan	3	14-6	RV
( ) - denotes first-place votes

AMHERST, N.Y. - For the second consecutive week, the Daemen College men's basketball team is ranked ninth in the NCAA Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) East Region media poll which was released this afternoon.

Daemen enters the week with a 14-7 overall record and an 8-3 mark in East Coast Conference play after splitting a pair of league games at Lumsden Gymnasium last week. The Wildcats rallied for a 68-60 win over Mercy College last Friday, January 26, extending their region-best winning streak to nine consecutive games. That streak came to an end just two days later when the region's top ranked team, University of Bridgeport, held off another furious second-half rally to hand the Wildcats a 77-71 defeat.

Efficiency at both ends of the floor has been the calling card for coach Mike MacDonald's squad this season. Daemen has shot 47 percent or better in 15 of their 21 games, posting a 10-5 record in those contests. They've also held opponents below 43 percent shooting 12 times this season, including nine of the last 11 games. Daemen currently leads the ECC in field goal percentage (48.4), field goal percentage defense (42.0) and points per game allowed (72.0).

Redshirt freshman center Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) continues to be the team's go-to guy. He's produced double-figure scoring in 13 consecutive games, and he leads all ECC rookies in scoring at 14.5 points per game. Sischo posted his fifth double-double of the season (20 points, 12 rebounds) in the win over Mercy last week, scoring 17 points during a game-changing 22-4 run in the second half. Sischo presently ranks among the ECC leaders in field goals made (131 - fourth), field goal percentage (56.0 - fourth), rebounds per game (7.5 - third) and points per game (eighth).

Breon Harris (Niagara Falls, N.Y.), a 5-foot-9 sophomore guard, continued his solid play with a pair of double-figure scoring games last week. Harris scored a career-high 28 points and added seven rebounds and six steals in Sunday's loss to Bridgeport. He exploded for 22 points in the game's final 13:17 as he led the Wildcats back from a 24-point deficit, cutting that to just two points in the final minute before ultimately bowing out. Since being inserted into the starting lineup 10 games ago, Harris is producing 14.0 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.8 steals per game while shooting 58.9 percent from the field. Harris' 47 total steals ranks second among ECC players.

Junior guard Darius Garvin (Elmira, N.Y.) has put together the finest stretch of his career lately as well. The 6-foot-1 guard has raised his season scoring from 6.7 to 10.2 points per game since December 30. He's produced double-figure scoring in nine of the last 11 games, and he's made at least one three-pointer in 12 consecutive contests, the longest such streak of his career. Garvin is playing 33.3 minutes per game, sixth-best in the ECC this season, and he's the only player on Daemen's roster to have games of 10+ points, 10+ rebounds and 5+ assists.

Additional production is coming from redshirt sophomores Jay Sarkis (Rochester, N.Y.) and Jeff Redband (Batavia, N.Y.), as well as from redshirt senior Aleks Miljenovic (Belgrade, Serbia). Sarkis, who had a string of 24 consecutive games with a three-pointer snapped last week, is contributing 11.6 points and 3.9 assists per game. His career-high 11 assists in a win over Queens College on January 21 marked the first time a Daemen player had 10 or more in a game since Supreme Hannah had 10 against St. Thomas University (Fla.) on December 17, 2014. Redband's 44 three-point field goals are second on the team (Sarkis, 45) and sixth-best in the conference. He's averaging 11.0 points per game and shooting 45.1 percent from the field. Miljenovic is contributing 9.4 points and 4.9 rebounds per game off the bench.

Daemen's lone ECC losses this season have come against Bridgeport and St. Thomas Aquinas College who are ranked first and third, respectively, for the second straight week in the East Region poll. The Wildcats own a victory over Northeast-10 Conference affiliate College of St. Rose which is ranked fifth in this week's poll.

Daemen returns to action this Friday, February 2 when they'll visit St. Thomas Aquinas for a key ECC battle. The Spartans have won 18 consecutive home games, and 19 consecutive ECC home games at Aquinas Hall where Daemen will be seeking their first win since the 2013-14 season.

The East Region of NCAA Division II is comprised of teams from the East Coast Conference, the Northeast-10 Conference and the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference, and the East Region media poll is voted on by sports information professionals from around the region.

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Players Mentioned

#12 Darius Garvin: G; 6' 1"; Junior

#23 Aleks Miljenovic: F; 6' 6"; Redshirt Senior

#44 Jeff Redband: F; 6' 7"; Redshirt Sophomore

#5 Jay Sarkis: G; 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore

#22 Andrew Sischo: C; 6' 9"; Redshirt Freshman

Players Mentioned

#12 Darius Garvin
: 6' 1"; Junior
: G

#23 Aleks Miljenovic
: 6' 6"; Redshirt Senior
: F

#44 Jeff Redband
: 6' 7"; Redshirt Sophomore
: F

#5 Jay Sarkis
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore
: G

#22 Andrew Sischo
: 6' 9"; Redshirt Freshman
: C