Ryan Bradley, the 2017-18 MMAA Player of the Year, is one of three local players in Daemen's 2018 recruiting class

Men's Basketball 7/24/2018 1:30:00 PM By Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications

MacDonald Announces Men's Hoops 2018 Recruiting Class

AMHERST, N.Y. - Three of Western New York's finest basketball recruits in the class of 2018 have inked commitments to further their education and sporting careers at Daemen College, head men's basketball coach Mike MacDonald announced today. The newcomers include Trevor Book (North Tonawanda, N.Y.), Ryan Bradley (Wilson, N.Y.) and Sam Erickson (Franklinville, N.Y.) who will each join the program and enroll in classes this fall.

"We are really excited about this year's recruiting class," said MacDonald, the veteran mentor who has guided the Wildcats to an 81-37 record since taking the reins four seasons ago. "All three guys had tremendous success at Western New York high schools and each led their team to great heights. We are hopeful they can continue that at the Division II level here at Daemen."

Book is perhaps the most highly touted of the group. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard is a two-time All-Western New York selection, a two-time All-State selection, a two-time Niagara Gazette Player of the Year and a three-time All-Niagara Frontier League selection. As a junior, he led coach Ryan Mountain's North Tonawanda Lumberjacks to the team's first sectional title since 1961. As a senior, he surpassed 1,000 career points en route to setting the team's single season record for total points scored (536). Over three varsity seasons, he led the Lumberjacks to a 43-24 record.

Bradley is a 6-7 forward who has starred for perennial powerhouse Canisius High School and coach Kyle Husband over the last couple of seasons. He was named the Upstate Player of the Year by nychoops.net and Msgr. Martin Athletic Association Player of the Year to cap a senior season that saw him average 12.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game. His efforts helped coach Kyle Husband's Canisius Crusaders to a No. 3 ranking the final New York State Class A poll, finishing the year with a 23-3 mark.

Last but not least is Erickson, a 6-5 forward who earned Player of the Year honors in the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association this past season. He was a double-double machine as a senior, racking up 14 of them while averaging 21.0 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. Erickson also earned first team All-State Class D honors while leading coach Jeffrey Haskell's Franklinville Panthers to a 19-4 record and a No. 4 ranking in the final New York State Class D poll. Like Book, he racked up over 1,000 points during his scholastic career.

"All three guys come from winning programs that have taught them to do the little things in order to win. We value that in our recruits," MacDonald said. "When you add these three guys to Quinn Lee Yaw who sat out as a transfer, and Nick Petrucelli who sat out due to injury, and Ziv Basden who redshirted last year, we feel we should have some depth that lacked at times last season. The key for us will be developing that chemistry that allowed us to finish the year so strongly, even though we were shorthanded."

MacDonald's Wildcats are coming off a 22-8 campaign, the program's seventh consecutive season with at least 19 wins. All five starters return, headlined by East Coast Conference Rookie of the Year and first team all-conference selection Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) who led the team in scoring (15.4 ppg) and rebounding (8.7 rpg).

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MORE FROM COACH MAC....

Coach MacDonald on new recruit Trevor Book....
"Trevor is a guy who, as a junior, really carried his team to a sectional championship. He has a scorer's mentality and the ability to raise the level of play of his teammates. He is a tough competitor and I think it's really cool that I get a chance to coach him after coaching his uncle, Ed Book, way back in the late 1980's and early 1990's when I was just starting out my coaching career as an assistant at Canisius. We are hopeful he can have as good a career as his uncle did."

Coach MacDonald on new recruit Ryan Bradley....
"Ryan is a versatile forward who can play all three front court positions, and has a skill set that is outstanding for someone of his size. He can score in a variety of ways and he is an excellent passer. Ryan player the last two years in the most competitive conference in Western New York and he is used to winning. That's important to us."

Coach MacDonald on new recruit Sam Erickson....
"Sam is a high energy player who has a competitive will that is unmatched. He is a great communicator and can play either forward spot for us. He played for a great program that won a lot of games, and I truly believe his best days are ahead of him."

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Players Mentioned

#24 Nick Petrucelli: G; 6' 3"; Redshirt Junior

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

#20 Quinn Lee Yaw: F; 6' 5"; Redshirt Junior

#11 Ziv Basden: G; 6' 5"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#24 Nick Petrucelli
: 6' 3"; Redshirt Junior
: G

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

#20 Quinn Lee Yaw
: 6' 5"; Redshirt Junior
: F

#11 Ziv Basden
: 6' 5"; Freshman
: G