AMHERST, N.Y. - The Daemen Wildcats opened their 2010-2011 season tonight with an 88-44 rout of visiting Maine-Fort Kent at the Lord Amherst Tip-Off Classic held at Lumsden Gymnasium.  Daemen jumped out to a 12-0 lead and never looked back, getting solid contributions from every healthy player on the roster in the process.

Daemen came out blazing the nets as they shot 53% from the field in the first half, building on the momentum from the early 12-0 run to establish a 52-25 edge at the half.  260 fans in attendance were treated to quite a show of teamwork, hustle and determination.

Freshman point guard Casey Sheehan (Rochester, NY) hit on 7-of-10 from the field for 15 points.  He was matched by fellow freshman guard Troy Nowak (Orchard Park, NY) who came off the bench to pump in 15 points to go with nine rebounds.

Junior forward Dominic Mazzocchi (Geneva, NY) chipped in with 13 points in his first game back after sitting out last season on a medical red-shirt.  Also reaching double figures were freshman Kadeem Johnson (Syracuse, NY) and junior Chandler Williams (Buffalo, NY) who put home 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Senior forward Khorri Silcott (Brooklyn, NY) led a fierocious Wildcat rebounding effort with 12 boards.  As a team, the Wildcats out-rebounded the Bengals 58-31.  40 of the team's rebounds came at the defensive end as Maine-Fort Kent managed to shoot just 21% for the game.

The only Daemen player not to reach the scoring column was 5'7" freshman guard Mark Coppola (Williamsville, NY).  Despite not scoring, Coppola dominated the game at times with his speed, finishing the contest with a game-high seven assists and six steals.

Daemen is back in action tomorrow for the conclusion of the Lord Amherst Tip-Off Classic as they take on #25 Siena Heights.  Tip-off is slated for 4pm.