AMHERST, N.Y. - The Daemen College men's basketball team will look to continue its winning ways when it heads to Welland, Ontario Sunday (Feb. 3) for a game against Niagara College. Game time is 2 p.m.
 
Both teams enter the game riding winning streaks. Daemen has won four-straight games and 11 of its last 12. Niagara, which competes in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA), has prevailed in its last five games and seven of its last nine.
 
Daemen (22-5) is ranked third in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division I poll released last Friday. The Wildcats have posted 20 wins for the second-straight year, and the seventh time over the past 11 seasons.
 
The Wildcats are coming off a 113-90 victory over NCAA Division II independent Salem International University this past Saturday. Daemen, which is transitioning from NAIA to NCAA Division II, is 5-3 against NCAA Division II opponents this season. The Wildcats could easily be 7-1 against D2 teams were it not for a one-point loss to Molloy College and a two-point setback to Newberry College.
 
The win over SIU secured an undefeated home record (12-0) for the Wildcats this season and ran their home winning streak to 22 games dating back to last season. It also marked the ninth time this season Daemen has scored 100 or more points.
 
Five players are averaging in double figures for the Wildcats, who are scoring an average of 91 points per game.
 
Senior forward Jim Regan (Williamsville, N.Y./Nichols) has been on a tear lately, averaging 25.2 and 8.0 rebounds over the past four games. He was named USCAA Division I Player of the Week on Tuesday after totaling 49 points and 15 rebounds in wins over Fisher College and Salem International last week. He made the most of his final home game, as he connected on 10-of-13 shots and totaled 26 points and 11 boards in the win over SIU. He is averaging 12.7 points and 6.8 rebounds overall. He has totaled 1,155 points, 535 rebounds and 114 blocks over his career, and stands just 45 points shy of becoming just the second player in program history to total 1,200 points, 500 rebounds and 100 blocks. 1999 graduate Brian Pettit is currently the only player to reach each of those three milestones.
 
Junior guard Casey Sheehan (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena) and sophomore forward Gerald Beverly (Rochester, N.Y./Gates Chili) have also played key roles this season. Sheehan totaled 24 points and a season-high 11 assists against SIU. He leads the team in scoring (15.3 ppg) and steals (52) and ranks second in three-pointers (30) and assists (4.5 apg). He has averaged 12 points a game over his career and stands just 57 points shy of 1,000 career points. Beverly has been slowed with an injury lately. He has recorded nine double-doubles on the year and is averaging 14.4 points and a team-high 7.7 rebounds. He has also totaled a team-high 46 blocks and stands just four blocks shy of 100 for his two-year career.
 
Junior point guard Mark Coppola (Williamsville, N.Y./Williamsville South) has dished out seven or more assists 12 times this season. He is averaging 6.0 points, leads the team in assists per game (6.5) and ranks second in steals (46). He currently ranks third in career assists (435) among the program's all-time leaders and stands just four assists shy of moving past Therreon Blackwell into second place.
 
Sophomore forward Jordan Greene (Fort Edward, N.Y./South Glens Falls) has emerged as the team's primary three-point threat. He has drained a three-pointer in 14 of the last 15 games and is shooting 46-percent (55-121) from behind the arc on the year. He scored 19 points in the win over SIU and is averaging 13.0 points over the past 10 games. Junior forward Kadeem Johnson (Syracuse, N.Y./Henninger) is shooting a team-high 63-percent (87-138) from the field and is averaging 10.2 points and 6.4 rebounds. He canned 7-of-9 shots and netted 16 points in the win over Fisher.
 
Junior Uchechi Ogbonna (Hicksville, N.Y./Erie CC) played 20 minutes and scored 11 points in a recent win over Maine-Fort Kent and is averaging 7.7 points off the bench. Sophomore Aaron Davis (North Tonawanda, N.Y./North Tonawanda) scored 11 points in 11 minutes in the win over SIU and has averaged 8.3 points over the past eight games.
 
Daemen opened the 2012-13 season with a 108-67 victory over Niagara back on Oct. 24. Six players scored in double figures for Daemen. Beverly led the way with 17 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks in just 17 minutes of action. Junior guard Jimmy Bilenga scored a game-high 19 points for Niagara.
 
The Wildcats are 9-0 this season against Canadian schools, including a 113-53 rout of OCAA West Division leader Sheridan College. Daemen has averaged 105 points in the nine games against Canadian schools.
 
Niagara improved to 16-7 overall and 11-5 in the OCAA West following a 105-93 victory over Mohawk College Thursday night. Bilenga netted 25 points in the win over Mohawk, while sophomore forward Marako Lundy totaled 23 points and 16 rebounds. Sophomore guard Alex Campbell drilled four three-pointers and totaled 24 points.
 
Five players are averaging in double figures for the Knights. Bilenga (19.2 ppg) returned to the lineup in early January after missing six games due to injury and has averaged 22 points over the past six games. Campbell is averaging 16.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists, while Lundy is contributing 13.5 points. Additional production has come from senior forward Anto Raic (11.4 ppg, 8.6 rpg) and sophomore guard Ashton Stephenson (11.4 ppg, 3.5 apg). The Knights are averaging 83.7 points per game.