THE LEAD: The Daemen College men's basketball team begins a stretch of three-straight home games when it hosts long-time rival Roberts Wesleyan College in an East Coast Conference game Tuesday (Jan. 20)…Daemen enters the game ranked first among ECC teams in offense (82.6 points per game), while RWC leads the ECC in defense (70.6 points allowed per game).
Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015
Roberts Wesleyan at Daemen - 8 p.m.
Lumsden Gymnasium, Amherst, N.Y.
LIVE STATS / LIVE VIDEO / DAEMEN ROSTER / DAEMEN STATS / RWC ROSTER / RWC STATS
CROWD PLEASERS: A packed Lumsden Gymnasium has become the norm for men's basketball games…Daemen averaged an ECC-best 400 fans at Lumsden Gym last year…the Wildcats have provided some very entertaining basketball—averaging 86 points per game during their last 20 home games since the start of the 2013-14 season.
HOME SWEET HOME: Daemen extended its home winning streak to 42-straight games (dating back to the start of the 2011-12 season) after posting wins over Dowling College (89-88) and the University of Bridgeport (91-88 OT) two weeks ago…Daemen's home winning streak ranks as the second longest in the nation among all NCAA men's basketball programs…only Division III Albertus Magnus (48) owns longer home winning streak than Daemen…the top five home winning streaks among NCAA men's basketball programs as of games played Jan. 18 include Albertus Magnus (48), Daemen (42), Metro State (35), Gonzaga (35) and Arizona (32)…the Wildcats have gone 43-1 at home since the start of the 2011-12 season.
ECC WIN STREAK COMES TO AN END: Daemen saw its Division II-best 21-game conference winning streak come to an end following a 95-87 loss at St. Thomas Aquinas this past Friday…prior to Friday night, Daemen's last conference loss came Dec. 20, 2013 at Molloy…the Wildcats rebounded with a 90-80 win at Mercy College the next day and are now 23-4 in conference games over the past two seasons.
POLL POSITION: Daemen is ranked eighth in this week's D2SIDA Division II East Region men's basketball media poll…the poll includes the top-ten teams from the East Coast Conference, the Northeast-10 Conference and the Central Collegiate Athletic Conference…Daemen is also ranked No. 1 in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) poll.
NATIONAL HONOR FOR BEVERLY: Senior forward Gerald Beverly was named the Division II National Player of the Week by the United States Basketball Writers Association after averaging 25.3 points, 16.7 rebounds and 3.7 blocks during recent wins over Washington Adventist University, Dowling College and the University of Bridgeport.
THE COACHES: Mike MacDonald is in his first season as head men's basketball coach at Daemen College after spending the past eight years at Medaille College where he transformed the program into a regional contender at the NCAA Division III level…inheriting a program that went 4-46 in the two years prior to his arrival, MacDonald's version of the Mavericks averaged 18 wins a season, while advancing to the postseason six times…Medaille's emergence as a Division III power in the Northeast was cemented in the last five seasons, as MacDonald led the Mavericks to more wins (101) than any other Division III team in New York State, while ranking 17th nationally in wins during the same time frame…MacDonald was named the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year on four occasions (2007, 2009, 2010, 2012)…he left Medaille as the school's all-time leader in wins (149) and winning percentage (.671)…prior to his stint at Medaille, MacDonald served as the head coach at Canisius College from 1997-2006, guiding the Golden Griffins to 108 wins which ranks him third in program history for coaching victories…in 17 seasons as a collegiate head coach, MacDonald has achieved a record of 268-229 (.539 winning percentage)…Rob McCoy is in his 14th season as head coach at Roberts Wesleyan…he has led the Redhawks to two three (2006, 2011, 2014) semifinal appearances in the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Tournament.
MOVE TO II: Daemen is in Candidacy Year Three of the NCAA Division II membership process…Daemen was accepted as a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) in July of 2012 and began playing full regular-season conference schedules in the fall of 2013…The College will also maintain its affiliation with the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) for postseason opportunities, as it will not be eligible for the ECC or NCAA postseason during Candidacy Year Three.
DAEMEN vs. NCAA DIVISION II OPPONENTS: The Wildcats went 20-5 against NCAA Division II opponents last season and are 35-12 against Division II teams since the start of the 2012-13 season.
THE SERIES: Tuesday's game will mark the 38th all-time meeting between the two former American Mideast Conference (AMC) rivals…Daemen has prevailed in the last six meetings and owns a 26-11 advantage in the all-time series…Daemen swept the season series last year…the Wildcats earned a 77-72 OT win at RWC…it marked the first-ever ECC win for Daemen…Daemen led by 10 with just over five minutes left in regulation, but the Redhawks outscored the Wildcats 18-8 down the stretch to force OT…Daemen scored nine of the first 10 points in OT to secure the win…Jordan Greene scored a team-high 19 points off the bench for Daemen, while Gerald Beverly added 11 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks…Isaac Medeiros (23 pts, 18 rebs) and Tyrel Dixon 15 pts, 16 rebs) paced the Redhawks…the Wildcats completed the sweep with a 98-82 win at Lumsden Gymnasium…Daemen bolted out to an early 24-11 lead and held a 49-33 advantage at halftime…RWC came no closer that eight points during the second half…Kadeem Johnson (23 pts, 13 rebs, 4 asts) and Casey Sheehan (23 pts, 6 asts) led the way for Daemen…Dixon netted 21 points for the Redhawks.
THE WILDCATS (11-4; 6-1 ECC): Daemen returns eight players and just one starter from last year's team that posted a 21-7 overall record and claimed the East Coast Conference regular-season championship (17-3) in its first season as a league member…Daemen was voted third in the 2014-15 ECC preseason poll…the Wildcats have won nine of their last 11 games…Daemen is coming off a weekend split at St. Thomas Aquinas and Mercy, losing to STAC (95-78) and defeating Mercy (90-80)…senior forward Gerald Beverly tops the list of returning players…the 2013-14 ECC Defensive Player of the Year and 2014-15 ECC Co-Preseason Player of the Year, Beverly has recorded five-straight and 11 total double-doubles this year and registered his first career triple double (17 pts, 17 rebs, 12 blks) during a 91-75 win over St. Thomas (Fla.)…he ranks second on the team in scoring (19.5 ppg) and leads the ECC in rebounding (12.6 rpg), field goal percentage (.592) and blocks (57)…senior Jordan Greene also returns after averaging 10.5 points with a team-high 52 three-pointers last year…he scored a season-high 19 points and dished out a career-high 10 assists in a 91-88 OT win over Bridgeport and is averaging 11.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists with a team-high 30 three-pointers…junior guard Supreme Hannah has stepped into the starting lineup at point guard…he is shooting 53-percent from three-point land (20-for-38) and is averaging 10.3 points and 3.4 assists…he went 5-for-6 from downtown and scored a career-high 22 points in a 93-75 win over Queens…junior transfer Torrence Dyck, Jr. and freshman Nick Petrucelli have made immediate contributions…Dyck has scored 20 or more points in nine of DC's 15 games and scored a season-high 35 points in the loss to STAC…he is averaging a team-high 19.8 points and 5.1 rebounds…Petrucelli has started the last three games and has averaged 36 minutes, 4.0 points and 4.7 assists over that stretch…he played 44 minutes and contributed eight points and five assists against Bridgeport…senior Kyle Clifford has scored in double figures in five-straight and eight of the last 10 games and scored a career-high 18 points in an 89-88 win over Dowling…he is averaging 8.9 points with 28 three-pointers…senior Aaron Davis contributed eight points and five helpers in a win over Mercy, while sophomore Alex Borges netted 10 points in just 12 minutes off the bench in an 82-76 win over Washington Adventist.
THE REDHAWKS (7-6; 3-4 ECC): Roberts Wesleyan successfully completed its transition from NAIA to NCAA Division II this past summer and is in its first season as an official NCAA Division II member school…the Redhawks return nine players and three starters from last year's team that finished 13-16 (8-12 ECC)…RWC was voted 10th in the 2014-15 ECC preseason poll…the Redhawks have dropped three of their last four games and like Daemen split a weekend series at Mercy and St. Thomas Aquinas this past weekend…RWC defeated Mercy 73-70, before suffering a 62-57 loss to STAC…senior forward Isaac Medeiros and junior swingman Tyrel Dixon top the list of returning players…Medeiros collected honorable mention All-ECC honors last year, while Dixon was an ECC All-Rookie team selection two years ago…Medeiros netted 15 points in the win over Mercy and leads the team in scoring (15.3 ppg), rebounding (6.8 rpg) and blocks (18)…Dixon had 17 points and 11 boards in a recent 75-71 win over District of Columbia and is averaging 13.1 points and 6.5 rebounds…senior guard Mike Stone is back after sitting out the 2013-14 season with a knee injury…he drained a team-high 64 three-pointers and averaged 11.4 points two years ago…junior college transfer Marcus Gooding has started 12 games and is averaging 12.2 points with a team-high 31 three-pointers…additional production has come from sophomore guards Jordan McBride (6.9 ppg, 3.2 apg, 17 3pt fgs) and Jamaal Carter (6.6 ppg)…Carter, a product of City Honors high school, totaled 11 points, five rebounds and three assists in the win over UDC.
CONFERENCE CHAMPS: Daemen claimed the East Coast Conference regular-season championship last year in its first season of eligibility after posting a 17-3 league mark…the Wildcats, who were voted seventh out of 11 teams in the 2013-14 ECC preseason poll, closed out the regular-season by winning 16 consecutive league games—a streak that reached a Division-II best 21-straight league wins before the Wildcats suffered a 95-87 loss at St. Thomas Aquinas on Jan. 16.
20/20: Daemen has reached the 20-win plateau in each of that last three seasons (and eight times over the past 12 seasons).
ECC HONOR ROLL: Gerald Beverly has been honored as the ECC Player of the Week three times this season and is also a two-time selection to the weekly ECC honor roll…Torrence Dyck, Jr. is a one-time selection to the weekly ECC honor roll.
BEVERLY'S BLOCK PARTY: Gerald Beverly has recorded at least one block in 55 of the last 58 games dating back to the end of the 2012-13 season…he had a streak of 41-straight games with at least one block snapped during a win over District of Columbia on Jan. 3…he tied the ECC record for blocks in a game (12) during DC's win over St. Thomas (Fla.) on Dec. 17 and ranks high among all Division II players in blocks per game (3.8)…he recently replaced 2006 graduate Ron Wright as Daemen's leader in career blocks and enters Tuesday's action with 277 blocks in 104 career games (2.7 per game)…he is on pace to become just the third player in ECC history to record 300 career blocks.
MORE BEVERLY: Gerald Beverly has scored in double figures in 45-straight games and recorded his 38th career double-double during Daemen's win over Mercy this past Saturday…he registered his first career triple-double (17 pts, 17 rebs, 12 blks) during Daemen's win over St. Thomas (Fla.) on Dec. 17…Beverly has already become the first player in program history to total 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 200 blocks in a career…he enters Tuesday's action ranked seventh in career points (1,471), third in career rebounds (820) and first in career blocks (277) among Daemen's all-time leaders.
GREENE HITS 150 TRIPLES: Senior Jordan Greene drilled four three-pointers during the win over Bridgeport on Jan. 10 and in the process recorded his 150th career triple…he has become just the fifth player in program history to reach 150 career three-pointers.
JUNIOR MINTS: Juniors Supreme Hannah and Torrence Dyck, Jr. have played a big role in Daemen's early success…Hannah, who averaged just 3.3 points a game over his freshman and sophomore seasons is enjoying a breakout season…he has scored in double figures five times this season and is averaging 10.3 points…he is averaging 3.4 assists and leads the team in three-point field goal percentage (20-38/.526)…Dyck, a junior college transfer, has started all 15 games and leads the team in scoring (19.8 ppg)…he has scored at least 20 points nine times and netted a season-high 35 points in the 95-87 loss at St. Thomas Aquinas on Jan. 16.
STEPPING UP: Senior Kyle Clifford and freshman Nick Petrucelli have stepped up in recent games…Clifford has shot 45-percent (15-33) from downtown and has averaged 13.6 points over the past five games…he scored a career-high 18 points in the 89-88 win over Dowling on Jan. 9…Petrucelli has started the last three games at point guard in place of the injured Supreme Hannah…he made his first career start in the 91-88 OT win over Bridgeport on Jan. 10…he played 44 of a possible 45 minutes and totaled eight points, four rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block…he also played 26 minutes off the bench in the 89-88 win over Dowling on Jan. 9 and canned the game-winning free throw with 1.6 seconds left in regulation.
DID YOU KNOW?: Daemen is 41-2 since the start of the 2009-10 season when it scores 90 or more points.
WHAT'S NEXT: Daemen returns to action this weekend when it hosts LIU Post (Jan. 23) and New York Tech (Jan. 24) in ECC games…Daemen's complete 2014-15 schedule can be accessed HERE.
FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College men's basketball on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics or @DaemenMBB) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics or www.facebook.com/DaemenCollegeMensBasketball) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.
