GAME INFORMATION
Gamen No. 11
Daemen Wildcats (5-5, 1-2 ECC) vs. St. Michael's Purple Knights (3-8, 1-6 NE-10)
Saturday, Dec. 30 |  1 p.m. 
Colchester, Vt. |  Ross Sports Center

Gamen No. 12
Daemen Wildcats (5-5, 1-2 ECC) vs. St. Rose Golden Knights
Sunday, Dec. 31 |  12 p.m.
Albany, N.Y. |  Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium

GAME LINKS - VS. ST. MICHAEL'S 
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GAME LINKS - VS. ST. ROSE
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JUMP BALL
Daemen returns from the holiday break with a pair of non-league games against Northeast-10 Conference affiliates. It'll mark Daemen's first-ever visit to both St. Michael's and St. Rose. Both opponents visited Daemen's Lumsden Gymnasium last season with the Wildcats splitting the contests (92-69 win over St. Michael's; 67-64 loss to St. Rose).

RETURN OF THE MAC
Mike MacDonald returns to the bench for his fourth season as Daemen's head coach, and his 21st season overall as a collegiate head coach...in his first three seasons roaming the Daemen sidelines, MacDonald led the Wildcats to a 59-29 overall record...the Wildcats have won at least 19 games in each of MacDonald's three seasons, and the team's 59 victories in that span are the second most among all NCAA Division II programs in New York State...before coming to Daemen, MacDonald transformed the Division III program at Medaille into a perennial power, averaging 18 wins per season and advancing to the postseason six times in his eight years as head coach...MacDonald made his head coaching debut at the Division I level, leading the program at Canisius from 1997-2006...while there, MacDonald's teams racked up 108 wins making him the third all-time winningest coach in the program's history...the longtime bench boss opened the 2017-18 season with a career record of 315-255.

IT'S A HARDWOOD LIFE
Mike MacDonald and his family were recently profiled in a USA Today article which detailed the family's love affair with basketball, and the intricacies of having the husband/father coaching collegiately and four sons who play the game, including two at the college level. Written by Buffalo native Erik Brady, CLICK HERE to read the full story.

HAM IT UP
Redshirt junior guard/forward Deion Hamilton headlines Daemen's returning players. Hamilton established himself as one the premier sixth men in the ECC last season, averaging 12.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while leading Daemen in field goal percentage (.514). After posting nine double-figure scoring games in his redshirt freshman season, Hamilton erupted for 21 such outings last year, and Daemen went 14-2 in games that Hamilton shot 50 percent or better from the field. Hamilton has started all 10 games so far this season, and he's producing a team-high 15.1 points (sixth in the ECC) along with 4.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. He leads the team in free throws made (29) and attempted (46). Hamilton earned MVP honors at the ECC-CACC Challenge after leading Daemen to wins over Felician and Nyack in early November, and has scored 20+ points in two of the last three games.

REDBAND FOR THREE
Redshirt sophomore forward Jeff Redband established himself as one of the preeminent three-point shooters in the ECC last season. For the season, Redband canned 68-of-151 three-point attempts becoming the first Daemen freshman with more than 50 triples since Brian Montanaro had 70 in 2002-03. A four-time ECC Rookie of the Week honoree, Redband ranked third among all ECC players in total three-point baskets, and fifth in three-point field percentage (.450). He made at least one three-pointer in 23 games, and knocked down multiple threes in 17 contests. Appearing in all 28 games while making 27 starts, Redband contributed 10.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. Redband shook off a slow start to the 2017-18 season (three three-pointers in first four games) and is shooting 55.9 percent from long distance (19-for-34) over the last six games (averaging 14.2 points per game in that span). Redband scored a season-high 18 points in a three-point loss at Lake Erie on Dec. 2. For the season, he is contributing 11.6 points and 3.9 rebounds per game, and he presently ranks sixth in the ECC in three-point field goals (22) and 12th in three-point percentage (42.3).

SHINING STAR-KIS
Redshirt sophomore guard Jay Sarkis has made a successful return to the lineup after missing all of last season with an injury. Sarkis, who quarterbacked the Wildcats to an appearance in the ECC Tournament finals as a freshman in 2015-16, was a four-time ECC Rookie of the Week selection as he appeared in all 29 games while making 26 starts, and averaging 8.5 points and 2.3 assists per game that season. Through the first 10 games this season, Sarkis is producing 12.1 points and a team-best 3.4 assists per game. He scored a career-high 20 points in Daemen's 79-73 win over Wilmington on Nov. 18, and matched his career-high with six assists in an 80-77 loss at Slippery Rock on Nov. 26, one of four games this season that he's had five or more assists. Sarkis ranks among the ECC leaders in minutes per game (33.0 - 4th), three-point field goal percentage (43.1 - 10th), free throw percentage (84.4 - 8th) and total assists (34 - 7th).

GARV-ELOUS
With injuries to key backcourt players in each of the last two seasons, Daemen has become reliant on the steady play of junior guard Darius Garvin who appeared in 58 of a possible 59 games while making 40 starts in his freshman and sophomore seasons. Last season, Garvin upped his statistical numbers in nearly every category, including minutes per game (from 17.9 as a freshman to 27.4 as a sophomore), points per game (from 4.8 to 7.6), rebounds per game (from 2.8 to 4.4) and assists per game (from 1.1 to 1.8). Garvin has started all 10 contests so far this season, and he is contributing 6.7 points and a team-best 5.8 rebounds per game. Garvin is the only player on Daemen's roster to have games of at least 10+ points, 10+ rebounds and 5+ assists this season. 

IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Redshirt freshman center Andrew Sischo has his collegiate career off to a fast start with double-figure scoring in six of Daemen's 10 games. The 6-foot-9 Sischo is averaging 11.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, while seeing just 14.7 minutes per game off the bench. He's the first Daemen freshman with four double-figure scoring games in the month of November since Gerald Beverly did so in the 2011-12 season. A two-time ECC Rookie of the Week selection this season, Sischo poured in a career-high 27 points on 12-of-14 shooting to lead Daemen to an 86-82 win at Mercy on Dec. 15.

BRING YOUR "A" GAME
Redshirt senior forward Aleks Miljenovic is chipping in with 9.6 points and 5.1 rebounds per game this season. Miljenovic opened the year with back-to-back double-figure scoring games in wins over Felician and Nyack en route to earning all-tournament team honors at the ECC-CACC Challenge for the second-straight season. His 16 points and nine rebounds in the win over Felician led the team. Miljenovic, who began his career by playing two seasons at Roberts Wesleyan, has appeared in 37 games and made 16 starts for Daemen since the start of last season. 

THINNING BENCH
Daemen's bench has grown a little thinner than anticipated in recent weeks. Redshirt junior guard Nick Petrucelli is out for the year after suffering an injury Nov. 26 at Slippery Rock. It's the second time that Petrucelli has suffered a season-ending injury. He was averaging 9.9 points and 4.6 rebounds per game before his 2015-16 season was cut short with an injury that cost him all of the 2016-17 season as well. In two games this season, Petrucelli was averaging 5.0 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11.0 minutes per game off the bench. Also, redshirt senior forward Xavier Long has exercised his option to graduate in December. Long, who scored a career-high nine points in Daemen's 82-72 win over Edinboro on Nov. 28, was averaging 2.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11.6 minutes per game off the bench this season. For his career, Long appeared in 92 games, shot 44.4 percent from the field, and totaled 176 points and 172 rebounds.

STARTING 1-0
Daemen's season-opening 62-57 win over Felician at the ECC-CACC Challenge was the Wildcats' 16th consecutive win in a regular season opener, a streak that dates back to the 2002-03 season. The wins in that span have come over 14 different opponents. Fisher (Mass.) and Wilfrid Laurier (Ont.) are the only opponents Daemen has defeated twice in season openers during the streak. The Wildcats' average margin of victory during the streak is an astonishing 24.4 points per game. The five-point win over Felician was Daemen's closest margin of victory in a season opener since beginning to play a full Division II schedule; the Wildcats' average margin of victory in the four previous season openers as a Division II institution was 22.3 points per game. Just one game in the streak prior to the win over Felician - a 68-65 final over Toronto in 2011 - had been decided by single digits. Daemen has gone over 100 points in three of the last six season openers; the high-water mark came in 2013 when they downed Ohio Valley 111-90. Last season opened with a 75-64 dispatching of Caldwell which put the Wildcats en route to their first 5-0 start to a season since 2012-13. Daemen's last loss in a season opener came at the Spring Hill College (Ala.) Tournament against the hosts on Nov. 2, 2001, falling 75-35.

DEFENDING THE DEN
Daemen posted a 14-2 record at the friendly confines of Lumsden Gymnasium last season, matching the program record for home wins in a season last achieved in 1999-2000. The Wildcats are 4-2 at home this season. Since the start of the 2011-12 season, Daemen is 74-12 at Lumsden Gymnasium (.860 winning percentage).

ST. MICHAEL'S SCOUTING REPORT
St. Michael's is a member of the Northeast-10 Conference (Northeast Division) and the Purple Knights are led by fifth-year head coach Josh Meyer who posted a 51-68 record in his tenure to date. The Purple Knights, who were picked eighth in the NE-10 Northeast Division preseason poll, return 10 players from their 2016-17 team that went 5-21 overall and 4-17 in league play. Seven of the 10 returners averaged at least 10 minutes per game last season, headlined by Levi Holmes III who contributed 15.2 points per game. A prolific long-range shooter, Holmes III shot 47.5 percent from three-point range last season, second-best in the NE-10. After starting the season with five-straight losses, St. Michael's got off the proverbial schneid with a 69-67 win over Assumption on Nov. 29. The Purple Knights enter Saturday's game with Daemen riding a two-game winning streak, including an 84-71 win at ECC affiliate NYIT in their final game before the holiday break (Dec. 18). As expected, Holmes III, a 6-foot-5 junior guard, has been the offensive catalyst thus far; he ranks third in the NE-10 in scoring (22.2 ppg), and is tied for second with 36 three-pointers while shooting 48.6 percent from deep. Holmes III has posted 20 or more points in eight of the Purple Knights' 11 games this season, and also leads the team in rebounding (4.5 rpg). Buffalo native Derek Cheatom (Park School) has nearly tripled his scoring production - from 5.5 points per game last year to 14.3 this year. Cheatom has scored 10 or more points in seven-straight games, including 17 in the win over NYIT. Senior guard Colin Richey (9.1 ppg, 2.5 apg) and sophomore guard Thomas Jackson III (7.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.5 apg) have also produced.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Daemen vs. St. Michael's: 1-0
Streak: Won 1
Last Meeting: Daemen 92, St. Michael's 69 | Amherst, N.Y. | Dec. 19, 2016
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ST. ROSE SCOUTING REPORT
St. Rose is a member of the Northeast-10 Conference (Southeast Division), and the Golden Knights are led by veteran mentor Brian Beaury who is now in his 32nd season at the helm. Beaury, who became just the ninth coach in Division II history with more than 600 wins last season, has led the Golden Knights to 13 NCAA Tournament appearances in his tenure. Beaury, who owns a 631-319 career record, was named the NABC East District Coach of the Year after leading the Golden Knights to a 26-8 overall record and an appearance in the East Regional Final (NCAA Tournament Sweet 16). The Golden Knights return nine players from last season's team, including five who averaged at least 10 minutes per game. St. Rose was picked fourth in the NE-10 Southeast Division preseason poll, and they'll enter this weekend's action as the No. 9 ranked team in the latest D2SIDA East Region poll with a 9-3 overall record and a 4-1 mark in league play. The Golden Knights have won three-straight and four of their last five games. The bulk of St. Rose's fast start came without the services of 6-foot-2 senior guard Mical-Ryan Boyd who missed the team's first 11 games. An honorable mention All-NE-10 selection last season, Boyd made his 2017-18 debut on Dec. 19 and led St. Rose to an 80-78 road win at East Stroudsburg with 20 points in 36 minutes of work. The Golden Knights are getting double-figure scoring from veterans Julian Lipinski (12.8 ppg), Shane Herrity (12.5 ppg) and Matt Cerutti (10.1 ppg). Cerutti is tossing in a team-best 8.0 rebounds per game, third-best in the NE-10. Lipinski is averaging 2.1 blocks per game, second-best in the league. St. Rose leads the NE-10 in blocks per game (4.3), field goal percentage defense (40.1) and scoring defense (63.8 ppg). St. Rose is 28-5 at home over the last three seasons, including an unblemished 4-0 mark so far this year. 

ALL-TIME SERIES
Daemen vs. St. Rose: 0-1
Streak: Lost 1
Last Meeting: St. Rose 67, Daemen 64 | Amherst, N.Y. | Dec. 31, 2016
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DID YOU KNOW?
* Darius Garvin scored a career-high 22 points in Daemen's last meeting with St. Michael's 
* Daemen is 3-3 all-time vs. NE-10 opponents
* Daemen is 3-1 in the first game after the NCAA-mandated holiday break since beginning to play a full Division II schedule in the 2013-14 season
* Since the 1998-99 season, Daemen is 1-1 in games played on New Year's Eve; the Wildcats' last New Year's Eve win came in 2009 over Evangel (76-54). 

UP NEXT
Daemen plays its fifth of a six-game road stretch next Wednesday, Jan. 3 at Salem International (W.Va.).