AMHERST, N.Y. - Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) of the Daemen College men's basketball team has been named the College's 2018-19 East Coast Conference Preseason Player of the Year. The announcement was made today in a release from conference headquarters in West Babylon, N.Y. as Sischo becomes the first Daemen player to garner preseason accolades from the league since Gerald Beverly was named the Co-Preseason Player of the Year prior to the 2014-15 season. 

"This acknowledgement of Andrew by the ECC coaches is a testament to his hard work, and his outstanding freshman season," said Daemen head coach Mike MacDonald. "The key will be for him to build on last year as he knows he is now a marked man by the other coaches in this conference. It's certainly a tremendous honor for a young player like Andrew, but what's great about him is that he's not focused at all on individual accolades. He really just wants us to have a great season as a team." 

Sischo, a 6-foot-9 redshirt sophomore center, returns to the Daemen lineup after leading the Wildcats to a 22-8 record and earning first team All-ECC and ECC Rookie of the Year honors last season. An eight-time ECC Rookie of the Week and one-time ECC Player of the Week honoree, Sischo led Daemen in points (462), points per game (15.4), made field goals (195), field goal percentage (56.5%), rebounds (261), rebounds per game (8.7) and blocked shots (25). His point total established a new team record for scoring by a freshman, eclipsing the previous mark of 420 set by Brian Montanaro during the 2002-03 season. He was also the first Daemen player with more than 200 rebounds in a season since Beverly (373 in 2014-15), and his rebound total is second among freshmen players in team history.

Sischo appeared in all 30 games while making 18 starts during the 2017-18 season, and reached double-figure scoring in 25 games, while also totaling seven double-doubles. He opened the season by earning all-tournament team honors at the ECC-CACC Challenge, helping Daemen to wins over Felician University and Nyack College. He recorded the first of seven 20-point games by dropping 24 in a non-conference road loss at Slippery Rock University on Nov. 26. On Dec. 15, he led the Wildcats to an ECC road win over Mercy College by scoring 27 points on 12-of-14 shooting. That game kick-started a string of 20 consecutive games in which he scored at least 10 points. He went on to notch a career-high 36 points and grab a career-high 23 rebounds in a 102-98 double-overtime win over Molloy College on Feb. 16. The 36 points were the most for a Daemen player since Torrence Dyck scored 35 in an epic come-from-behind win over Roberts Wesleyan College on Jan. 12, 2016. The 23 rebounds were the most for a Daemen player since Beverly hauled in 21 vs. Dowling College on Jan. 9, 2015. The 23 boards also ranked as the fourth most by a Division II player at the time this season. 

The Wildcats will get their season underway this weekend when they host the ECC-CACC Challenge presented by Western New York Knee and Orthopedic Surgery PC; the Wildcats take on Caldwell University in the opener (Friday, Nov. 9, 1:30 p.m.), and face Nyack College in the event's capper (Saturday, Nov. 10, 2 p.m.). ECC play gets underway on Dec. 5 when the Wildcats go for their 16th consecutive win against longtime rival Roberts Wesleyan College. 

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