Skip To Main Content

Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
redband mbb vs udc
66
Dist. Columbia UDC-M 9-10, 2-7 ECC
95
Winner Daemen DAEM 16-3, 8-1 ECC
Dist. Columbia UDC-M
9-10, 2-7 ECC
66
Final
95
Daemen DAEM
16-3, 8-1 ECC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Dist. Columbia UDC-M 32 34 66
Daemen DAEM 48 47 95

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | By Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications

Wildcats Cruise To Fifth Straight Win

AMHERST, N.Y. - Seven players scored at least nine points as Daemen College raced to a 95-66 victory over the University of District of Columbia in East Coast Conference men's basketball action here today. Daemen, the No. 17 ranked team in the Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) national media poll, extended its winning streak to five straight games. The Wildcats are now 16-3 this season, and 8-1 in ECC play as they pull into a tie with idle Molloy College atop the league standings. The visiting Firebirds dropped their fourth straight game while falling to 9-10 overall and 2-7 in league play. 

Daemen used a 19-4 run over a five-minute stretch of the opening half to turn a 15-10 deficit into a 29-19 advantage. The lead swelled to 16 points at the half (48-32), and UDC never got closer than 13 points for the remainder of the contest. Daemen's advantage crested at 31 points late in the second half.

Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) led a sextet of double-figure scorers for the Wildcats, finishing with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting. The Daemen big man also hauled in eight rebounds. After netting 22 points, including the go-ahead bucket in overtime Friday night vs. St. Thomas Aquinas College, Deion Hamilton (Rochester, N.Y.) followed up with 14 points on an efficient 5-of-8 shooting, and added five assists. Jeff Redband (Batavia, N.Y.) and Quinn Lee Yaw (Jamestown, N.Y.) each netted 13 points. Lee Yaw added 10 rebounds for his first double-double in a Daemen uniform.

The Wildcats also got solid outings from Jay Sarkis (Rochester, N.Y.) and Breon Harris (Niagara Falls, N.Y.) who registered 10 points apiece. Sarkis notched five assists, and Harris swiped a trio of steals. Freshman guard Trevor Book (North Tonawanda, N.Y.) came off the bench to score nine points on 3-of-3 shooting, including a pair of three-pointers. Redband, Harris, Sarkis, Hamilton and Book all made at least two three-pointers. Redband extended his streak of consecutive games with at least one three-pointer to 23. 

Zachary Olukanni led the Firebirds with 18 points and seven rebounds. The junior college transfer hit on 7-of-12 shots from the field, and was 4-of-5 from the charity stripe - the only free throws UDC attempted all game. Aaren Smith, a transfer from Division I Rutgers University, netted 11 points, as did Kevin Cox. UDC also got 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting from center Consolo Adams.

Daemen used big advantages in points off turnovers, second-chance points and fast-break points to run away with this one. The Wildcats turned 20 UDC turnovers into 25 points, and had an 11-0 edge in the first half alone. The story was the same for second-chance scoring as Daemen got a 16-0 advantage in the first half, en route to a 25-2 disparity for the game. UDC was able to muster eight fast-break points, but allowed 22 to the Wildcats.

Daemen was the superior shooting team, connecting on 34-of-66 from the field (51.5%), while UDC shot 49.1 percent (27-of-55). With 11 three-pointers, Daemen outscored UDC by nine points from behind the arc (UDC had eight three-pointers), and Daemen got 16 points from the free throw line, compared to UDC's four. The Wildcats also had a 39-26 advantage on the backboard.

The Wildcats are now 10-1 at home this season, and 92-14 since the start of the 2011-12 campaign. It also marked Daemen's fifth straight win in the series with UDC, improving to 10-2 all-time.

The offensive production marked Daemen's third game this season with at least 90 points. The Wildcats are 67-2 when reaching 90 points since the start of the 2009-10 season.

Daemen's three-game homestand will wrap up Thursday, Jan. 31 when Roberts Wesleyan College visits Lumsden Gymnasium. The Redhawks knocked off nationally-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas today (71-65), and will ride a three-game winning streak into the Thruway Rivalry contest. Daemen has won 16 straight vs. RWC, including a 78-70 come-from-behind win in Rochester earlier this season. 

For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

 
Print Friendly Version