AMHERST, N.Y. - Redshirt junior center Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) scored 19 of his game-high 34 points in the first half, as nationally-ranked Daemen College defeated Salem University 89-59 in a non-conference men's basketball game tonight at Lumsden Gymnasium.

Daemen has now won nine straight games, improving to 9-1 this season. Their lone setback came Nov. 1 against defending national champion Northwest Missouri State University, the No. 1 ranked team in the country. Salem, a NCAA Division II Independent, dropped to 4-4 on the season.

TOP PERFORMERS

• Eleven players scored in the game for Daemen, led by Sischo who shot 15-for-22 from the field and added 12 rebounds for his Division II leading ninth double-double of the year. The 34 points were two shy of his career high and marked the third time this season—and the sixth time over his three-year career—he has scored 30 or more points in a game. Sischo entered the game ranked first among all Division II players in rebounds per game (14.6) and 10th in points per game (24.2).
• Junior guard Kyle Harris (Buffalo, N.Y.) started in place of senior Breon Harris (Niagara Falls, N.Y.) and totaled a career-high 14 points and a career-high seven rebounds. The Erie Community College product made 4-of-6 shots from downtown.
• Redshirt senior guard Jay Sarkis (Rochester, N.Y.) equaled his season-high for points (11) and added a season-high six rebounds, a season-high eight assists and a season-high three steals. Redshirt senior forward Jeff Redband (Batavia, N.Y.) added six points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
• Junior Jordan Forbes, who entered the game ranked 15th among all Division II players in points per game (23.4), scored just two points in the first half and finished with a team-high 15 points, five assists and three steals for Salem. 
  

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Daemen held a 10-8 lead seven minutes into the game when the hosts put together a 12-1 run to take control. Five different players scored during the run and a jumper by Harris with 11:21 left before halftime capped the run and gave Daemen a 22-9 lead.
• Salem stopped the bleeding with a layup from junior Scott McGann, but Sischo took over after that and scored all of Daemen's points during a 10-5 run. His conventional three-point play with 8:23 left in the half capped the run and gave Daemen a 32-14 lead.
• Daemen went scoreless over the next 3:27, but Salem could only cut the lead to 12 points (32-20), before the Wildcats got a three-pointer from Harris and a layup from Sischo to make it 37-20 with just under four minutes left in the half. The teams traded buckets the rest of the half and Daemen took a 41-24 lead into intermission.
• Daemen pushed the lead to 20 points, 50-30, following a layup by Sischo three minutes into the second half, but the visiting Tigers answered with a 17-8 run and cut the lead to 11 points, 58-47, following a three-pointer by Forbes with 11:43 to play.
• The Tigers would come no closer, as the Wildcats regained a 17-point lead (71-54) following a 13-7 run that was capped by an alley-oop dunk by Sischo off a feed from freshman Keith Slack (Rochester, N.Y.). The lead grew to 25 points (80-55) following a three-pointer by Sarkis with 5:18 left.
• Daemen went 12-for-33 from three-point range and has now made 10 or more three-pointers in five straight games.
• The Wildcats also grabbed a season-high 48 rebounds and handed out a season-high 24 assists. Daemen had 24 assists on 37 field goals.
• Salem made just 9-of-32 from downtown and committed 24 turnovers.
• The hosts finished with a commanding edge in points off turnovers (30-7), second chance points (17-7) and points in the paint (46-30).
  

GAME NOTES

• Daemen is ranked No. 1 in the D2SIDA East Region media poll, No. 8 in the D2SIDA national media poll and No. 11 in the NABC top-25 poll.
• The Wildcats have won 15 straight (and 30 of their last 32) home games. They entered the game with the seventh longest home winning streak among Division II schools. The Wildcats have also won 18 consecutive non-conference home games.
• The 30-point margin of victory was a season-high for Daemen, and the first time they have beaten an opponent by 30 or more points since posting a 108-63 win over LIU Post last February.
• It also marked the second straight game Daemen has held an opponent to under 60 points (83-57 win at University of the Sciences this past Saturday). Prior to Saturday, the last time the Wildcats allowed less than 60 points in a game was Dec. 31, 2018 vs. College of St. Rose (74-55). 
• Redband made two three-pointers tonight and now stands five shy of becoming just the third player in program history to total 250 career three-pointers. Redband has now made at least one three-pointer in 41 of the last 44 games.
• Sarkis is now one assist any of tying Monty Montgomery for 10th place in career assists among Daemen's all-time leaders. Sarkis has totaled 271 assists in 90 career games.
• Sischo has now posted 34 double-doubles in 68 career games.
• Sischo came one field goal shy of tying the school-record for field goals made in a game (16)—a record he shares with Ralph Henderson.
• It was the fifth all-time meeting between Daemen and Salem. Daemen has prevailed in all five meetings.
  

NEXT JUMP BALL

• Daemen returns to action Saturday (Dec. 7) when it welcome Roberts Wesleyan College to Lumsden Gymnasium. It will mark the East Coast Conference opener for both teams.