GAME INFORMATION & LINKS
Game #9
Daemen Wildcats (6-2, 0-0 ECC) vs. Roberts Wesleyan Redhawks (4-3, 0-0 ECC)
Saturday, Dec. 7 | 2 p.m.
Amherst, N.Y. | Lumsden Gymnasium
Live Stats
Live Streaming Video (via ECC Network)
JUMP BALL
Daemen plays host to longtime rival Roberts Wesleyan College in the East Coast Conference (ECC) opener for both teams Saturday (Dec. 7). Both teams have been playing well as of late, as Daemen has won six of its last seven games while the Redhawks have come out on top in four of their last five contests. Roberts Wesleyan has prevailed in nine of the last 13 meetings between the two schools. Daemen swept the regular-season series last year, marking the first time since the Wildcats joined the ECC in 2013-14 that they have swept the Redhawks.
REGIONAL RECOGNITION
Daemen is ranked 10th in this week's Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) East Region media poll. Daemen entered the season ranked ninth in the D2SIDA East Region preseason poll and was once again ranked ninth in the first in-season poll released Nov. 18. The Wildcats were ranked seventh on Nov. 25, before falling back to No. 10 this week. The Wildcats have been ranked in the last six D2SIDA East Region polls dating back to Feb. 4 of last year.
FAST START
The Wildcats are off to their best start since transitioning to NCAA Division II in 2013-14. Daemen turned in a solid effort during the Cesar Odio Thanksgiving Classic in South Florida last weekend. The Wildcats saw their five-game winning streak come to an end following a 77-74 loss to Nova Southeastern in the opening round, before rebounding with a 78-69 win over host Barry in the second round. The Wildcats have featured a balanced attack thus far, as all five starters are averaging between 8.1 and 15.1 points per game. Junior forward Caroline White scored a career-high 22 points against Barry and leads the team in both points per game (15.1) and rebounds per game (6.5). Redshirt junior Tiara Filbert was named ECC Player of the Week on Monday after averaging 27.5 points during the Cesar Odio Thanksgiving Classic. She erupted for a career-high 38 points in the loss to Nova Southeastern and is averaging 14.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.25 assists per game. Sophomore forward Katie Titus scored a season-high 20 points in a recent win over Wilmington and is averaging 13.4 points. She is also contributing 6.0 rebounds per game and leads the team in blocks (10). Senior Jordan Heinold and newcomer Ashli Jeune and have also produced. Heinold equaled her career-high for three-pointers in a game (7) and scored a career-high 25 points against Wilmington and is averaging 10.4 points with a team-high 17 three-pointers. Jeune totaled 17 points and five steals in a 65-45 win over Franklin Pierce and is averaging 8.1 points and 5.1 rebounds. She also leads the team lead in assists per game (3.5) and leads the team in steals (18). Junior Autumn Buchsenschutz is averaging 23.1 minutes off the bench and is contributing 5.1 points and 2.5 assists per game.
HOME SWEET HOME
Saturday's game will mark just the second home game for Daemen so far this season. Daemen will play 11 of its first 13 games away from the friendly confines of Lumsden Gymnasium—where the Wildcats have won 10-straight games dating back to last season. The 10-game home winning streak ranks as the second longest in the East Region behind Bentley College (11).
BANKER'S BACK
Jenepher Banker enters her fourth season as head women's basketball coach at Daemen. She has led the Wildcats to a 47-44 overall record and a 32-22 mark in the ECC since the start of the 2016-17 season. Last year she led Daemen to an 18-10 overall record, a 15-3 league record and a second-straight appearance in the ECC Championship Tournament. The 18 wins were the most for the Wildcats since the program transitioned to NCAA Division II in 2013-14. She also recorded her 100th victory as a collegiate head coach during the 2018-19 season. Banker arrived at Daemen with nearly 30 years of coaching experience at various levels, ranging from Division I to high school. Her first collegiate experience came as an assistant coach at Iowa State University (1986-88) and later as an assistant at Canisius College (1993-95). Between assistant coaching stops, Banker served as the head coach at Penn State-Behrend where she led the NCAA Division III program to a 67-61 overall record. Her 1991-92 team went 23-4, winning the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) South Region championship. That team garnered Penn State-Behrend's first-ever national ranking in any sport. She was inducted into Penn State-Behrend's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994. Banker ultimately settled at the high school level, coaching the varsity team at Grand Island High School from 1998-2013, building the Lady Vikings into a regional contender with seven Section VI championships, four appearances in the Far West Regional, and one appearance at the New York State final four.
DAEMEN QUICK FACTS
Daemen returns three starters and seven players from last year when the Wildcats enjoyed their most successful season since transitioning to NCAA Division II. Daemen posted an 11-game winning streak, won 14 of its final 15 regular-season games and posted a 15-3 league record last year. Seeded second in the ECC Championships, the Wildcats were upset by New York Tech in the semifinals and closed out the year with an 18-10 overall record. Daemen entered the 2019-20 season ranked third in the ECC preseason poll and ninth in the Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) East Region preseason poll.
WILDCATS MAKE REGIONAL RANKINGS
Daemen was ranked in both D2SIDA Division II East Region media poll and the NCAA Division II East Region poll during the 2018-19 season. It marked the first time since Daemen transitioned to NCAA Division II that it has been regionally-ranked. The East Region of NCAA Division II is comprised of teams from the East Coast Conference, the Northeast-10 Conference and the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference
PICKING UP WHERE THEY LEFT OFF
Daemen was one of the hottest teams in the NCAA Division II East Region at the end of last year, as the Wildcats won 14 of their final 15 regular-season games. The Wildcats have opened the 2019-20 season by winning six of their first eight games and are now 20-4 over their last 24 games dating back to last season.
THE STREAK
Daemen posted an 11 game winning streak last year, which ranked as the program's longest winning streak since the Wildcats won 17 in a row during the 2007-08 season.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
Daemen has held five of its first eight opponents to 57 points or less. The Wildcats have also forced 146 turnovers and collected 79 steals over the first eight games. Daemen ranks third among East Coast Conference teams in points allowed per game (58.9), steals per game (9.9) and turnovers forced per game (18.3).
BACK IN THE FOLD
Redshirt junior Tiara Filbert and sophomore Katie Titus top the list of returning players after earning all-conference honors last year. Filbert earned second-team All-ECC recognition after averaging 12.0 points per game with a team-high 76 assists. Titus took the ECC by storm over the second half of her freshman season, averaging 17.4 points and 8.9 rebounds over the final 15 games. For the season, she led the team in scoring (12.1 ppg), rebounding (7.2 rpg), three-pointers (42) and blocked shots (38), and was a first-team All-ECC honoree—as well as the ECC Rookie of the Year. Senior Jordan Heinold (6.3 ppg, 37 3pt FGs) also returns after making 24 starts last year. Junior guards Autumn Buchsenschutz (3.1 ppg, 45 asts) and Caroline White (7.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg) also return after playing major roles last season. Sophomore guard Sydney Barney and sophomore forward Mickayla Ivy round out the list of returning players.
A FIRST FOR TITUS
Katie Titus was voted first team All-ECC and ECC Rookie of the Year last year after leading the team in points per game (12.1), rebounds per game (7.2), three-pointers (32) and blocks (38). She became the first women's basketball player from Daemen to garner a major award from the ECC since the Wildcats joined the conference. She also became the first freshman to earn first-team All-ECC honors since Madison Rowland of Queens College in 2013-14. Titus ranked first among ECC freshmen in points per game and second in rebounds per game. She shot 49-percent (109-for-222) from the field and averaged 17.4 points and 8.9 rebounds over the final 16 games. Her efforts earned her conference recognition in six of the final eight weeks. She was named ECC Player of the Week twice (Jan. 14, Jan. 28) and became the first player in team history to earn multiple ECC Player of the Week honors in the same season. She was also a two-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week selection (Nov. 19, Jan. 22), and a four-time ECC Rookie of the Week pick (Jan. 22, Feb. 4, Feb. 11, Feb. 18). She was only the freshman in the league to be named ECC Player of the Week and also the only ECC player to be named Player of the Week, Defensive Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week.
CONFERENCE HONORS FOR WHITE AND FILBERT
Junior Caroline White and redshirt junior Tiara Filbert have collected honors from the ECC in recent weeks. White was named the ECC Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 25 after leading Daemen's defensive effort during wins over regionally-ranked Edinboro and Wilmington. She keyed the Daemen defense which surrendered just 108 points (54.0 ppg) in the two games, limiting EU and WU to a combined 35 percent shooting. Against Edinboro, White totaled eight rebounds, including five defensive and added a blocked shot. She grabbed six defensive rebounds and a team-high three steals against Wilmington. She also netted 18 points in each contest, shooting 16-for-29 from the field (55%) for the week. Filbert was named the ECC Player of the Week this past Monday (Dec. 2) after averaging 27.5 points during the Cesar Odio Thanksgiving Classic. She scored a career-high 38 points in a 77-74 loss to Nova Southeastern and followed up with 17 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals in a 78-69 win over host Barry. Over the two games she shot 63-percent (20-for-32) from the field and totaled 55 points.
HEINOLD RECORDS 125TH THREE-POINTER
Senior Jordan Heinold has become the 10th player in program history to reach 125 career three-pointers. She reached the milestone during a win over Barry on Nov. 30 and has now totaled 125 three-pointers in 75 career games.
PLENTY OF NEW FACES
The 2019-20 roster features 10 newcomers—one graduate transfer and nine freshmen. Graduate transfer Ashli Jeune (Westhampton, N.J.) and freshman Marina Maerkl (Binghampton, N.Y.) have seen consistent playing time over the first eight games. Jeune previously played at Division I Rutgers University and UNC-Wilmington. She has started all eight games and scored a season-high 17 points in the win over Franklin Pierce. Maerkl led Seton Catholic to the Final Four of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class A Tournament as a junior and senior. She averaged a double-double as a senior and earned fourth-team Class A all-state honors. She has played in all eight games (13 minutes per game) and totaled six points and four rebounds in a win over Bloomfield. Freshmen Abby Lundquist (Rochelle, Ill.) and Tyra O'Meally-Turnbull (Niskayuna, N.Y.) have also contributed. Lundquist closed out her career at Rochelle Township High School with a school-record 1,909 career points. She has played in four games this year and drilled her first career three-pointer in the win over Bloomfield. O'Meally-Turnbull played at Niskayuna High School and was named the team's Outstanding Defensive Player as a junior. She has played in six games and totaled six points, eight rebounds and two blocks in the win over Bloomfield.
ROBERTS WESLEYAN SCOUTING REPORT
Roberts Wesleyan returns six players and four starters from last year's team that finished 15-17 overall and 10-8 in the ECC. Kevin Clifford returns for his second season as head coach. RWC was voted fourth in the ECC preseason poll. The Redhawks have won four of their last five games and have posted wins over Lake Erie (79-71) and Mansfield (67-62) in their last two games. Senior forward Emily Miller tops the list of returning players after averaging a league-high 18.7 points per game last year. She has scored in double figures six times this year and leads the team in points per game (15.9), rebounds per game (8.9) and blocks (12). She posted 25 points and 12 rebounds in a win over Concordia and totaled 22 points in the win over Lake Erie. A two-time All-ECC selection, she has started all 103 games over the past four seasons and has totaled 1,608 points (15.6 ppg) and 893 rebounds (8.7 rpg). Senior Sara Nady also returns after averaging 8.9 points with a team-high 60 three-pointers last year. She drilled five triples and scored 27 points in the win over Lake Erie and is averaging 9.9 points and a team-high 4.0 assists. Sophomore center Dimitra Gkizani (8.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg) and sophomore forward Taryn Wilson (8.0 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 12 steals) have also produced. Wilson has made at least one three-pointer in all seven games and is shooting 43-percent (12-for-28) from three-point land.
ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN vs. ROBERTS WESLEYAN
Series Record: 35-22
Streak: Won 2
Last Meeting: Daemen 76, RWC 54 | Feb. 2, 2019 | Amherst, N.Y.
DID YOU KNOW?
Close games between Daemen and Roberts Wesleyan have been the norm in recent years, as seven of the last 11 meetings have been decided by eight points or less. Three of those games were decided by just two points, including Daemen's 72-70 win last year at RWC. The teams played to a triple-overtime thriller during the 2017-18 season, which marked the first time since January 10, 2012 that a game between the two rivals has been decided in overtime. It was also the only game in the 29-year history between the schools that went into triple overtime.
ON THE HORIZON
The Wildcats are idle until next weekend when they travel to Mercy College (Dec. 13) and regionally-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas College (Dec. 15) for ECC games.
