Skip To Main Content

Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
fasoyiro mbb vs gannon
Daemen graduate transfer Sean Fasoyiro goes to the basket Friday night in their season-opener versus Gannon at Lumsden Gymnasium.
76
Winner Gannon GAN-M 3-0, 0-0 PSAC
73
Daemen DAEM 0-1, 0-0 ECC
Winner
Gannon GAN-M
3-0, 0-0 PSAC
76
Final
73
Daemen DAEM
0-1, 0-0 ECC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Gannon GAN-M 29 47 76
Daemen DAEM 45 28 73

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | By Joe Kraus, Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant

Golden Knights Spoil Daemen's Return Behind Second Half Takeover, 76-73

AMHERST, N.Y.  – The wait for the first win back will last a little bit longer.

In their first game in 328 days, the Daemen men's basketball team's season opener turned into a heartbreaker Friday night. After building up a 45-29 lead at halftime, the Wildcats saw the Gannon Golden Knights slice their way back, using a 23-3 run mid-way through the second half as part of a 76-73 victory in their first trip to Lumsden Gymnasium. In the loss, redshirt senior forward Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) picked up where he left off last season, totaling a game-high 30 points and a team-high 13 rebounds.
 
IMPACT PLAYERS
  • Daemen's five starters accounted for 56 of the team's 73 points.
  • Sischo connected on 14-of-24 shooting and collected seven of his 13 rebounds on the offensive end of the floor for his 48th career double-double.
  • Fellow veteran Kyle Harris (Buffalo, N.Y.) scored 12 points, going 3-of-7 from three-point land, converting two of them in the second half.
  • In his Daemen debut, graduate transfer Sean Fasoyiro (Houston, Texas) added 12 points along with four rebounds and four assists.
  • In his collegiate debut, freshman Andrew Mason (Webster, N.Y.) scored nine straight points (including four points at the free-throw line in a 1:13 span late in the first half along with nine rebounds and four assists.
  • Three players scored in double-figures for the Golden Knights. Junior point guard Braden Olsen scored a team-high 19 points on 6-of-8 shooting with a team-high 7 assists and gave the Knights their first lead of the contest, 65-63, with 6:38 remaining in regulation. Classmate Kevin Dodds scored 9 of his 13 points in the second half while sophomore Chris Clancy scored all his 12 points off four made three-point field-goals, three coming in the first half.
PERIOD-BY-PERIOD SUMMARY
First Half (Daemen 45, Gannon 29) – Through the first 5:16 of the contest, the Wildcats built a 14-3 lead behind a pair of step-back jumpers and a fast-break lay-up from Sischo, a three-pointer from Ryan Salzberg (5 points total) and inside shots from Harris. Baskets from Fasoyiro expanded Daemen's lead to double-digits (20-8) with just over 12 minutes remaining before a three-pointer from Anthony Pickens Jr. cut the deficit to 20-11. With more efforts from the veterans Sischo and Harris and a pair of free-throws from freshman Tony Arnold (Buffalo, N.Y.), the Wildcats expanded their lead to 30-18 with 5:55 remaining. A bucket from Olsen at the 4:20 cut the deficit to eight points (31-23) before Daemen went on another big run to end the half. With more baskets from Sischo and a 9-0 run by Mason capped off by a three-pointer, the Wildcats built a 45-29 lead at the half.

Second Half (Gannon 47, Daemen 28) – The Golden Knights turned the tables in the second half as their three-point shooting helped them come from behind with Clancy's make with 15:16 left cut Daemen's lead to 55-42. The shot was the true turning point for Gannon as they went on a 23-3 run over an eight-and-a-half minute stretch, including scoring 13 straight to take the go-ahead 65-63 lead, their first lead of the night, capped off by Olsen's fast-break lay-up. Daemen then trailed 67-66 with 5:37 before the Golden Knights responded with an 8-0 run to build a 75-66 lead, their largest lead of the night. Harris gave the Wildcats' one last opportunity with his last trey of the evening with 2:03 left (75-71) but couldn't connect on later opportunities inside the paint and at the free-throw line.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
  • Daemen shot 44.1% from the floor (26-of-59) and finished 7-of-22 from three-point range. The hosts also finished 14-of-25 at the free-throw line and recorded 40 rebounds (14 offensive).
  • Gannon shot 49.2% from the floor (29-of-59 shooting) and found success from three-point range, shooting 11-of-25 and including six in the second half. The visitors also went 7-of-12 at the free-throw line and recorded 32 rebounds (7 offensive).
  • Eight different players scored for Daemen in the loss, including five freshmen. Besides Mason, guard Tyler Hind (Randolph, N.Y.) converted a first-half three-pointer as while Justin Hemphill (Buffalo, N.Y.) made a free-throw in the second half. Classmate Juston Johnson (Buffalo, N.Y.) grabbed two rebounds and an assist while Tony Arnold (Buffalo, N.Y) converted a pair of first-half free-throws in their collegiate debuts.

GAME NOTES
  • After winning 17 in a row from the 2002-03 season through the 2018-19 season, Daemen has now lost two straight season openers.
  • This was Daemen's first game action in 328 days to start their pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season. Daemen had not played since suffering a 91-78 loss to St. Thomas Aquinas in the semifinal round of the ECC Championships on March 7, 2020. This weekend's games are the first of 12 on the schedule for Daemen during this unprecedented season. All games are subject to change based upon COVID-19 testing results among Daemen's Tier 1 personnel, as well as that of their opponents. Daemen has already had three games postponed, two of which have been rescheduled for next month. The Wildcats went into a COVID-related pause in team activities from Jan. 15-24.
  • The first meeting between these two teams since 2012, Gannon improves to 10-1 all-time against Daemen, who is searching for their win in the series since a 67-65 victory back in 2011. The 10 previous meetings all occurred at Gannon's Hammermill Center. 
  • The loss snapped Daemen's six-game home winning streak, and was just the fourth loss in their last 41 games on their home floor. Since the start of the 2011-12 season, Daemen is 112-16 at home. Eight of those losses, including tonight's, have been by three points or less. 
  • The loss also snapped an 18-game home winning streak in non-conference games. Daemen's last non-conference loss at home came Dec. 31, 2016 in a 67-64 final against St. Rose. 
  • The Wildcats were hit hard by graduation, losing four of their five starters, all of whom were 1,000-point scorers and helped Daemen win 89 games.
  • Sischo, a consensus All-American, continues to climb his way up the Daemen record books. In 90 career games, Sischo has totaled 1,850 points and 919 rebounds. He stands as the only player in program history with at least 1,800 points and 900 rebounds. Already the program's all-time leader in field goals (736), he ranks fourth in both scoring and rebounding. In addition, Sischo has placed himself among impressive company within ECC history, ranking fourth in field goals and ninth in rebounding. He is also just three points shy of moving into the conference' top 10 all-time scorers. 
  • Daemen is garnering attention from both regional and national pollsters. The Wildcats are ranked in both the D2SIDA regional (No. 2) and national (No. 25) polls, while also receiving votes in the NABC national poll.
  • Only Sischo, Harris, Fasoyiro and redshirt junior forward Ziv Basden have appeared in more than 25 college games. Six of Daemen's 12 players are either freshmen or sophomores. Eight Daemen players have exercised their right to opt out of the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19. 
  • Daemen's 89 wins since the start of the 2016-17 season represents the most successful four-year span in program history. 
NEXT JUMP BALL
Daemen hits the road for a weekend trip to Erie, Pa. as they face the Golden Knights at the Hammermill Center on Jan. 31. Tip-off is at 2 PM.
Daemen College features the only NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. 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.
 
Support Daemen College's return to intercollegiate athletic competitions by making a contribution to the Game On Campaign and the Daemen Wildcats Gotta Play Fund. This comprehensive fundraising campaign was established to help offset the loss of valuable external revenue streams that directly support Daemen's 17 varsity teams. To learn more, visit daemenwildcats.com/gameon.
 
 
 
Print Friendly Version