Men's Basketball Picked Second In ECC Preseason Poll

10/21/2021 2:16:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications | (716) 839-8385 | mmiranto@daemen.edu

AMHERST, N.Y. – Daemen College has been picked second in the East Coast Conference Men's Basketball Preseason Poll following a vote of the league's 10 head coaches, the conference announced today.

Daemen, which has posted a 106-33 conference record since joining the ECC for the 2013-14 season, garnered four first-place votes and totaled 94 points in the poll. The Wildcats were edged by defending conference champion St. Thomas Aquinas which had six first-place votes and 96 points. The Wildcats and Spartans split four meetings last season. Daemen drew last blood with a 71-70 win in the final round of the NCAA Division II East Regional, advancing to the Elite Eight for the first time in the program's NCAA era (2015-present).

Bridgeport, which opted out of the 2020-21 season, was picked third in the poll with 69 points. Molloy (65 points) and District of Columbia (54 points) round out the top half of the poll.

Roberts Wesleyan (53 points), Mercy (44 points) and Queens (34 points) were picked sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively. The two relative newcomers to the league were picked ninth and tenth. D'Youville, competing in the league for just the second season, finished with 21 points, followed by first-time league member Staten Island (20 points).

Daemen is set to return 11 players from their regional championship team - players responsible for 98% of their scoring, 99% of their rebounds and 99% of their assists. None is bigger, both literally and figuratively, than center Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) who was named the ECC Preseason Player of the Year for an unprecedented fourth time today. Sischo returns for a fifth collegiate season after averaging 26.9 points and 13.0 rebounds per game with a Division II-leading 13 double-doubles last season.

Incumbent starters Sean Fasoyiro (Houston, Texas), Kyle Harris (Buffalo, N.Y.), Ryan Salzberg (Manlius, N.Y.) and Andrew Mason (Webster, N.Y.) also return. Fasoyiro was a first-team All-ECC and first-team All-Region selection after averaging 13.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and a team-high 3.9 assists per contest last season - his first with the Wildcats after beginning his career at Franklin Pierce. Harris averaged 12.5 points per game and shot 39% from three-point range en route to second-team All-ECC honors. Salzberg emerged at point guard as the season wore on, and his a number of big shots throughout the season. Mason led the ECC in three-point percentage (.487) while averaging 12.6 points and 6.1 boards per game.

With a 19 players in the fold, head coach Mike MacDonald may have the deepest roster of his eight-year tenure with the program. MacDonald has led the Wildcats to 139 wins since taking the reigns in 2014 - the second most among all ECC teams in that span. He enters the season just four wins shy of 400 for his career.

The Wildcats open the 2021-22 season by participating in the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association (D2CCA) Tip-Off Classic with three games in Canyon, Texas from October 29-31. The conference schedule gets underway November 23 when the Wildcats visit Staten Island.

EAST COAST CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL PRESEASON POLL
1. St. Thomas Aquinas (6) - 96
2. DAEMEN (4) - 94
3. Bridgeport - 69
4. Molloy - 65
5. Dist. Columbia - 54
6. Roberts Wesleyan - 53
7. Mercy - 44
8. Queens - 34
9. D'Youville - 21
10. Staten Island - 20

( ) denotes first-place votes

Daemen College features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 18 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.

Follow the Daemen College men's basketball program on Twitter and Instagram at @DaemenMBB.

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