Geoff Schneider

Daemen Hosts Mercyhurst In Battle Of Regionally Ranks Teams Wednesday

11/15/2022 2:07:00 PM

GAME #3
Daemen Wildcats (2-0, 0-0 ECC) vs. Mercyhurst Lakers (0-0, 0-0 PSAC)
DATE: Wednesday, Nov. 16
TIME: 7:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Amherst, N.Y. | Lumsden Gymnasium
LIVE STATS: via Daemen Athletics / LIVE VIDEO: via ECC Network

JUMP BALL
Daemen hosts the Lakers of Mercyhurst University in a non-conference tilt Wednesday. The game will feature two teams that are both ranked regionally by the NCAA Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA). Daemen is ranked fourth in the East Region by the D2SIDA, while Mercyhurst is tied for fifth in the Atlantic Region.

GET YOUR TICKETS HERE
Tickets for all 2022-23 Daemen home games are on sale through Daemen's online ticketing web page. Lock in your tickets before arriving at Lumsden Gym. Visit http://daemenwildcats.com/tickets for details. Please note, all tickets must be purchased online. No cash sales will be available at Lumsden Gym.

RETURN OF THE MAC
Mike MacDonald returns for his ninth season on Daemen's bench and his 26^th overall as a collegiate head coach. The veteran mentor has led Daemen to a 161-66 (.709) record since taking the reins in 2014. The Wildcats rank second in victories among all East Coast Conference and New York State Division II teams in that span. He has won more games at Daemen than during previous stints as the head coach at Canisius (108 wins in nine seasons) and Medaille (149 wins in eight seasons). MacDonald is among an elite fraternity of coaches to have achieved 100 victories across all three NCAA divisions. Daemen's 81-72 win over Roberts Wesleyan on Dec. 8, 2021 was the 400th of his career.

NEW LOOK WILDCATS
Daemen returns 10 players from last year and welcomes six freshmen and three transfers. The Wildcats finished 20-9 overall and 16-2 in the ECC last year. The Wildcats suffered a 59-48 loss to St. Thomas Aquinas in the championship game of the ECC Tournament and were denied an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament. Daemen was looking to make its fourth-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Daemen must overcome the loss of center Andrew Sischo, a three-time All-America selection who closed out his career as the ECC's all-time leading scorer and rebounder. He averaged 22.9 points and a Division II leading 13.0 rebounds per game last year. Not to be overlooked, guard Sean Fasoyiro was also lost to graduation. Fasoyiro ranked second on the team in scoring (12.6 ppg) last year and collected All-ECC honors in each of his two seasons at Daemen. Shooting guard Kyle Harris, who led the team in three-point field goals (58) last year, was also lost to graduation. Senior guards Ryan Salzberg (Manlius, N.Y.) and Nick MacDonald (Amherst, N.Y.), redshirt senior Joey Atkins (Watervliet, N.Y.) and junior guard Andrew Mason (Webster, N.Y.) top the list of returning players. Salzberg started 26 games last year and averaged 7.3 points with a team-high 91 assists. MacDonald averaged 20 minutes off the bench and contributed 7.2 points per game with 43 three-pointers. Atkins played in 27 of 29 games last year and ranked second on the team in blocks (21). Mason started 23 games and ranked third on the team in points per game (9.1) and second in three-pointers (56).

ATKINS NAMED ECC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Redshirt senior Joey Atkins (Watervliet, N.Y.) was selected the ECC Men's Basketball Player of the Week for games played Nov. 7-13. Atkins was named Most Valuable Player following the East Region Challenge, which took place this past weekend at Daemen's Lumsden Gymnasium. Atkins connected on 6-of-10 shots and totaled 15 points, six rebounds, two assists and two blocks in a 65-60 season opening win over Georgian Court University. The redshirt senior forward followed up with 14 points, six rebounds, three assists, three steals and four blocks to lead the Daemen to an 81-69 victory over Saint Anselm College in a battle of regionally-ranked teams. Over the two games he shot 60-percent (12-20) from the field and averaged 14.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 2.0 blocks.

ALL-TOURNAMENT FOR MACDONALD
Senior guard Nick MacDonald (Amherst, N.Y.) was named to the all-tournament team following the East Region Challenge. He scored 16 points in each game, averaged 5.0 rebounds and canned 13-of-14 free throws.

HEY ROOKIE
Freshman guard Justin Glover (Buffalo, N.Y.) had a successful collegiate debut this past weekend, as he was also named to the all-tournament team following the East Region Challenge. He started both games and averaged 10.0 points and 25.5 minutes per game. He drilled three three-pointers and scored 15 points in the win over regionally-ranked Saint Anselm.

SUSTAINED SUCCESS
The Daemen program has been built on sustained success, winning at least 19 games in 10 of the last 11 seasons. That span encompasses the end of Daemen's NAIA Era, its NCAA transition period and the first seven seasons of full NCAA Division II membership. The Wildcats have won 72% of their contests, going 229-90 in that span. Looking more recently, Daemen is 102-37 since the start of the 2017-18 season (.730 winning percentage).

ALL IN THE FAMILY
MacDonald's son Nick is a senior guard at Daemen. He transferred to Daemen after playing his first two seasons at Division I Niagara.

BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK
Daemen earned three consecutive NCAA Division II Tournament berths from 2019 to 2021. The Wildcats won 24 games (NCAA era program record) and earned at-large bids to the NCAA tournament in 2019 and 2020. The Wildcats entered the 2021 tournament as the No. 2 seed in the East Region and picked up their first-ever NCAA tourney win with an 81-69 defeat of third-seeded Bloomfield in the opening round. The Wildcats then upset top-seeded Saint Thomas Aquinas in the regional championship game en route to the program's first regional championship and Elite Eight appearance. Daemen posted a 20-9 record last year, but was denied an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.

POLL POSITION
Daemen was voted first in the ECC preseason coaches' poll released earlier this week. The Wildcats are also receiving votes in the preseason NABC Division II poll and are ranked fourth in the first D2SIDA East Region poll.

SCOUTING THE LAKERS
Mercyhurst is a member of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. Wednesday's game will mark the 2022-23 season opener for the Lakers, who went 25-7 last year and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division II Tournament. Mercyhurst has advanced to the NCAA Tournament three of the last four seasons and advanced to the Elite Eight in 2018-19. Veteran head coach Gary Manchel returns for his 20th season at Mercyhurst. He has posted a 333-196 (.629) record over the past 19 seasons at MU and has led the Lakers to the NCAA Tournament five of the last eight seasons. He spent nine years at UMass Lowell prior to Mercyhurst and enters the 2022-23 season with 463 career wins, which ranks 21st among active Division II coaches in career wins. The Lakers return 12 players and three starters from last year's team. Graduate student guard MiyKah McIntosh tops the list of returning players. A first team All-PSAC selection last year, he started all 32 games and averaged 16.0 points with 79 three pointers. Senior guard Michael Bradley and graduate student guard Nicholas Lang also return to the starting lineup. Bradley averaged 10.0 points and 3.2 assists per game last year, while Lang averaged 8.1 points and 5.1 rebounds and led the team in assists (3.3 pg) and steals (63). The Lakers welcome four freshman to the roster. The Lakers were picked second in the PSAC West preseason coaches' poll and are also tied for fifth in the first D2SIDA Atlantic Region poll.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. MERCYHURST
Series Record: MU, 6-2
At Daemen: 2-2
At MU: MU, 4-0-0
Last Meeting: Mercyhurst 85, Daemen 63 | Nov. 18, 2021 | at Erie, Pa.

ON THE HORIZON
Daemen, which plays its first four games at home, returns to Lumsden Gymnasium Sunday for a non-conference matchup against Clarion University of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.

Daemen University features the premier 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.

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

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