Men's Basketball Opens Conference Play This Weekend

Wildcats Play Host To Molloy Friday Night And Queens Sunday Afternoon

12/1/2022 9:29:00 AM

GAMES #6 and #7
Daemen Wildcats (3-2, 0-0 ECC) vs. Molloy Lions (0-7, 0-0 ECC)
DATE: Friday, Dec. 2
TIME: 7:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Amherst, N.Y. | Lumsden Gymnasium
LIVE STATS: via Daemen Athletics / LIVE VIDEO: via ECC Network

Daemen Wildcats (3-2, 0-0 ECC) vs. Queens Knights (3-3, 0-0 ECC)
DATE: Sunday, Dec. 4
TIME: 2 p.m.
LOCATION: Amherst, N.Y. | Lumsden Gymnasium
LIVE STATS: via Daemen Athletics / LIVE VIDEO: via ECC Network

JUMP BALL
Daemen opens East Coast Conference play by hosting Molloy (Dec. 2) and Queens (Dec. 4) this weekend.

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.

BACK ON TRACK
After opening the year with wins over Georgian Court (65-60) and regionally-ranked Saint Anselm (81-69) during the East Region Challenge, Daemen suffered back-to-back losses to regionally-ranked Mercyhurst (62-61) and Slippery Rock (82-60). The Wildcats returned to their winning way following a 76-65 win over Alliance (formerly Nyack) this past Sunday. Daemen has shot 46-percent (78-171) overall and 42-percent (26-62) from behind the arc during the three wins, but has shot just 37-percent (39-106) from the field overall and 32-percent (12-37) from three-point land during the two losses.

200TH NCAA DIVISION II GAME
Friday's game will mark Daemen's 200th as a NCAA Division II member. Since Daemen gained full NCAA status prior to the 2015-16 season, the Wildcats have posted a 141-58 record for a .708 winning percentage. Daemen is 99-32 (.756) against ECC teams since the 2015-16 season.

HOME SWEET HOME
Daemen will play six of its first seven games at Lumsden Gymnasium. The Wildcats are 83-16 (.838) at home during Daemen's NCAA Division II era (2015-present). Daemen is 6-2 at home all-time against Molloy and is undefeated at home all-time (9-0) against Queens.

BALANCED ATTACK
The Wildcats feature a balanced attack, with nine players averaging over nine minutes a game. Senior Nick MacDonald (Amherst, N.Y.) has scored in double figures in all five games and netted a career-high 20 points in the loss to Slippery Rock. He is shooting 42-percent (10-24) from downtown and averaging a team-high 16.4 points. Redshirt senior Joey Atkins Watervliet, N.Y.) has scored in double figures in four of the first five games and is averaging 12.6 points and a team-high 6.6 rebounds. He has also recorded a team-high 10 blocks. Atkins, who scored in double figures just once all of last season, scored a career-high 17 points in the loss to Mercyhurst. Additional production has come from senior Ryan Salzberg (Manlius, N.Y.) and junior Andrew Mason (Webster, N.Y.). Salzberg totaled 11 points and seven boards against Mercyhurst and is averaging 7.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and a team-high 3.0 assists per game. Mason drilled four three-pointers and scored 12 points in the win over Alliance and is averaging 8.0 points. He is tied with MacDonald for the team lead in three-pointers (10). Freshman Justin Glover (Buffalo, N.Y.) has started all five games and scored a season-high 15 points in the win over Saint Anselm. Junior Justin Hemphill (Buffalo, N.Y.) recorded his first career double-double during the win over Alliance, as he totaled a career-high 13 points and a career-high 11 rebounds.

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 162-68 (.704) 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. 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, 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 227-90 in that span.

ALL IN THE FAMILY
Coach MacDonald's son Nick is a senior guard at Daemen. He transferred to Daemen after playing his first two seasons at Division I Niagara. Also, junior guard Dylan Fasoyiro (Houston, Tex.) is the younger brother of Sean Fasoyiro, who played the last two seasons at Daemen and earned all-conference honors each year.

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 and was also receiving votes in the preseason NABC Division II poll. The Wildcats are ranked fifth in the third D2SIDA East Region poll.

SCOUTING MOLLOY
Molloy went 12-17 overall and 10-8 in the ECC last year. Head coach Charlie Marquardt returns for his 29th season at Molloy. Molloy returns nine players and three starters from last year's team. The Lions are still in search of the their first win this season and are coming off a 60-57 loss to Assumption this past Monday. Daemen will be the fourth regionally-ranked team the Lions have faced so far, having previously suffered losses to Pace (71-55), Southern New Hampshire (81-69) and Dominican (73-68). Senior forward William Muller and sophomore guard Darren Fergus top the list of returning players. Muller earned first team All-ECC honors last year and was voted preseason ECC Player of the Year this season. He has scored in double figures six times this season and is averaging 12.4 points and a team-high 8.7 rebounds. Fergus, a first team All-ECC pick as a freshman last year, has scored in double figures in all seven games and is averaging a league-high 18.3 points. He scored 29 points in an 83-60 loss to Southern Connecticut. Freshman forward Deshaun Warren has started all seven games and has scored in double figures four times. He scored a season-high 16 points in an 81-69 loss to Southern New Hampshire. Molloy was picked third in the ECC preseason coaches' poll.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. MOLLOY
Series Record: Daemen, 12-6
At Daemen: Daemen, 6-2
At Molloy, Daemen, 5-4
At Neutral Site: Daemen, 1-0
Last Meeting: Daemen 85, Molloy 70 | March 5, 2022 | at Sparkill, N.Y. (ECC Tournament Semifinal)

SCOUTING QUEENS
Queens went 11-12 overall and 9-9 in the ECC last year. Head coach Matt Collier returns for his seventh season at Queens. Queens returns nine players and four starters from last year's team. The Knights had a two-game winning streak snapped following a 64-55 loss at American International this past Sunday. Queens opens conference play at D'Youville Friday night before taking on Daemen Sunday. The Knights have held three of their six opponents to less than 65 points and lead the ECC in team defense (66.8 papg). Junior guard Dion Herrington was a third team All-ECC pick last year after averaging a team-high 11.8 points. Newcomer Sunnie Diamond has paced the Knights so far this season. A 6-foot-2 guard who played at Central Georgia Tech last year, he has scored in double figures five times and is averaging a team-high 14.2 points. He totaled a triple-double (18 pts, 12 rebs, 10 asts) in an 88-73 win over Alliance on Nov. 23. Senior guard William Ellis scored 22 points in a 75-61 win over Holy Family and is averaging 12.3 points. Additional production has come from senior center Tyler Carey (11.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 14 bls) and sophomore guard Shamar Chester (10.8 ppg, 11-24 3pt FGs). Queens was picked seventh in the ECC preseason coaches' poll.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. QUEENS
Series Record: Daemen, 16-2
At Daemen: Daemen, 9-0
At Queens, Daemen, 6-2
At Neutral Site: Daemen, 1-0
Last Meeting: Daemen 67, Queens 55 | Feb. 26, 2022 | at Flushing, N.Y.

ON THE HORIZON
Daemen is idle until next weekend when the Wildcats travel to St. Thomas Aquinas (Dec. 9) and Mercy (Dec. 11) for ECC games.

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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