Wildcats Travel To Molloy And Queens For ECC Games This Weekend

Daemen Riding A Region-Best Seven Game Winning Streak

1/26/2023 10:11:00 AM

GAME #19
Daemen Wildcats (12-6, 5-3 ECC) vs. Molloy Lions (7-14, 6-3 ECC)
DATE: Friday, Jan. 27
TIME: 7 p.m.
LOCATION: Rockville Centre, N.Y. | Quealy Gymnasium
LIVE STATS: via Molloy Athletics / LIVE VIDEO: via ECC Network

GAME #20
Daemen Wildcats (12-6, 5-3 ECC) vs. Queens Knights (6-12, 3-5 ECC)
DATE: Sunday, Jan. 29
TIME: 1:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Flushing, N.Y. | Fitzgerald Gymnasium
LIVE STATS: via Queens Athletics / LIVE VIDEO: via ECC Network

JUMP BALL
Daemen concludes a four-game stretch of road games with East Coast Conference contests at Molloy (Jan. 27) and Queens (Jan. 29) this weekend.

GET LAST TIME OUT
Junior Dylan Fasoyiro (Houston, Tex.) totaled 23 points and eight rebounds to lead the Daemen to an 80-70 victory over the University of the District of Columbia last Saturday in ECC action. Fasoyiro connected on 10-of-12 shots and scored 14 of his 23 points in the second half Junior Andrew Mason (Webster, N.Y.) drilled four three-pointers and scored 14 points. Senior Joey Atkins (Watervliet, N.Y.) stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, nine rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals. Senior Nick MacDonald (Amherst, N.Y.) added 11 points and four assists, while classmate Ryan Salzberg (Manlius, N.Y.) played a team-high 36 minutes and chipped in six points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals. scored seven points. Junior Justin Hemphill (Buffalo, N.Y.) turned in another solid effort off the bench with eight points, five rebounds, four assists and a block in 18 minutes off the bench.

THE STREAK IS OVER
Daemen ranks fourth among ECC teams in three-pointers made (135), but the Wildcats came up empty (0-for-10) from downtown during their win at D'Youville last week. Daemen failed to make a three-pointer in a game for the first time since the 2012-13 season—a stretch of 295-straight games.

SEVEN STRAIGHT
Daemen has won seven straight--and nine of its last 10--games. The seven game winning streak is currently the longest in the East Region.

CLOSE CALLS
Ten of Daemen's 18 games have been decided by 10 points or less and the Wildcats are 5-5 in those contests. The Wildcats lost at the final buzzer against nationally-ranked Mercyhurst (62-61) and opened ECC play with tight losses to Molloy (72-69) and Queens (70-65). The Wildcats also suffered a 72-70 loss at nationally-ranked Saint Thomas Aquinas and a 66-60 loss at regionally-ranked Pace. Daemen has come out on the winning end in its last four close games, defeating regionally-ranked Franklin Pierce 59-51, posting a 79-75 win at Staten Island, defeating D'Youville 56-53 and downing UDC 80-70.

A CHANGE FOR THE BETTER
After shooting just 33-percent (47-143) from the field overall and making just 5-of-41 three-pointers during back-to-back losses to Molloy and Queens in early December, the Wildcats have shot 50-percent from the field overall (304-607) and have canned 92-of-227 (41%) three-point attempts over the last 11 games.

GETTING DEFENSIVE
Daemen leads the ECC in both team defense (65.4 papg) and field goal percentage defense (.416). The Wildcats have held seven of their last 10 opponents to less than 70 points and are 9-2 overall this season when they hold their opponent under 70 points.

150TH NCAA DIVISION II WIN
The win over District of Columbia this past weekend was Daemen's 150th win as a NCAA Division II member. Since Daemen gained full NCAA status prior to the 2015-16 season, the Wildcats have posted a 150-62 record for a .706 winning percentage.

HOME SWEET HOME
Daemen played 10 of its first 16 games at Lumsden Gymnasium. The Wildcats are 7-3 this season and 87-18 (.829) at home during Daemen's NCAA Division II era (2015-present).

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 171-72 (.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.

MR. CONSISTENT
Senior Nick MacDonald (Amherst, N.Y.) has scored in double figures in 16 of the 18 games. He scored a career-high 20 points in a loss to Slippery Rock and is averaging 12.2 points (second on the team). He also ranks second on the team in three-pointers made (28) and third among the ECC leaders in free throw percentage (50-59/.847).

MINUTE MAN
Senior Ryan Salzberg (Manlius, N.Y.) has played at least 30 minutes in 14 of the 18 games this season and has played at least 35 minutes in each of the last three games. He scored a season-high 14 points in the loss to Molloy and is averaging 6.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and a team-high 3.3 assists per game. He is eight assists shy of 200 for his career.

BREAKOUT YEAR FOR ATKINS
Redshirt senior Joey Atkins (Watervliet, N.Y.) is enjoying the most productive season of his collegiate career. After totaling just 131 points and 89 rebounds over his first two seasons (one at Jefferson, one at Daemen), he has already totaled 231 points and 117 rebounds this year. He totaled a career-high 19 points and a career-high 11 rebounds en route to his first career double-double during a loss to Queens on Dec. 4. The MVP of the season-opening East Region Challenge, he leads the team in scoring (12.8 ppg) and rebounding (6.5 rpg) and ranks second in the ECC in blocks (45). He is also tied for the team lead in steals (29). He is a one time ECC Player of the Week selection and two time ECC Defensive Player of the Week honoree.

DIALING LONG DISTANCE
Junior Andrew Mason (Webster, N.Y.) connected on 7-of-9 three-pointers and scored a season-high 22 points in the recent win over Roberts Wesleyan. It marked the second time tis season he has made seven three-pointers in a game (at St. Thomas Aquinas on Dec. 9). The seven three-pointers tied Daemen's NCAA-era (2015-present) record for three-pointers in a game originally set by current assistant coach Jeff Redband. Redband made seven three-pointers in a game four times during his career, most recently on Feb. 7, 2020 during a loss at Bridgeport. Mason leads the team in minutes played per game (32.2) and is averaging 10.6 points. He ranks third among the ECC leaders in three-pointers made (49) and ranks fourth among all Division II players in three-point field goal percentage (49-102/.480). He was named the ECC Player of the Week for the first time in his career on Jan. 17.

SUDDEN IMPACT
Junior transfer Dylan Fasoyiro (Houston, Tex.) has made immediate contributions in his first season with the Wildcats. Slowed by a preseason injury early in the year, he has started the last 11 games and leads the team in scoring (14.8 ppg) and steals (21) over that stretch. He scored a career-high 31 points in the win over Staten Island on Jan. 6 and netted 23 points in the win over UDC last weekend.

SOLID SIXTH MAN
Junior forward Justin Hemphill (Buffalo, N.Y.) has proven to be a solid sixth man this season. Sidelined by injury most of his first two seasons, he has played in 17 of 18 games this season and is averaging 18.6 minutes off the bench. He scored a career-high 16 points in the win over Cheyney and totaled 13 points and 11 rebounds during a win over Alliance en route to his first career double-double. He equaled his career-high for points (16) and established a new career-high for rebounds (14), assists (6) and blocks (4) in the recent win over Roberts Wesleyan. He leads the team in offensive rebounds (45) and ranks second in tototal rebounds per game (6.4). He is averaging 11.0 points and a team-high 7.0 rebounds during the current seven-game winning streak and was recently named the ECC Defensive Player of the Week.

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 season-opening 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. Glover has started seven games and is averaging 5.5 points per game. He missed five games due to injury, but returned to action last week against D'Youville.

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. 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. Daemen's roster also includes brothers Payton and Preston Shumpert (Syracuse, N,.Y.). Their father played collegiately at Syracuse University.

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 eighth in the 10th D2SIDA East Region poll released Jan. 23.

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 opened the year with seven straight losses, but are 7-7 over their last 14 games. Molloy is coming off an 84-76 non-league loss to Wilmington on Wednesday night. 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 recorded five double-doubles this year and is averaging 11.9 points and 8.4 rebounds. Fergus, a first team All-ECC pick as a freshman last year, has scored in double figures in all 21 games and scored 38 points in a 97-85 win over Mercy last week. A two-time ECC Player of the Week selection, he is averaging a league-high 19.7 points and ranks second on the team in rebounding (7.1 rpg). He also leads the league in steals (42) and ranks fourth among the ECC leaders in assists per game (3.9). Sophomore guard Kenny Lazo scored 29 points in a recent 84-79 win over UDC and is averaging 9.5 points. Molloy was picked third in the ECC preseason coaches' poll.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. MOLLOY
Series Record: Daemen, 12-7
At Daemen: Daemen, 6-3
At Molloy, Daemen, 5-4
At Neutral Site: Daemen, 1-0
Last Meeting: Molloy 72, Daemen 69 | Dec. 2, 2022 | at Amherst, N.Y.

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 went 4-4 over their first eight games, but are just 2-8 over their last 10. They improved to 6-12 overall and 3-5 in the ECC following an 82-56 win at Mercy this past Saturday. Queens hosts D'Youville Friday night before taking on Daemen Sunday. The Knights have held eight of their 18 opponents to less than 70 points and rank second to Daemen in the ECC in team defense (70.1 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 21 points in QC's win over Daemen earlier this year and is averaging a team-high 14.1 points. Senior center Tyler Carey has registered seven double-doubles on the year and totaled 16 points and 20 rebounds in the win over Mercy last weekend. He is averaging 10.9 points and leads the league in rebounding (9.3 rpg) and blocks (51). Additional production has come from sophomore guard Shamar Chester (9.7 ppg, 3.3 apg). Queens was picked seventh in the ECC preseason coaches' poll.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN VS. QUEENS
Series Record: Daemen, 16-3
At Daemen: Daemen, 9-1
At Queens, Daemen, 6-2
At Neutral Site: Daemen, 1-0
Last Meeting: Queens 70, Daemen 65 | Dec. 4, 2022 | at Amherst, N.Y.

ON THE HORIZON
Daemen is idle until next weekend when the Wildcats host Staten Island (Feb. 3) and District of Columbia (Feb. 5) in 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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