Geoff M Schneider

Men's Basketball Travels To St. Thomas Aquinas and Mercy This Weekend

1/18/2024 11:10:00 AM

JUMP BALL
Daemen travels to nationally-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas College for a key East Coast Conference game Friday (Jan. 19) night and caps the weekend road trip with a league game at Mercy University Sunday (Jan. 21) afternoon.

GET YOUR TICKETS HERE
Tickets for all 2023-24 Daemen home games are on sale through Daemen's online ticketing portal. Lock in your tickets before arriving at Lumsden Gym. Please note, all tickets must be purchased online. No cash sales will be available at Lumsden Gym.

THE SEASON AHEAD
The Wildcats return several key players and a total of 14 players from their 2022-23 team which went 20-8 overall and 12-4 in the East Coast Conference. The Wildcats advanced to the ECC Tournament championship game, where they suffered a 72-66 loss to top-seed St. Thomas Aquinas College. Daemen was picked second in the ECC preseason coaches' poll and was also receiving votes in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II preseason poll.

POLL POSITION
Daemen is ranked eighth in the D2 College Sports Communicators (D2CSC) East Region poll released Monday, Jan. 15.

THE SEASON SO FAR
Daemen (12-5, 2-2 ECC) has featured a balanced scoring attack and solid defense in its 17 games thus far. Five players are averaging in double figures and a sixth player is contributing 9.9 points. Senior Dylan Fasoyiro (Houston, Tex.) has scored over 20 points six times this season and is averaging 15.8 points with 28 three-pointers and 18 steals. Sophomore Justin Glover (Buffalo, N.Y.) has scored in double figures in 13 of 16 games and is averaging 13.3 points and 3.3 assists. Graduate student Joey Atkins (Watervliet, N.Y.), the ECC Preseason Player of the Year, is averaging 11.8 points and 7.8 rebounds. A four-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week selection, he ranks second among the ECC leaders in both blocks (28) and steals (27). Fifth-year senior Nick MacDonald (Amherst, N.Y.) is averaging 11.6 points, while senior Andrew Mason (Webster, N.Y.) is contributing 11.3 points with a team-high 44 three-pointers. Senior Justin Hemphill (Buffalo, N.Y.) is producing 9.9 points and a team-high 7.9 rebounds per contest.

WILDCATS SUFFER FIRST HOME LOSS
The Wildcats played just one game last week, dropping a 71-62 decision to the College of Staten Island at Lumsden Gymnasium. Daemen was scheduled to host the University of the District of Columbia on Sunday, but the winter storm that hit the Buffalo area over the weekend forced the postponement of that game. The loss to CSI snapped Daemen's 16-game home court winning streak, which was the longest home winning streak in the East region, and dropped the Wildcats to 12-5 overall and 2-2 in East Coast Conference play.

THERE'S NO I IN TEAM
Daemen features a balanced attack with six players averaging between 9.9 and 15.8 points per game. The Wildcats have had 11 games where four players have scored in double figures and five players have reached double digits in points six times. A season-high six players scored in double figures during their win at Clarion on Nov. 26 and their double OT win at Saint Anselm on Dec. 31.

SHARP SHOOTERS
Daemen ranks first among ECC teams in field goal percentage (.472) and has shot over 45-percent from the field in 10 of its 17 games. The Wildcats are 6-0 this year when they shoot 50-percent or better from the field.

GETTING DEFENSIVE
Daemen has limited nine of its 17 opponents to less than 70 points and leads the ECC in team defense, allowing just 70.7 points per game. The Wildcats also rank first in the ECC in field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to just 41-percent from the field. Daemen has produced the ECC Defensive Player of the Week six times this season. Joey Atkins has earned the honor four times, while Justin Hemphill is a two-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week selection.

HOME SWEET HOME
The Wildcats are 7-1 at home this season and have won 16 of their last 17 home games dating back to last season. They are 99-19 (.834) at home during Daemen's NCAA Division II era (2015-present).

NOTABLE
Joey Atkins recorded his 100th career block during a loss to Dominican on Nov. 18. He has totaled 119 career blocks and has moved into the top five in career blocks among Daemen's all-time leaders. Dylan Fasoyiro scored his 600th career point during a loss at Queens. After scoring just 23 points during his two seasons at Ashland, he has racked up 611 points in 43 games (14.2 ppg) at Daemen. Andrew Mason has become the seventh player in program history to reach 200 career three-pointers. He recorded his 200th during the win over Molloy and ranks fifth in career three-pointers at Daemen with 220. Mason stands 74 points shy of 1,000 for his career. Nick MacDonald recorded his 150th career three-pointer during a win over Saint Anselm. MacDonald leads the ECC and ranks 14th nationally in free throw percentage (.911). He stands just 43 points shy of 1,000 for his career.

MACDONALD TWO SHY OF 450 CAREER WINS
Head coach Mike MacDonald enters the weekend just two wins shy of 450 for his career. Among active NCAA Division II coaches, he ranks first in the ECC, fifth in the East Region and 26th nationally in career wins with 448. MacDonald is in his 10th season on the Daemen bench and his 27^th overall as a collegiate head coach. Daemen has posted at least 20 wins in five of the last six seasons (Daemen only played 16 games during the COVID-19 shortened 2020-21 season) and MacDonald has led the Wildcats to a record of 191-79, three NCAA Division II Tournament appearances and the 2021 NCAA Division II East Region title. 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. His overall career record stands at 448-305 and Daemen's 81-72 win over Roberts Wesleyan on Dec. 8, 2021 was the 400th of his career.

FAMILIAR FACES
All-ECC selections Joey Atkins (Watervliet, N.Y.), Dylan Fasoyiro (Houston, Tex.), Nick MacDonald (Amherst, N.Y.) and Andrew Mason (Webster, N.Y.) all return in 2023-24. Atkins earned first-team All-ECC honors in his first season as a starter last year after averaging 11.9 points and 6.2 rebounds. He also ranked eighth among all Division II players in blocks (65). Fasoyiro averaged a team-high 13.4 points in his first season with the team, while MacDonald contributed 12.4 points. Mason averaged 10.9 points and led all three NCAA divisions in three-point field goal percentage (.516) last year. Veteran point guard Ryan Salzberg (Manlius, N.Y.), who started all 28 games last year and averaged 32 minutes a game, was set to return but suffered a preseason injury. Senior Justin Hemphill (Buffalo, N.Y.), a 6-foot-6 forward, is coming off a breakout season in which he averaged 9.0 points and a team-high 6.5 rebounds off the bench. Sophomore guard Justin Glover (Buffalo, N.Y.) is set to step into the starting lineup following the loss of Salzberg. Glover played in 23 games (seven starts) as a freshman and averaged 4.9 points and 1.8 assists. Ayden Harrison (Clifton Park, N.Y.), Phil Nwugwo (Rochester, N.Y.) and Jackson Kulik (Webster, N.Y.) also join the mix after red shirting their freshman season last year.

NEWCOMERS
Three newcomers join the fold in 2023-24. Redshirt sophomore guard Jarius Jones (Gahanna, Ohio) spent the past two years at Ohio Dominican University. Freshmen Zach Philipkoski (New Hartford, N.Y.) and Ryan Heath (Rochester, N.Y.) both earned New York State Class A all-state honors last winter and Philipkoski was also honored as the New York State Class A Player of the Year.

SUSTAINED SUCCESS
The Daemen program has been built on sustained success, winning at least 19 games in 11 of the last 12 seasons. That span encompasses the end of Daemen's NAIA Era, its NCAA transition period and the first eight seasons of full NCAA Division II membership. The Wildcats have won 72% of their contests, going 247-98 in that span. Looking more recently, Daemen is 120-45 since the start of the 2017-18 season (.730 winning percentage).

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 has posted 20 wins this last two seasons, but was denied an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament each year.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
St. Thomas Aquinas (11-3, 3-1 ECC) suffered its second-straight defeat and first conference loss of the year following a 107-102 loss at Roberts Wesleyan last weekend. The Spartans opened ECC play with three-straight wins over Mercy (106-784), District of Columbia (98-88) and Staten Island (79-77). STAC was ranked No. 1 in the region for five-straight weeks before dropping to No. 2 in this week's poll. Nationally, the Spartans are receiving votes in this week's NABC Division II poll and are ranked 16th in the D2CSC poll. The Spartans went 26-5 overall (15-1 ECC) and claimed their fourth-straight ECC Tournament title last year. STAC advanced t the NCAA Division II Tournament for the eighth-straight year and suffered a loss to Southern New Hampshire in the opening round. Matt Capel, a long-time assistant coach at STAC, was named ECC Coach of the Year in his first season as head coach last year. STAC returns three starters and 11 players from last year. The Spartans lead the ECC and rank 13th nationally in points per game (89.4). Sophomore forward James Patterson, the 2022-23 ECC Rookie of the Year, returns after averaging 14.4 points and 7.1 rebounds as a rookie. Patterson is a five-time ECC Player of the Week selection this year and ranks fourth among the NCAA Division II leaders in points per game (24.4). He is also contributing 8.3 rebounds per game, which ranks third in the ECC. Senior Jamal Barnes leads the team in three-pointer field goals (37) and is averaging 12.0 points, while sophomore Kyle Pulliam is averaging 10.9 points. STAC was ranked first in the ECC preseason coaches' poll.

SERIES HISTORY
Friday's game will mark the 31st all-time meeting between Daemen and STAC. The Spartans have prevailed in four of the last five meetings and own a 20-10 advantage in the series. The teams split their two regular season meetings last year, before STAC posted a 72-66 win in the ECC Tournament championship game.

SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS
Mercy (1-13, 0-4 ECC) remained winless in conference play following an 89-83 loss at Roberts Wesleyan last weekend. The Mavericks opened ECC play with three-straight losses to STAC (106-74), Staten Island (81-61) and District of Columbia (76-60). Mercy went 6-20 overall and 3-13 in ECC play last year. Chris Watts is in his second season as head coach. Mercy lost two of its top three scorers from last season and returns just seven players. Senior forward Jayden Dewaal is back after averaging 12.3 points and 10.7 rebounds last year. He has started all 14 games this year and is averaging 16.7 points and a league-high 11.3 rebounds. Additional production has come from senior Alex May (14.3 points), junior Taj Chiles (10.3 ppg, 3.5 apg) and graduate student Garrett Kirkland (9.4 ppg, 38 3pt FGs). Mercy was picked ninth in the ECC preseason coaches' poll.

SERIES HISTORY
Sunday's game will mark the 21st all-time meeting between Daemen and Mercy. Daemen has prevailed in all of the previous 20 meetings.

ON THE HORIZON
Daemen is idle until next weekend when they host conference games against Molloy (Jan. 26) and Queens (Jan. 28).

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.

Print Friendly Version