Skip To Main Content

Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
Zach Philipkoski leans into a defender while dribbling along the baseline
Geoff Schneider
61
Daemen Daemen 20-1,8-0 ECC
79
Winner Gannon Gannon 16-2,9-1 PSAC
Daemen Daemen
20-1,8-0 ECC
61
Final
79
Gannon Gannon
16-2,9-1 PSAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Daemen Daemen 36 25 61
Gannon Gannon 37 42 79

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men's Basketball Sees Long Winning Streak Snapped At #10 Gannon

ERIE, Pa. – The Highmark Events Center continues to be a house of horrors for the Daemen University men's basketball team.

Daemen saw its NCAA-best 51-game regular season winning streak come to an end following a 79-61 loss to Gannon University tonight. The matchup featured two of the top-10 ranked teams in NCAA Division II (Daemen No. 2; Gannon No. 10). It marked the Wildcats' first regular season loss since Feb. 9, 2024 (at Staten Island), sending their overall record to 20-1 this season.

On the flip side, Gannon improved to 16-2 overall, and the Golden Knights have won 42 of their last 46 games at the Highmark Events Center. Daemen was seeking its first win there since 2011, but instead dropped to 1-11 all-time at the venue.
 
IMPACT PLAYERS
  • Redshirt junior forward Precious Idiaru led a quartet of double-figure scorers for the hosts, finishing with 16 points to go with five rebounds.
  • Sophomore guard Pace Prosser added 15 points, six board and five assists, while senior wing Victor Desmond and sophomore guard Lucas Sekasi chipped in 11 points apiece.
  • Junior guard Zach Philipkoski (New Hartford, N.Y.) led all scorers with 21 points to pace the Wildcats - his ninth game this season with 20 or more. He added eight boards and two steals.
  • Redshirt junior forward Phil Nwugwo (Rochester, N.Y.) equaled his season-high with 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting, while also grabbing eight rebounds.
  • Redshirt senior foward Justin Hemphill (Buffalo, N.Y.) notched nine points, seven rebounds, five assists and four blocks. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
  • Gannon raced out to a 9-2 lead and held the Wildcats without a lead of their own until Nwugwo scored a layup with 30 seconds left in the opening half. Sekasi converted two free throws to put Gannon back ahead, 37-36, at halftime.
  • Daemen took a 40-39 lead on a pair of Philipkoski free throws early in the second half, but Gannon's defense stiffened and held the Wildcats without a point for more than seven minutes. The Golden Knights seized control during that span, embarking on a 14-0 run that was capped by back-to-back layups by Desmond and Prosser.
  • Daemen got the deficit to nine points (55-46) on a runner by senior guard Justin Glover (Buffalo, N.Y.), but never got any closer for the remainder of the contest.
  • Gannon outscored Daemen 42-25 in the pivotal second half, and forced the Wildcats into a season-high 27 turnovers - their first game with at least 25 since Jan. 11, 2023 (vs. Roberts Wesleyan). 
  • Gannon shot just 41.9 percent from the field (31-for-74), but committed just seven turnovers. The +20 turnover disparity resulted in 18 more field goal attempts for the hosts, as Daemen connected on just 24-of-56 shots from the field (42.9%). Gannon also held sizable advantages in fastbreak points (25-13), steals (14-4), points off turnovers (25-4) and points in the paint (48-34). 
GAME NOTES
  • Daemen remained No. 2 in the latest NABC coaches' poll. The Wildcats returned 13 players from last year's 28-1 squad and have been in the top four in every poll this season.
  • The Wildcats were picked to finish first in the East Coast Conference preseason poll for the third time in the last four years. Daemen sits atop the ECC standings with a 8-0 record in league play.
  • Gannon improved to 12-2 all-time against Daemen, and avenged their loss to the Wildcats last season. Daemen's 82-70 win at Lumsden Gymnasium on Jan. 18, 2025 snapped the Golden Knights' 15-game winning streak. 
  • Daemen is now 4-1 against nationally ranked opponents this season. The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak in such matchups.
  • Today's loss also snapped Daemen's 18-game road winning streak which was the longest across three levels of NCAA men's basketball.
  • Daemen entered the game as one of only three remaining unbeaten teams in Division II, along with No. 1 Washburn (18-0) and No. 5 Cal State East Bay (16-0). 
  • Daemen was once again without the services of redshirt junior center Benjamin Bill (Hamburg, N.Y.). The 6-foot-10 Bill, a consensus All-American and reigning East Coast Conference Player of the Year, missed his 10th straight game with an injury. He is expected to return this season.
  • Glover notched seven points tonight as he continues to close in on 1,000 for his career. He stands at 983 points in 104 career games played. 

UP NEXT
Daemen returns to the friendly confines of Lumsden Gymnasium to host crosstown rival D'Youville University this Saturday, Jan. 24 with tip-off slated for noon. 
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 University men's basketball program on Twitter and Facebook at @DaemenMBB.
 
Print Friendly Version