NCAA Division II Elite Eight
No. 4 (#4 seed) Daemen Wildcats (33-1) vs. No. 23 (#5 seed) Lander Bearcats (28-5)
Wednesday, March 25 | 8:30 PM | Pittsburgh, Pa. | UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse
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NCAA Championship Central
STILL DANCING!
The storybook season continues for Daemen! Back in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight for the first time since 2021, the No. 4 ranked Daemen University men's basketball team will face #5 seed Lander University on Wednesday, March 25 at 8:30 PM at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse in Pittsburgh, Pa. Boasting a 33-1 overall record, the Wildcats enter the Elite Eight as the #4 seed in the tournament, marking Daemen's highest seed in program history, after cruising through the East Region tournament last weekend. Winners of the Southeast Region, Lander comes into the Elite Eight with a 28-5 record. The winner of tomorrow's game will advance to the Final Four to face the winner of #1 seed Nova Southeastern and #8 seed Black Hills State on Friday at 8:30 PM.
EAST REGION CHAMPS
The Wildcats advanced to the Elite Eight after a dominating performance in the East Region tournament at Lumsden Gymnasium.
Hosting the regional for the second year in a row, the top-seeded Wildcats cruised to a 111-78 victory over #8 seed Goldey-Beacom in the regional quarterfinals. Daemen's 33 point victory marked the largest NCAA Tournament win for the Wildcats in program history. An impressive six Daemen players finished with double-digit points, paced by
Benjamin Bill (Hamburg, N.Y.) who totaled 22 points after going 9-of-10 from the field. The Wildcats shot a season-high 64.2 percent from the field, including knocking down 70 points in the paint.
The Wildcats earned their spot in the regional championship game with an 85-62 semifinal win over #5 seed Saint Michael's. Facing a tough Saint Michael's team that came back from a 16-point deficit to defeat No. 4 seed Bentley in the quarterfinals, Daemen capitalized in the second half after leading the Purple Knights by 11 at the break, shooting 52.9 percent from the field in the second half while banking 18 shots from the field. The Wildcat defense held Saint Michael's to shoot just 40 percent all game and out-rebounded Saint Michael's 40 to 29 along with totaling five blocks and three steals and forcing 14 turnovers. Four Daemen players finished with double-digit points, led by the tremendous efforts of redshirt junior center Bill at the blocks who finished with a game-high 21 points while shooting 9-of-11 from the floor.
Zach Philipkoski (New Hartford, N.Y.) added 16 points,
Ryan Heath (Rochester, N.Y.) totaled 12, and
Justin Glover (Buffalo, N.Y.) finished with 11.
The top-seeded Wildcats punched their ticket to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight with a commanding 94-73 victory over #3 seed Saint Anselm in the regional final. It marked the second East Region title in program history for the Wildcats and the first since 2021. Daemen expands on their record-breaking season, improving to 33-1 on the year and will represent the East Region at the Elite Eight in Pittsburgh, Pa. on March 25. It was a two-point game at the half, 43-41, but Daemen exploded in the second half, out-scoring Saint Anselm 51 to 32 in the final 20 minutes. The Wildcats commanded the game, shooting 56.3 percent (36-of-64) from the field as well as an impressive 46.7 percent (14-of-30) beyond the arc. The Cats were paced by 2026 East Region Most Valuable Player
Zach Philipkoski who scored 40 points off 11 three-point field goals. Philipkoski banked 11 of Daemen's 14 triples in the win. Bill and Heath were both named to the East Region All-Tournament Team.
ALL AMERICAN
Zach Philipkoski became the third consensus All-American in Daemen program history on Tuesday after being named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II All-America Team, as well as earning Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) All-America Third Team accolades. Philipkoski joins
Benjamin Bill (2025) and Andrew Sischo (2021) as the only consensus All-Americans from Daemen. In his standout junior campaign, Philipkoski has taken the reigns of Daemen's high-powered offense, leading the team with a team-high 18 points and 3.7 assists per game along with 7.1 rebounds per game. Philipkoski is shooting 51 percent from the field and 41.8 percent beyond the arc. Scoring in the double-digits for all but two games this season, Philipkoski totaled 20+ points in 13 different games, and is coming off his most dominant performance yet in the 2026 NCAA Division II East Region championship where he finished with a career-high 40 points after draining 11 three-point field goals. A three-time ECC Offensive Player of the Week and one-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week awardee this season, Philipkoski was named the Most Outstanding Player of the East Region tournament after averaging 22 points per game en route to the Wildcats winning the East Region and punching their ticket to the Elite Eight. He was also named to ECC All-Tournament team after averaging 15 points per game en route to Daemen's second straight ECC Tournament title.
ROCK THE BLOCK
The Wildcats lead Division II men's basketball in blocks with 195, averaging 5.7 blocks per game. On the year, 13 players have recorded blocks, with
Justin Hemphill leading the Wildcats with 52 (1.5 blocks per game), Bill adding 39 (1.7 blocks/game),
Phil Nwugwo (Rochester, N.Y.) adding 38 (1.2 blocks/game) and Philipkoski totaling 31 (0.9 per game).
DEFENSE
Of the eight teams left playing Division II men's basketball, Daemen's team defense ranks second with the Wildcats allowing just 66.3 points per game (17th in the nation). The Wildcats are one of three Elite Eight teams ranked in the top-20 behind only Cal State East Bay (6th in DII, 63.1 ppg). Michigan Tech ranks 19th in the country with 66.5 points allowed per game. They also own a +9.7 rebounding margin per game (fourth in Division II) and are holding opponents to just 39.5 percent field-goal shooting (ninth in Division II).
DAEMEN IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Making their third straight and sixth all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats boast a 7-3 record all-time in the East Regional and a 7-4 overall record in the NCAA Tournament. Daemen is 0-1 all-time in the Elite Eight. The Wildcats advanced to the East Region championship game for the second time in program history (2026, 2021) and won the region for the second time in program history to advance to the Elite Eight. In 2024, the Wildcats entered the regional tournament as the #4 seed and took down #5 seed Jefferson (74-66) in the quarterfinal round before falling to #1 seed Saint Michael's (62-86) in the regional semifinals in Colchester, VT. Hosting the East Region tournament in 2025 as the No. 1 team in the country riding a perfect 27-0 record, top-seeded Daemen cruised to an 80-68 win over #8 seed Bridgeport in the quarterfinals, but ran into ECC rival St. Thomas Aquinas for the fourth time in the season in the semifinals. As the #5 seed in the tournament, the surging Spartans mounted a second-half comeback to stun the Wildcats 74-79 and end Daemen's perfect season prematurely. Daemen's first ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament was in 2019 where they earned an at-large bid as the #5 seed in the region but fell (67-72) to #4 seed New Haven. The Wildcats' best postseason run came in 2021 where they topped #3 seed Bloomfield (81-69) and beat #1 seed St. Thomas Aquinas 71-70 to win the East Region for the first time in program history and advance to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight. As the #8 seed in the Elite Eight, Daemen fell to #1 seed West Texas A&M (83-97).
BIG TIME BEN BILL
A 2025 consensus All-American, Daemen's all-star center
Benjamin Bill has put up another successful season, earning NABC Second Team All-District honors for the second consecutive season. Bill picked up where he left off at the beginning of the 2025-26 campaign, averaging 19 points and 10.2 rebounds per game with six double-doubles until a lower body injury sidelined him on Dec. 12. Bill spent weeks sidelined and rehabbing, and after missing 11 games, he returned to the starting lineup on Jan. 31. In the past 12 games since he has been back on the court, the redshirt junior center averages 15.6 points per game. On the year, Bill is shooting an incredible 61.8 percent from the field while averaging 16.6 points and 7.7 rebounds per game along with 39 blocks. He was named the 2026 ECC Tournament Most Outstanding Player and earned a spot on the East Region All-Tournament team.
MOST WINS IN PROGRAM HISTORY
The Wildcats are in the middle of a historic season, posting a program-record 33 wins this year (33-1 overall) as well as recording their second straight undefeated mark (16-0) in ECC regular season play. The Wildcats became the first ECC team to post back-to-back undefeated regular seasons since Philadelphia Textile in the 1992-93 and 1993-94 seasons. Daemen had just one ECC game decided by single digits, and owned a +22.6 points per game scoring margin in all conference games this season. They've won 38 consecutive ECC regular season games, a streak that dates back to February of 2024. Since the start of the 2024-25 season, Daemen men's basketball has compiled an outstanding 61-2 overall record.
ECC WINNERS x2
The Wildcats earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by winning the East Coast Conference Tournament for the second year in a row. As the regular season champions and hosts of the tournament, the top-seeded Wildcats advanced to the ECC title game for the sixth straight season with a 73-59 win over #5 seed D'Youville in the semifinals on Saturday night. Sunday's championship game was a Western New York affair as the Wildcats squared off against #6 seed Roberts Wesleyan who punched their ticket to the title game for the first time in program history after knocking off #2 seed St. Thomas Aquinas in their semifinal game. Daemen dominated their longtime rivals from the start and cruised to an 86-66 victory over the Redhawks to bring bring home the hardware yet again. Redshirt junior
Benjamin Bill was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament after averaging 22 points per game, while redshirt senior
Justin Hemphill (Buffalo, N.Y.) and junior
Zach Philipkoski were each named to the All-Tournament Team.
JUSTIN "SWISS ARMY KNIFE" HEMPHILL
Justin Hemphill continues to impress in his redshirt senior season, becoming the fifth Daemen player to earn ECC Defensive Player of the Year along with earning First Team honors for the second straight season. A five-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week and one-time Player of the Week honoree this season, Hemphill ranks fourth in the conference averaging a team-high 8.5 rebounds per game while adding 11.7 points, 5.2 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.9 steals per game. The Buffalo, N.Y. native recorded his 1,000th career point on Nov. 18 over #5 Fairmont State, becoming the 29th player in team history to reach this milestone. He ranks 15th in points, third in blocked shots and fifth in steals, rebounds and assists among Daemen's all-time leaders. Hemphill is now the only player in program history with at least 1,000 points, 700 rebounds and 300 assists. He is presently the only player to rank among the ECC's top five leaders in rebounds (2nd), assists (3rd), blocks (4th) and steals (5th). Hemphill has also posted a team-best nine double-doubles this season, and his 13-point, 11-rebound, 11-assist outing vs. Mercy on Feb. 13 marked the first triple-double by a Daemen player since Dec. 17, 2014 (Gerald Beverly vs. St. Thomas (Fla.)). Hemphill was named to the Trevor Hudgins Top 15 Award Watch List, an award gifted to a player with the most outstanding collegiate career in small college basketball. He was named to the ECC All-Tournament Team after averaging 11.5 points and eight rebounds per game.
J GLOVE
Justin Glover was named to the Second Team All-ECC for the second consecutive season. In his senior campaign, Glover ranks fourth on the team offensively with 11.0 points per game while shooting 38.4 percent from the field as well as a 36.6 percent three-point shooting percentage. The Buffalo, N.Y. native ranks 5th in the ECC with 2.2 three-point field goals per game, scoring multiple triples in 20 games on the year. Glover has scored in the double digits in 20 matches this season, knocking down a season-high 20 points against Staten Island on Jan. 11. During Daemen's 90-65 win over D'Youville on Jan. 24, Glover became the 30th player in team history to reach the 1,000 point milestone. In his third season as a full-time starter, Glover has appeared in 117 games with 94 starts to his credit, and he now ranks 25th in career scoring (1,127 points) and ninth in career three-pointers (175) among Daemen's all-time leaders.
BIG TIME CONTRIBUTIONS
Junior
Ryan Heath (Rochester, N.Y.) has made an impact in the starting lineup this season, averaging 9.9 points per game while shooting an impressive 51.3 percent from the field. Daemen's shifty point guard plays some stellar shutdown defense too and has been paired up against some of the top guards in the region during this tournament. In the East Region semifinal victory over Saint Michael's, Heath held SMC's guard Quintin Floyd, who leads the Purple Knights in scoring, to zero points through the first half of play. On the year, Heath has 47 steals (1.4 per game) and 96 assists (2.9 per game).
Redshirt junior
Phil Nwugwo (Rochester, N.Y.) stepped up in a big way while Bill was out of the lineup and has shined ever since. During the 12-game period that Nwugwo started for the Wildcats, he averaged 12.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game including a double-double (17 points and 11 rebounds vs. Mercy on Dec. 12) along with 1.75 blocks per game (including a career-high five blocks vs. UDC on Jan. 9). Since Bill's return to the lineup, Nwugwo has remained a pivotal player off the bench and is averaging 9.8 points per game over the past 11 games.
MAC ATTACK
Leading the Wildcats on another storybook season, head coach
Mike MacDonald is named ECC Coach of the Year honors for the third time after guiding Daemen to another undefeated ECC season (16-0) en route to the No. 4 ranked Wildcats' 33-1 record season mark. Daemen became the first ECC team since Philadelphia University (1993-94) to tally back-to-back undefeated conference records. The Wildcats earned their fourth ECC regular season title in program history, collected their second straight ECC Tournament title and has the program record for wins (33). Under MacDonald's leadership, the Wildcats have won 38 consecutive ECC regular season games and have a 61-2 overall record in the past two seasons. Ranked fourth in the final NABC coaches' poll, Daemen has been ranked in the top-5 for 27 consecutive polls.
SCOUTING THE BEARCATS (SOUTHEAST REGION CHAMPS / 28-5, 17-3 PBC)
Ranked No. 23 in the final NABC poll of the season, Lander claimed the #5 seed in the Elite Eight. Wednesday's meeting with Lander marks the first time the Wildcats and Bearcats meet on the court. After winning the Peach Belt Conference title, the Bearcats earned the #2 seed in the Southeast Region and punched their ticket to the Elite Eight by winning the region. Lander took down #7 seed Lincoln Memorial (76-71), #6 seed Columbus State (74-66) and beat #4 seed Lenoir-Rhyne 86-62 in the regional championship game. The Bearcats (28-5) are on a 13-game win streak and advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1998-99. Lander averages 80.6 points per game while allowing an average of 69.3 points and have four double-digit scorers. Freshman Jacob Daniels leads the Bearcats with 13.7 ppg while shooting 55.2 percent from the field and doles out 5.5 assists per game. Sophomore Greyson Pritzl averages 13.4 ppg and is Lander's biggest threat beyond the arc, shooting 41.7 percent from three-point land. Senior Dylan Canoville and freshman Bobby Crawford Jr. both average 1.4 blocks per game on the year.
