MEN'S AND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL HOSTS NEW HAVEN ON SATURDAY

11/19/2021 3:44:00 PM

By: James McGlynn, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications

Syracuse, N.Y. - ATTENTION ALL BASKETBALL FANS: The first Le Moyne College basketball double header of the 2021-22 season is scheduled to take place on Saturday, November 20, starting at 1 p.m. on Ted Grant Court. Both programs will be matching up with Northeast-10 Conference Southwest Division adversary University of New Haven Chargers. The two women's programs are set to battle first at 1 p.m., followed by the men's contest at 3 p.m. in what will be the first NE10 Conference game of the season for both Le Moyne teams.

LE MOYNE COLLEGE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL VS. NEW HAVEN PREVIEW:
The Dolphins are coming off a big 82-48 season-opening win against the East Stroudsburg University Warriors on Wednesday at Ted Grant Court to start off the season 1-0, while the New Haven Chargers will enter Saturday's matchup with a perfect 3-0 record, all non-conference wins.

Dolphin Report:
In Head Coach Mary Grimes' first game as the program's leader, the Dolphins came out of the gates firing, establishing a 24-6 lead by the end of the first quarter, and cruising to an 82-48 win at home to get the ball rolling on the 2021-22 campaign.

In their first contest, Le Moyne was led in scoring by senior forward Emma Brinker (East Aurora, N.Y./East Aurora), who finished the game with 26 points on 60% shooting from the field and a perfect 8-8 from the free-throw line. Brinker also contributed 11 total rebounds, including 10 on the offensive glass, two assists and three blocks.

Senior forward Jenna Zimmerman (Adams, N.Y./South Jefferson) tied her career high in rebounds against the Warriors, pulling down 16 boards to go along with six points in 34 minutes. Zimmerman has started every game in her Le Moyne career, with career averages of 9.3 points and 6.7 rebounds on an impressive .438/.360/.735 career shooting slash-line.

The starting front court of Zimmerman and Brinker exhibited a type of chemistry and rhythm in the interior that is the product of two seniors who have spent multiple years playing together and shared the experience of competing in and winning an NE10 Conference Championship.

Redshirt-junior guard Saeeda Abdul-Aziz (Schenectady, N.Y./Mohonasen/Davidson) had an impressive Le Moyne debut on Wednesday, knocking down six threes in 12 attempts and finishing the game with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Abdul-Aziz caught fire during the third quarter, and ignited the crowd with three straight threes, and another make that was waved off due to offensive three seconds. During her third quarter shooting frenzy, Abdul-Aziz displayed the rare quality of being able to draw everyone in the crowd to the edge of their seat whenever she came open off a screen and caught the ball behind the three-point line.

Lytoya Baker (Rochetser, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) did a little bit of everything for Le Moyne during the season-opener. The junior guard scored 11 points, grabbed eight rebounds, distributed four assists and produced four steals in 32 minutes. Baker appeared in 27 games and averaged 10 minutes during the 2019-20 season as a freshman, and this season looks ready to make a leap and become a key player for the Dolphins on both sides of the floor. In her 32 minutes played on Wednesday, Baker was constantly putting pressure on the Warriors defense, attacking the basket incessantly, many times with the intent to score, and often finding open teammates near the rim after probing the middle of the defense and drawing in multiple defenders. Yet she only committed one turnover in what was her first game since March of 2020.

Senior point guard Erin Fouracre (Loudonville, N.Y./Colonie Central) tallied three points, three steals and three assists against ESU. Fouracre was disruptive on the defensive end of the floor and active in the Le Moyne press that forced 22 total Warriors turnovers and held ESU to just six first quarter points. Fouracre will no doubt see better offensive games in the future, but the Dolphins have the comfort of knowing that no matter what, their senior point guard will find ways to positively impact the game.

wbbRoberts

Redshirt-freshman Haedyn Roberts (Holland Patent, N.Y./Holland Patent) played 14 minutes off the bench for Le Moyne in her collegiate debut, scoring five points and pulling down an impressive eight rebounds (four offensive, four defensive) in that time frame.

Junior Lexi Gruss (Binghamton, N.Y./Binghamton) played 19 minutes as a reserve guard for Le Moyne, contributing four points and four steals. For a team that looks to pressure on defense and play fast on offense, Gruss is a guard who can get up and defend, as well shoot the three with efficiency.

Gabriella Badway (Pittsburgh, P.A./Fox Chapel) also provided Le Moyne with some energy off the bench, making 3-4 free throws and grabbing one rebound, while also being an active part of the Le Moyne defensive pressure when inserted into the game.

First year players Carley Hill (South Burlington, V.T./Rice Memorial/New Hampton School) and Emily Florvil (Brooklyn, N.Y./Nazareth) also made their Le Moyne debuts on Wednesday night. Hill knocked down a three, while Florvil provided some vital energy in her minutes off the bench, specifically on the defensive side of the ball.

UNH Scouting Report:
The Chargers are led by third year head coach Debbie Buff, who has led the program to back-to-back 18-win seasons. New Haven won their first three games of the season: a 63-37 victory over Bloomfield on November 13, a 76-74 win against Georgian Court on November 14, and a 72-64 win at College of Staten Island on November 17. Senior guard Camryn DeBose leads the Chargers in scoring through their first three games, averaging 18.3 points in addition to 4.7 rebounds in 39.3 minutes.

Graduate guard Brie Pergola has averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4 assists per game, while junior forward Aurora Deshaies is averaging a double double with 14.3 points and 12.3 rebounds. Deshaies is shooting an impressive 61.3% from the field, however she is converting on just 38.5% of her shots from the free-throw line.

Graduate guard Bionca Chambers is averaging seven points, four rebounds and two steals per game for the Chargers, while junior forward Briana Van Cleaf is scoring 4.7 points per game and grabbing 7.7 rebounds per contest.

Matchup Context:
The last time the two women's basketball programs met in February of 2020, Le Moyne came away with a 77-38 win on Ted Grant Court. Earlier in the season, on November 23, 2019 Le Moyne traveled to Connecticut and suffered a 52-49 loss. The two teams met in the 2019 Northeast-10 Conference Championships Semifinals, and the Dolphins came away with a hard-fought 42-28 victory. That Le Moyne squad would go on to capture the NE10 Conference Championship after beating Bentley in the finals by a score of 67-45. In the last seven meetings between the two teams, Le Moyne is 5-2.

LE MOYNE COLLEGE MEN'S BASKETBALL VS. NEW HAVEN PREVIEW:
The Dolphins are coming off a tough loss on the road against Indiana University of Pennsylvania, an experienced and nationally-ranked squad who shot over 50% from three-point land during the rout, and dominated the interior as Le Moyne was playing without three of their bigger front court players. Le Moyne will enter their first home contest of the season with a 1-1 record, while the Chargers have recorded wins against College of Staten Island, D'Youville, and Molloy - with an average margin of victory of 33.7 points - to start off the year with a 3-0 record.

Dolphin Report:
Le Moyne earned a 97-96 road win at Roberts Wesleyan on November 13 to open the season, but got blown out on Tuesday against a much more seasoned IUP squad in what was an early season learning experience for a Le Moyne team with limited time playing together up to this point.

Kevin Constant (Lawrence, Mass./Central Catholic/Tilton School) leads Le Moyne in scoring so far this season, averaging 18 points in their two contests. The redshirt-freshman guard is shooting an astounding 63.3 percent from the field, and 88.9 percent from the free-throw line. Constant is also contributing 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals in 29.5 minutes per game.

mbbDavis

Fellow redshirt-freshman guard Christian Davis (Denver, Colo. Mullen/New Hampton School) is averaging 16.5 points, two rebounds,1.5 steals in 24.5 minutes per game, while shooting 57.9% from the field, 50% from beyond the three-point line and a perfect 5-5 from the free-throw line.

Sophomore point guard Jeremiah Washington (Chicago, ILL./Bogan/Ferris State) leads Le Moyne in minutes played so far this season, averaging 32 minutes per contest while scoring 10.5 points, grabbing 2.5 rebounds, producing 2.5 steals and dishing out a team-high 5.5 assists per game. The speedy and strong lead guard will routinely pick up the opposing point guard 90 feet away from his own basket, and sets the tone for the Dolphins fast-paced offense.

Senior guard Nino Hernandez (Gardner, Mass./The Winchendon School/Bryant), a vocal leader on the court for the Dolphins, is averaging nine points and 6.5 rebounds through the team's first two contests.

Junior forward Xavier Wilson (Spring Valley, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac/The Hotchkiss School/Central Connecticut State) is averaging 7.5 points and 2.5 rebounds in 16.5 minutes per game, while redshirt-freshman guard Jack Poirier (Scituate, Mass./Scituate) is averaging four points and one steal per game on 50% shooting from the field.

mbbWingfield

First year player Zy'Ever Wingfield (Richmond, V.A./Henrico/Fork Union Military Academy) scored eight points, pulled down eight rebounds, and blocked two shots in 27 minutes during Le Moyne's loss at Indiana University of Pennsylvania on Tuesday.

Seniors Nicholas Johnson (Silver Springs, M.D./John F. Kennedy/Frostburg State/Montgomery College) and Payton Hudson (Yonkers, N.Y./Our Saviour Lutheran/Iona/Independence C.C.) have each contributed significant minutes off the bench this season. Johnson is grabbing four boards per game, while Hudson is recording 2.5 steals per contest.

UNH Scouting Report:
Ted Hotaling is in the midst of his 11th season as head men's basketball coach at University of New Haven, and has led the Chargers to back-to-back NE10 Conference Championships Finals in 2019 and 2020. During the 2019-20 season New Haven went just 15-15 during the regular season, but made a run in the conference tournament before eventually losing in the championship game to Merrimack by a score of 51-46. The Chargers earned an NCAA tournament berth during the 2018-19 season, beating Daemen in the East Region Quarterfinal 72-67 before losing to No. 1 seed Saint Anselm 70-69 in the East Region Semifinal.

Junior forward Davontrey Thomas is averaging 22.7 points and 6.7 rebounds through three games for the Chargers while shooting 57.5% from the field, 43.5% on three-point field goals, and 92.3% from the foul-line.

Senior guard Quashawn Lane is averaging 11.7 points and four rebounds in 27.7 minutes per game for New Haven.

Senior forward Antonio Lopez is the third Chargers player averaging double-digit scoring numbers, producing 10.7 points per contest along with 5.7 rebounds.

Graduate guard Sean Smith Jr., and senior guard Victor Olawoye are each shooting above 50% from the field while averaging 7.7 and 7.3 points, respectively.

Matchup Context:
The last time these two men's basketball programs met was on March 1, 2020 in the Northeast-10 Conference Championship Quarterfinals, and the Chargers came away with a 75-73 win on their way to earning a spot in the tournament championship game.

Le Moyne had won both the regular season battles on the 2019-20 schedule (a 75-73 road victory on November 23, and a 69-65 win at home on February 8), but they say it's tough to beat a team three times in a single season.

In the last six meetings between Le Moyne and New Haven, the Dolphins are 4-2, but the average margin of victory over those six games has been 3.2 points, so each contest has been closely contested.

Print Friendly Version