Men's and Women's Basketball Set For 2012 Doubleheader Opener Against Bridgeport
BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Jan, 4, 2012) – The men's and women's basketball teams will open up the new calendar year of 2012 with the first ECC doubleheader on Wednesday, Jan. 4, against the Purple Knights of Bridgeport.
The first of the two games will feature the women's teams of both schools as the Pioneers will look to bounce back after falling to 8-5 on the season with a loss this past Friday, Dec. 30, against Franklin Pierce, 66-61. Two players tallied 20-plus points for Franklin Pierce to help propel the Ravens to a victory, as the team shot 52.2 percent from the field. C.W. Post was able to force 27 turnovers and held a 40-37 advantage on the glass despite the loss.
Samantha Kopp (Franklinville, N.Y.) led the effort with 19 points and nine rebounds for the Pioneers.
C.W. Post will also be looking for the first conference win of the season as the Pioneers have started out ECC play 0-2. Overall in the 13 games played, the Pioneer offense is generating 73.8 points a game while only allowing 65.8 points by opponents and has generated 16.0 assists per game on 27.5 field goals made a game. The squad has also outrebounded opponents on average of 7.5 rebounds per game while forcing 19.8 turnovers on opponents.
Felicia Joyner (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) has continued to lead the scoring column for the Pioneers as her average is now at 17.8 points a game while playing 35.5 minutes per game. Despite missing Friday night's games with an injury,
Nicolette Marciniak (Brooklyn, N.Y.) has still performed well this season with averaged of 11.5 points and 9.5 rebounds. The defense has also been strong in the backcourt, getting in the passing lanes and playing good on ball defense with
Kenyatta Sears (Hampton, Va.) and
Alexis Peters (Dorchester, Mass.) leading the team in steals with 2.2 and 1.8 steals a game respectively.
Bridgeport enters Wednesday's game with a 3-9 overall record and a 1-1 mark inside the conference. The latest game played resulted in a defeat for the Purple Knights to the USA Today/ESPN top-ranked Bentley, 83-66. Bentley went 27 for 30 from the free throw line during the game and outrebounded Bridgeport 39-25. The Purple Knights did manage to force 22 turnovers and Tanisha Carter led the way with 20 points and nine rebounds.
The Purple Knights are allowing 68.8 points scored a game while only scoring 65.6 a game as an offense. Opponents are also shooting 45.8 percent from the field and hold an average rebound margin of 5.6 against Bridgeport. The team's defense has had some success being able to cause 5.8 more turnovers a game then the offense gives up.
Carter comes in as the main threat for the Purple Knights, putting in 19.5 points a game and hauling in 9.1 rebounds a game. Aziza Patterson has also been strong, scoring 9.8 points a game to go along with 3.8 assists and 2.3 steals a game. The team's leading long-ranger shooter is Elino Avny, who has connected on 31 shots from beyond the arc to help boost her scoring average of 9.7 points a game.
The second game of the doubleheader matches up the men's teams from both C.W. Post and Bridgeport. The Pioneers of C.W. Post come into the contest looking to snap a three-game skid after dropping a close game, 84-80, against Southern New Hampshire on Friday, Dec. 30. The Penmen shot 57.7 percent from the field during the second half while the Pioneers only managed a 33.3 shooting percentage. Southern New Hampshire also generated 42 points off the bench and 50 points in the paint to help fuel a victory. The Pioneers did hold a 43-38 rebounding edge with
Vaughn Allen (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) leading the way with 14 of his own to compile with 17 points.
Stefan Bonneau (Middletown, N.Y.) led the way in scoring with 22.
Through the first 11 games, the offense for C.W. Post has put up a scoring average of 86.0 points a game and the defense has given up 81.7 a game on the defensive end. The offense has also been benefitted by 6.5 threes made a game while connecting on 19.7 shots a game from the line. The squad has also held an impressive margin on the glass with an 8.4 average rebounding average.
Bonneau remains the leading scorer at 22.6 points a game with a team-leading 28 threes made on the season while also leading the team with 15 steals.
Tobin Carberry (Hamden, Conn.) continues to shoot above 50 percent from the field to help is 20.5 point per game average and has also pulled in 6.8 rebounds a game. Allen leads the team in rebounding at an 8.9 average while scoring 12.9 points a game.
The Bridgeport men's team has jumped out to a 2-0 start in conference play and holds an overall record of 7-5. The team last played on Friday, Dec. 30, with a victory at Southern Connecticut, 81-68. Darian David had a very impressive scoring night with 38 points as he made 12 field goals and free throws a piece. The Purple Knights generated 29 fast break points and controlled the boards by a 48-37 advantage.
During the season, Bridgeport holds a better scoring average then the defense gives up through the first 12 games with averages of 76.5 points a game and 72.8 opponent points per game. The offense has shot 45.4 percent on the floor and have an average rebounding margin of 5.4 boards a game. The defense has also been strong with 8.8 steals per game.
The Purple Knight offense has four players with double-figure scoring numbers, led by David's 20.4 point per game output. He has connected on 23 shots from long-distance this season while also creating 26 steals on defense. Eion Lewis leads the team with 8.7 rebounds a game to go with 12.7 points per game from the forward position. Hakeem Rodriguez has created an impressive season stat-line with averages of 11.0 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.1 rebounds per game.
Both games will be rematches of last season's conference basketball championships, as each Pioneer team pulled out wins last year against each Bridgeport squad. The women's tip-off is set to begin at 5 p.m. with the men scheduled to follow at 7 p.m.