Game Center:
Sunday, Dec. 30 – 3 p.m.
Post vs. American International College
Drubner Center – Waterbury, Conn.
Coverage: Live Stats | Video (Subscription-based) | Twitter Updates |
After an 11-day recess, the Post University men's basketball team will wrap up the 2012 calendar year when it hosts American International in a non-conference contest at the Drubner Center on Sunday, Dec. 30. Game time is set for 3 p.m. The Eagles' nine wins entering the contest will round out the calendar year with the highest win total in recent history. Post notched five wins prior to the New Year in 2010-11 and 2003-04.
Junior
Jerry Cummings (Queens, N.Y.) leads the Eagles in scoring and rebounding with 15.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. The offense is complimented by classmates
Stephen Perry (Westampton, N.J.) and
Zach Krischer (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) who chip in 13.5 and 12.6 points per game respectively. The Eagles shoot 43.4 percent from the field as a team and lead the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) in three-point field goal percentage. They boast a mark of 43.3 percent from beyond the arc.
Game Notes:
Last Time Out: Post 94, Felician 70 –
Recap |
Box Score
Powered by a season-high 94 points and two career-highs from individuals, the Post University men's basketball team returned to its winning ways on Wednesday night with a 94-70 victory over Felician in a CACC contest at the Drubner Center. Junior
Zach Krischer turned in a season-high 21 points to lead all scorers. It was the third time this season the Eagles led from start to finish.
Krischer netted his second 20-plus point scoring performance of the season as he scored 20 in the season-opener against Molloy. He shot 8-for-10 from the field and 5-for-7 from distance. Juniors
Travis Carbajal and
Derrick Strong scored career-highs of 18 and 17 points, respectively. Carbajal added six rebounds and Strong contributed six assists and two steals. Senior
Jake Wilcox, who is ranked ninth in the country in assists per game, notched a game-high seven assists.
Race To 70:
When Post scores at least 70 points it sits at 9-0 this season while it is 0-3 when held below the threshold. In their victories the Eagles average 81.7 points per game. The team netted a season-high 94 points against Felician on Dec. 19, and was the highest scoring output since 99 points in a double overtime loss against Concordia on Jan. 19, 2011.
Among The Nation's Elite:
In the NCAA Division II statistics report released on Dec. 18, Post is ranked in the top 25 in the country in four categories. The Eagles sit third in three-point field goals made per game (11.3), eighth in three-point field goal percentage (43.4), 17
th in three-point field goal defense (27.7 percent), and 24
nd in blocked shots per game (4.7).
Powered By Individuals:
Four Eagles' student-athletes are ranked in the top 20 nationally in four statistical categories. In two of the stats, the Post player also leads the CACC for individuals who are at the NCAA minimum requirement.
Jake Wilcox leads the conference and is ranked ninth nationally with 6.8 assists per game. He is also 16
th in steals per game with an average of 3.0.
Sarunas Jackson is ranked 10
th in blocks per game and deflects 2.64 shots per night. That mark leads the conference. Shooters
Zach Krischer and
Stephen Perry are both in the top 20 in three-point field goal categories. Perry and Krischer are ranked 13
th and 20
th respectively in three-pointers per game with marks of 3.36 and 3.18. Perry is sixth in three-point field goal percentage. He shoots at a clip of 52.1 percent.
Eight Straight Wins:
After its season-opening loss to Molloy on the road, Post won eight straight contests, including four at home. The winning streak is the longest under head coach
Al Sokaitis and it has matched the longest in the program's NCAA Division II history. The streak was snapped in a 70-66 overtime defeat against CACC foe Chestnut Hill on Saturday, Dec. 8.
CACC Player Of The Week:
Junior guard
Stephen Perry was named the CACC men's basketball player of the week on Tuesday, Nov. 27. In a pair of Post home wins, Perry shot 10-for-15 from three-point range and 11-for-18 from the field as Post collected home wins over Concordia and Queens last week. He netted 22 points in the team's second straight CACC win, an 87-70 decision over Concordia, to open the season, including six triples made. Perry rounded out the week with a 5-for-7 performance from the floor as he scored 15 points against Queens in an 83-67 win. For the week, he shot a perfect 5-for-5 at the foul line and averaged 18.5 points per game in the victories.
Double-Doubles:
This season,
Jerry Cummings has notched the team's lone pair of double-doubles, and the first two of his career. In the Eagles' first win, a 79-78 overtime victory over Queens, Cummings turned in 23 points and 10 rebounds. Against Wilmington on Dec. 1, he netted 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in Post's 80-60 win over CACC foe Wilmington.
Dialed In From Distance:
Over a seven-game span from Nov. 14 – Dec. 4, the Eagles are shooting 48.1 percent (90-for-187) from three-point range. During the stretch, Post did not shot less than 43 percent from three-point range. The Eagles hit a season-high 16 triples and shot 64 percent from beyond the arc in an 86-48 win at Nyack on Nov. 14. As a team, Post has shot greater than 50 percent from distance in three games during the stretch.
All-Time Series With AIC:
Post is 2-3 all-time against AIC and has won two of the last three meetings between the two schools. However, the Yellow Jackets earned a 20-point victory exactly two years ago at the Drubner Center. Garvin McAlister led Post with 14 points and six rebounds.
Previous Results:
12/30/10........... H..... L, 76-56
1/2/10............... A.... W, 70-62
11/17/07........... N.... W, 68-45
12/17/05........... A..... L, 63-56
1/3/05............... H..... L, 77-63
Scouting the Yellow Jackets:
AIC enters its first contest since the holiday break with a record of 4-5 overall and 2-4 in Northeast-10 play. The Yellow Jackets dropped a pair of scrimmages against Division I opponents to the University of Connecticut (73-68) and the University of Massachusetts (87-82) in November. AIC has dropped its last three contests and most recently fell 67-47 to Molloy on Dec. 12. The team averages 67.6 points and 37.6 rebounds per game. It shoots just 39.2 percent from the field and 34.2 percent from beyond the three-point arc. Defensively, AIC is one of five teams in the Northeast-10 that holds teams under 40 percent shooting from the field. Its opponents shoot just 39.4 percent from the floor. Spencer Braithwaite leads the Yellow Jackets with 13.1 points per game and Ricky Hudson adds 12.9 points per game. David Campbell pulls down a team-best 8.9 rebounds per game and chips in 12.2 points per night.
Coming To A TV Near You:
Post's 94-70 win over Felician on Dec. 19, was taped by CPTV Sports and will continue to air on the network throughout the winter months. Check out
http://www.cptvsports.org for channel listings and a broadcast schedule.
Receiving Votes:
For three straight weeks, Post received votes in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Top 25. On Dec. 11, the Eagles garnered four votes and were 28 votes behind #25 Alaska-Anchorage. Post began receiving national consideration on Nov. 27.
Previous Vote Totals:
-
Dec. 11 – Four votes
-
Dec. 4 – 12 votes
-
Nov. 27 – Six votes
Internationally Known:
Post men's basketball head coach
Al Sokaitis was named the Tanzania national head coach of the men's and women's basketball programs on Aug. 29. The goal is for the country to qualify for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.
Preseason Prognostications:
The Eagles were tabbed to finish third in the North Division of the CACC Preseason Coaches' Poll, which was released on Monday, Nov. 12. Post totaled 59 points and one first place vote from the league's 13 head coaches. Sokaitis' team was picked behind Bloomfield and Dominican in the North Division.
On The Horizon:
Post will begin a stretch of 12 consecutive CACC contests on Thursday, Jan. 3, when it hosts Bloomfield College in a North Division showdown. Game time is set for 8 p.m. at the Drubner Center and will conclude a four-game homestand. The Deacons were picked to win the North Division and were awarded nine first place votes in the CACC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
