Game Center:
With a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) victory over Holy Family on Saturday afternoon, the Post University men's basketball team can match its win total from last season with 13 triumphs. The Eagles will host the Tigers at the Drubner Center at 3 p.m. on Feb. 2. Post has dropped three of its last four contests.
Game Notes:
Last Time Out: Felician 71, Post 64 – Recap | Box Score
Post dropped a CACC contest at Felician on Tuesday night. The final score was 71-64. Junior
Devin Willis led the Eagles with 17 points. Sophomore
Braxton Gardner led all Post reserves with eight points, his best output since he joined the Eagles this season.
After Felician opened up a 13-3 lead over the first 3:51, a spurt that was capped by a triple by Anthony D. Green. However, with 7:52 to play in the opening stanza, Gardner sank a pair of field goals on consecutive possessions to pull Post within five. The Eagles trailed 17-12 at the 7:17 mark.
The Last Meeting: Jan. 21, 2012 – Holy Family 78, Post 70 – Recap | Box Score
The Eagles suffered a 78-70 loss at Holy Family on Saturday afternoon in a CACC game at the Campus Center.
Jake Wilcox notched his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 13 assists. He did not commit a turnover in the game.
For the eighth time this season, the Eagles were led by guard
Josh Lopez, who scored 21 points. Lopez shot 5-for-8 from three-point range and 6-for-11 from the field overall. He added eight rebounds, three assists and a steal.
Reginald Holding Jr. also contributed 10 points.
Over a span of 2:46 to close the first half and open the second half, Holy Family used a 13-0 run to claim an advantage Post could not overcome. In the final 96 seconds of the first half, the Tigers scored eight consecutive points to take a 41-32 halftime lead. Eric Fleming hit a pair of three-pointers to close the first half.
All-Time Series With Holy Family:
Post is 6-8 against Holy Family since 2004. The Eagles have won four of the six games at home. Prior to a defeat last season in Philadelphia, Post had won three consecutive meetings.
Previous Results:
1/21/12............. A..... L, 78-70
2/12/11............. H.... W, 82-57
2/13/10............. A.... W, 81-75
2/7/09............... H.... W, 94-81
1/8/08............... A..... L, 84-68
1/20/07............. H.... W, 67-65
12/2/06............. A..... L, 75-63
2/28/06..... A (CACC).. L, 73-72
2/21/06............. H..... L, 80-68
1/21/06............. A..... L, 79-76
2/19/05............. H ..L, 111-105 (OT)
1/15/05............. A..... L, 91-81
1/24/04............. A.... W, 91-85
1/6/04............... H W, 105-102
Scouting the Tigers:
Holy Family leads the CACC South Division in wins with eight and is just behind Philadelphia for the top spot in the division. The Tigers are 12-8 overall and 8-3 in the CACC. Holy Family has won six of its last seven outings and averages 68.2 points per game. Ervin Ezell leads the Tigers with 17.2 points and 38.2 minutes per game. Ezell is ranked third in the CACC in scoring. Angel Ayala leads the team in rebounds with seven per night.
Triple Seven:
For the second time this season, junior
Zach Krischer hit seven three-pointers in a game on Jan. 26, at Goldey-Beacom. He also nailed seven triples on Dec. 30, against AIC in a 96-94 double overtime defeat. Additionally, classmate Stephen Perry drained seven three-point shots against Caldwell on Dec. 4. He was 7-for-13 from distance in the 72-55 victory.
Twenty Or More:
In Post's 21 games this season, four different players have eclipsed 20 points 14 times. Against AIC on Dec. 30, junior
Zach Krischer netted 30 points, the highest total to date this season. The last 30-point performance by a Post player was by Trevon Hamlet. He netted 32 points against Bloomfield on Feb. 17, 2010. Below is a list of all the 20-point performances this season.
Name – Date – Opponent – Point Total
Zach Krischer – 12/30 – AIC – 30
Jerry Cummings – 12/30 – AIC – 27
Stephen Perry – 12/4 – Caldwell – 27
Zach Krischer – 1/9 – Nyack – 26
Zach Krischer – 1/26 – at Goldey-Beacom – 25
Jerry Cummings – 11/10 – Queens – 23
Devin Willis – 11/28 – at Bridgeport – 23
Jerry Cummings – 11/20 – Concordia – 22
Stephen Perry – 11/20 – Concordia – 22
Stephen Perry – 11/17 – at LIU Post – 21
Zach Krischer – 12/19 – Felician – 21
Jerry Cummings - 12/1 - Wilmington – 20
Jerry Cummings – 11/14 – at Nyack – 20
Zach Krischer – 11/9 – at Molloy – 20
Race To 70:
When Post scores at least 70 points it sits at 11-1 this season while it is 1-8 when held below the threshold. In their victories the Eagles average 79.2 points per game. The team has netted a season-high 94 points in its last two contests. Post defeated Felician 94-70 on Dec. 19, and fell to AIC 96-94 in double overtime on Dec. 30. The output was the highest since the Eagles netted 99 points in a double overtime loss against Concordia on Jan. 19, 2011.
Game-Winning Shots:
With less than 30 seconds to play in games over the last two years, Post has hit four game-winning shots. On Jan. 12,
Devin Willis hit the game-winning triple against Caldwell to put the Eagles ahead 58-57. Earlier in the season,
Jerry Cummings had a tip-in with 2.1 seconds remaining in overtime against LIU Post on Nov. 17. The final score was 73-72. Last season,
Zach Krischer hit three-pointers to give Post wins over Bridgeport (Dec. 19) and Queens (Jan. 2). Krischer hit the shot against Bridgeport with 14 seconds to play, while his triple against Queens came with two seconds remaining.
Among The Nation's Elite:
In the NCAA Division II statistics report released on Jan. 27, Post is ranked in the top 15 in the country in a pair of categories. The Eagles sit fifth in three-point field goals made per game (10.2) and 13
th in three-point field goal percentage (41.2).
Powered By Individuals:
Three Eagles' student-athletes are ranked in the top 50 nationally in six statistical categories.
Jake Wilcox leads the conference and is ranked seventh nationally with 6.7 assists per game. He is also 16
th in steals per game with an average of 2.65. Wilcox sits 25
th in assist-to-turnover ratio with a mark of 2.44.
Sarunas Jackson is ranked 15
th in blocks per game and deflects 2.2 shots per night.
Zach Krischer is fourth in the nation in three-point field goals made per game with a mark of 3.65 and he is 41
st in three-point field goal percentage. He is shooting 40.8 percent from beyond the arc this year.
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.
Career Day In First Collegiate Start:
Freshman
Gediminas Juozapavicius made an impact in his first collegiate start against Bloomfield on Jan. 3, as he netted a career-high 13 points on 5-for-10 shooting from the field. He played a season-high 26 minutes against the Deacons.
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 four double-doubles. He has notched double-digit points and rebounds in each of the last two games. 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. On Jan. 9, he netted 12 points and snatched 10 rebounds as the Eagles swept Nyack for the third straight season. On Jan. 12, he tied for the team lead in scoring with 16 points and 13 rebounds.
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.
Suits And Sneakers:
On Saturday, Jan. 26 at Goldey-Beacom, the Post coaching staff participated in Suits and Sneakers in support of Coaches vs. Cancer. It is a nationwide event when coaches across the country unite for a common cause – saving lives from cancer. Coaches and their staff are encouraged to wear sneakers with their game attire while coaching games to raise awareness and promote the American Cancer Society.
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 travel to Dominican on Feb. 6, for a rematch with the Chargers. Game time is set for 8 p.m. in Orangeburg, N.Y.
