New Haven at Pace
Saturday, Nov. 22 - 3:30 p.m.
Pleasantville, N.Y. - Goldstein Fitness Center
Game Coverage: Video | Live Stats
Complete Game Notes (PDF)
Opening Tip
The University of New Haven men's basketball team continues the 2014-15 season with a Saturday afternoon trip to Pace. The Chargers began the 2014-15 season at Le Moyne suffering a 62-44 loss to the Dolphins. The Pace Setters come into Saturday's game at 1-3 overall, 0-1 in the NE-10. After falling to Rhode Island (Division I) 94-54 and Molloy 59-57, they picked up their first win of the year by defeating Saint Thomas Aquinas 75-68 on Sunday, Nov. 16. Pace opened its NE-10 slate in a 61-43 loss at Saint Rose on Wednesday night.
Last Time Out
The Chargers opened the 2014-15 season on Wednesday night in a 62-44 Northeast-10 Conference loss at Le Moyne. Senior center Cyrus James scored 13 points on 4-of-7 from the field and 5-of-9 from the charity stripe to lead the Chargers.
New Haven struggled shooting at Ted Grant Court, hitting just 27.8 percent of its attempts (15-54). The Chargers also shot just 46.7 percent from the foul line (7-15) and 25 percent from beyond the arc.
James added eight rebounds and two blocks to his statline in the opener. Jemal Mosley chipped in with 10 points off a trio of three-point field goals and a free throw, while the guard added two assist and a steal. Freshman Tommy Hunt finished the first start of his collegiate career with nine points on 3-of-11 from downtown. The rookie added three assists and a rebound. Starter Eric Anderson was held scoreless, but led all players with 11 total rebounds.
Reserves Jonny Ocasio, Joshua Guddemi and Levy Gillespie combined for eight points and nine rebounds off the bench.
The Chargers were out-rebounded by the Dolphins 42-33. UNH also committed more turnovers (12-8) and trailed in points in the paint (24-16).
Scouting Report
Pace comes into the game with a 1-3 overall record and 0-1 in conference play. After two straight losses, the Setters picked up its first win versus Saint Thomas Aquinas, before falling to NE-10 foe Saint Rose. The Setters are averaging 57.3 points per game while surrendering 70.5.
Shelton Mickell leads the team in points, averaging 14.8 per game while his 21 rebounds are good for second on the team. A close second in scoring is Kyle Pearson, averaging 13.0 points per game, currently the team's rebounding leader and 4th in assists.
Pace is looking to bounce back from their NE-10 loss to Saint Rose, where they fell to the Golden Knights 43-61.
Last Meeting(s)
The Chargers got the best of the Setters last season, winning both contests by scores of 73-62 in the first portion of the divisional play at Goldstein Fitness Center and 75-52 in February at Charger Gymnasium.
In their first meeting of the 2013-14 season, the Chargers took a commanding first half lead, 45-29 and never looked back. Despite a late surge by the Setters, New Haven won the contest by 11 points, propelled by shooting 48.8 percent from the floor and a plus-9 rebounding margin.
In the confines of Charger Gymnasium for their second contest of the season, the Chargers downed the Setters 75-52. Eric Anderson led the way recording a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
All-Time Series
The Chargers are 10-10 all time versus the Setters and have come out on top in the last five meetings. The last four meetings were decided by more than 10 points.
New Haven Notes: 2014-15 Season Preview
Coming off of a second consecutive appearance in the NCAA postseason and the program's first-ever trip to the Northeast-10 Conference Championship Game, the University of New Haven men's basketball team looks to preserve its place among the NE-10 and East Region elite in 2014-15. The Chargers return two starters and seven student-athletes in total for the fifth season under Head Coach Ted Hotaling.
The Chargers wrapped up the 2013-14 season with a record of 21-9 – their second straight 20-win campaign. New Haven was one of the nation's premier defensive teams last winter, ranking sixth in Division II with 62.5 points per game allowed and led the country with a mere 13.6 personal fouls committed per game. On the offensive end, the Chargers rated second in the country with just 8.9 turnovers per outing.
Frontcourt
Leading the way in the post for the Blue and Gold will be All-America forward Eric Anderson, who will enter his senior season ranked 29th all-time at New Haven with 1,099 career points. The two-time Northeast-10 Defensive Player of the Year and a 2013-14 First Team All-NE-10 and Daktronics All-East Region honoree, Anderson scored 15.8 points per contest and ranked second in the Northeast-10 with 11.7 rebounds per game. He also rated second in the conference with 2.5 blocks per outing.
Anderson has already claimed the New Haven all-time record with 197 career blocked shots, surpassing the 191 shots turned away by Herb Watkins from 1984-88. The only player in program history with 70 or more blocks in two seasons, Anderson's 75 rejections in 2013-14 surpassed Watkins' single-season program record of 73 blocks established in 1986-87.
Cyrus James, the Chargers' second returning starter, is also a force on the block. James was New Haven's most efficient scorer at 78-for-137 (56.9 percent) from the floor en route to 6.3 points to go along with 7.8 rebounds per game. He ranked ninth in the NE-10 in rebounding and 10th in blocked shots (1.2 bpg).
After missing all of the 2012-13 season due to injury, Samir McDaniels re-entered the fold last season and came off the bench in all 30 contests. McDaniels averages 2.6 points and 2.8 rebounds per game in his career with the Blue and Gold.
Jonny Ocasio came to New Haven from Hillsborough Community College last season, contributing 2.9 points and 1.7 rebounds per game. Ocasio knocked down eight three-pointers in 28 games played.
Rounding out the frontcourt is junior Joshua Guddemi, who has appeared in 41 career games. Guddemi has chipped in 1.1 points and 1.6 rebounds per outing to go along with 13 assists, seven steals and four blocked shots.
Backcourt
The Chargers will be tasked with replacing three starters from the backcourt, including two of the top-20 scorers in program history. Taking over point guard duties will be sophomore Jemal Mosley. New Haven's sixth man last season, Mosley averaged 4.1 points per game, knocking down 20 three-pointers, while appearing in all 30 contests.
Donny Powell, who appeared in eight games last season, is the only other returner to the New Haven backcourt.
Several highly touted freshmen will be called upon to contribute immediately for the Chargers. Jayson Cethoute was an All-CHSAA Class AA selection in his senior year at Archbishop Molloy in Queens. The 6-5 guard was a key contributor on Molloy's run to the CHSAA intersectional quarterfinals. Cethoute posted averages of 16.3 points and 8.5 rebounds en route to All-Queens Honors from both the New York Daily News and the TimesLedger. He was invited to play in the NYC Mayor's Cup Boys' Basketball High School All-Star Game.
A four-year starter at Capital Preparatory Magnet High School in Hartford, Levy Gillespie is the program's all-time assists leader and ranks third in school history in both points (1,959) and rebounds. During the 2013-14 campaign, he averaged 26.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 3.5 steals to guide the Trailblazers to a Constitution State Conference title. Gillespie was a four-time All-CSC honoree as well as a consensus First Team All-State pick by both the New Haven Register and Hartford Courant.
A 6-2 guard, Tommy Hunt was one of Rhode Island's top high school players in his senior season at St. Andrew's School in 2013-14. Hunt was a three-time All-State selection by the Providence Journal. He averaged 15.5 points per game in his senior season, helping the Saints to a 27-5 record. Hunt earned All-NEPSAC honors in his final scholastic campaign that ended with a trip to the NEPSAC Class AA semifinals.
Also entering the mix on the wings will be freshmen Eric Rankin – a First Team All-South Western Connecticut Conference talent at Stratford High School – and Wellsboro (Pa.) High School's First Team All-Northern Tier League guard Joseph Doganiero.
The Chargers will be without the talents of freshman Michael Bourke. Bourke, who will miss all of 2014-15 due to a preseason injury, was a First Team All-MAPL performer for the Hun School of Princeton last winter. The 6-3 guard helped the Raiders to a 2014 MAPL Tournament semifinal appearance. Bourke led the Hun School with 13.4 points per game and also topped the squad in assists and steals.
The Schedule
This year's 26-game schedule features nine contests against teams that qualified for NCAA postseason play in 2013-14, including the top seeds from last season's East and Atlantic regions.
Action kicks off with three Northeast-10 Southwest Division games. The slate begins at Le Moyne in Syracuse on Nov. 20 and at Pace on Nov. 22. The Chargers then begin their home ledger against American International on Nov. 25.
New Haven then travels to East Stroudsburg on Nov. 30 to meet last winter's top seed from NCAA Atlantic Region. The PSAC Champion Warriors, who were ranked as high as No. 2 in the NABC Poll last winter en route to a 30-2 final record, reached the Atlantic Region Championship Game.
The Blue and Gold resume East Region competition at home against Dowling on Dec. 3 before continuing their first trip through the NE-10 Southwest at Adelphi on Dec. 6. New Haven will conclude the fall semester on Dec. 9 at Charger Gymnasium against CACC foe Post.
Following a week-long hiatus during final exams, New Haven plays its final road game of the calendar year with a Dec. 17 trip to Saint Rose. The Chargers will then settle in for a four-game homestand, beginning with a Dec. 19 return contest against the team that ousted the Blue and Gold from last season's East Region Championship – Bloomfield.
After meeting the newly-dubbed Bears (formerly Deacons) from Bloomfield, the Chargers conclude 2014 with a pair of non-conference games against Northeast-10 opponents. Bentley visits Charger Gymnasium on Dec. 21 followed by a New Year's Eve encounter with Saint Anselm – an NCAA East Region Championship Finalist last season.
New Haven finishes off its homestand and first trip through the Northeast-10 Southwest Division with the defending East Region and NE-10 Champion Owls from Southern Connecticut State on Jan. 3.
NE-10 cross-divisional action starts in Manchester, New Hampshire for the season's second meeting with Saint Anselm on Jan. 7. The Chargers return to West Haven to host Assumption and Saint Michael's on Jan. 10 and 13, then trek back to the Granite State to battle Franklin Pierce on Jan. 17. The Ravens reached the NCAA East Region Semifinals last season.
After a trip to Waltham, Massachusetts for a second encounter with Bentley, the Chargers host Stonehill on Jan. 24 and Southern New Hampshire on Jan. 27.
A visit to Merrimack on Jan. 31 caps action against the NE-10 Northeast, as the Chargers then head to Moore Field House to complete the annual home-and-home series with Southern Connecticut State on Feb. 4.
A two-game homestand against Saint Rose on Feb. 7 and Le Moyne on Feb. 10 takes the Chargers into their final road trip of the season for a matchup ay Pace on Feb. 14 and American International on Feb 18.
New Haven's final regular season contest is against Adelphi on Feb. 24 inside Charger Gymnasium.
The top five teams from each division qualify for the NE-10 postseason, which begins with the First Round on Friday, Feb. 27. The NE-10 Championship Game is set for Saturday, March 7.
Up Next
The Chargers open up their 2014-15 home slate versus American International on November 25th. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. at Charger Gymnasium.m.
