1/27/21
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College Men's Basketball team is set to take on their sixth nationally ranked opponent this season, when they take on NJCAA Division II #11 SUNY Orange County on Thursday, January 27^th, at 7:00pm ET in the Lackawanna Student Union. The Colts will be the fourth nationally ranked foe that the Falcons have faced in 2022. Overall, Lackawanna College is 0-5 against nationally ranked opponents this year. 
 
About The Falcons
The Falcons (5-9) have had a week off, after ending a five-game skid with a 76-61 road victory over Mercer County CC last Wednesday. Lackawanna shot 48% from the field for the game, hit 76% of their free throws, and had four players in double-figures to secure the win. Gabe Springer led all scorers with a career-high 16 points off the bench, while also pulling down nine rebounds. Will Johnson added 15 points, and Brandon Scott chipped in 13 points. Both Johnson and Scott went a combined 10-for-14 from the free throw line. Nashawn Johnson added a season-high 12 points, the first time all season he's broken double-figures for the Falcons. Read more about the win HERE.
 
Jaylen Davis, who has missed the last five games for Lackawanna College, is the team-leader in scoring, averaging 16.1 points per game so far this year, along with 9.3 rebounds per game, also first on the team. "JD" has scored in double-figures in eight of nine games this year, going over 20+ points three times, and scoring a season-high 25 points against PSU-Hazleton on opening night. Davis's 16 rebounds against Morris was a season-high, giving him his third double-double of the season. Davis is shooting 54.3% from the field on the year, and averages 1.8 assists per game, along with 1.6 blocks per game this year.
 
Will Johnson is the second-leading scorer this year, averaging 11.7 points per game. Johnson has scored in double-figures in his last nine games, including back-to-back games of 20+ points. He had a season-high 21 against Raritan Valley in December, then followed it up with 20 points, on 6-for-11 shooting against Ulster on December 11^th. Johnson leads the Falcons with 3.4 assists per game this season, and is tied with Magd Abdelwahab as the team-leader in steals with 11 takeaways. Johnson is one of the better Falcon free throw shooters, averaging 79% from the charity stripe this season.
 
Pope is third on the team with 10.7 points per game on the year. Pope, who has started for the Falcons in his last five games, is hitting around 41% of his shots this year, and leads the Falcons with 20 made three-pointers. Pope leads the Falcons from the free throw line, hitting 81% from the line, and has scored in double-figures seven times this year, including his season-high 19 points twice now, against Harcum and SUNY Sullivan. Pope hit a season-high four three-pointers against Cecil, his first start of the season. In his last five games, all starts, Pope is averaging 14.6 points per game, 4.2rebounds per game, and shooting 40% from the field, while knocking down ten three-pointers. Pope had nine points and three rebounds in the win over Mercer.
 
Daryl Coleman, who has missed the last five games for the Falcons, is fourth on the team in scoring, with 9.3 points per game this season. Coleman is also averaging 5.8 rebounds per game, and is the team's second-best three-point threat, hitting 16 threes this year. Coleman has scored in double-figures four times this season, including a season-high 20 points against Mercer County CC. Coleman put up ten points and six rebounds, along with three assists, against Morris last month, but was 0-for-6 from downtown.
 
Ahmir Ellzy is fifth on the team with 7.6 points per game this season. Ellzy, an All-Region selection from last year, had 13 points and a season-high seven rebounds against Morris last month. Ellzy has hit double-figures four times this year. Ellzy is third on the team with 2.5 assists per game this season. Ellzy returned to action against Catonsville for the first time in three games, scoring three points and pulling down three rebounds off the bench. He scored two points and had four rebounds and two assists against Mercer.
 
Magd Abdelwahab is tied with Ellzy at 7.6 points per game this year. Magd has hit double-figures four times this year, including his season-high 23 points against Niagara County CC earlier this season. Magd is hitting 36% of his shots this year, is second on the team with 15 made three-pointers, and is also second on the team with 2.7 assists per game. Magd scored 21 points against Catonsville, including 15 in the second half. At one point, Magd scored 10 straight points for the Falcons to get them back into the game. Magd scored just one point, but dished out five assists in the win over Mercer.
 
Gabe Springer is second on the Falcons with 7.8 rebounds per game, and is averaging 6.1 points per game, while also leading the team in blocks (19) this season. Before his 16-point performance against Mercer, his career-best was a 14-point, 19-rebound, 4-block performance against Erie earlier this year. Springer rejected six shots, a season-best, against Ulster, while pulling down 12 rebounds against the Senators. The 16 points against Mercer gave Gabe his third game in double-figures this season. Gabe returned to action against Catonsville after missing the first three games of 2022, coming off the bench in the second half and pulling down four boards.
 
Brandon Scott is averaging 7.3 points per game in his eight appearances this year. He's an efficient 53% from the field, and is also averaging 3.9 rebounds per game. Scott's 13 points against Mercer was the second time he's scored in double-digits this season. He had a season-high 16 points against Harcum College.
 
Nashawn Johnson, who was also an All-Region selection last year, is averaging just over five points per game this season. Johnson has seen his role increase with absences from some other players in recent games, and had his season breakout game against Mercer, where he scored a season-high 12 points.
 
Lackawanna College, averaging around 75.5 points per game as a team, is shooting at 40.3% as a team this season, and is shooting 26.2% from beyond-the-arc. Lackawanna is also shooting 67% from the free-throw line. Lackawanna College holds a +6 rebounding margin, and has 63 blocks as a team. The Falcons are holding their opponents to 44.2% shooting so far this year, and teams have hit 32.3% of their three-point attempts against the Lackawanna College defense. Falcon opponents are scoring around 84 points per game this year.
 
Coach Landon Gabriel is in his second season as the head coach for Lackawanna College. Coach Gabriel was hired in 2020 to lead the Falcons program, and rebuild them into a contender. Gabriel spent the previous eleven years coaching at his alma mater, Carbondale Area, where he helped the Chargers boys basketball team to numerous PIAA District II playoff appearances. Gabriel is a King's College graduate, where he played basketball for the Monarchs.
 
About the Opponents
The Colts are perfect on the year at 12-0, and are currently ranked #11 in the latest NJCAA Division II polls. SUNY Orange County was last in action this past Tuesday, when they hosted their fellow nationally ranked opponent, #18 Raritan Valley. The Colts came back from a 15-point deficit to pull off the win at the buzzer, 86-84, and remain undefeated. Darius Boben scored the game-winning lay-up just before the horn, after a defensive play gave the Colts possession with three seconds to go. Orange had four players in double-figures, and shot 55% from the field, while dishing out 26 assists as a team. Boben and Nicholas Molina each had a team-high 21 points, while Tim Linton added 20 points and 12 rebounds. Kevin Stein had six points, five rebounds, and a game-high 14 assists.
 
SUNY Orange is averaging around 99 points per game this season, and has crossed the 100-point barrier five times this year. They had a season-high 135 points at Post University JV back in December. The Colts are one of the most efficient teams in the country, shooting a blistering 59% from the floor. They hit around 33% of their three-point attempts, and shoot 70% from the charity stripe. Orange has a +13 rebounding margin on the year, and averages nearly 25 assists per game. Their opponents are scoring around 72 points per game, and are shooting 39% from the field on the year. The Colts average ten steals per game, and just over four blocks per game. SUNY Orange is 3-0 against Region XIX opponents this season.
 
SUNY Orange has five players scoring in double-figures this season in a balanced offensive attack. Romeo Aquino is the high-scorer, averaging 19.6 points per game this year. Aquino is shooting over 68% from the field, and is second on the team with 8.1 rebounds per game. He's also second on the team in assists per game (4.3) and in steals per game (2.0). Aquino has scored in double-figures in 11 of 12 games this year, and has topped 20+ points five times, including hitting over 30 points twice. His season-high is 35 points at Post University JV, where he hit 15-of-17 shots from the floor. Aquino has four double-doubles on the year, one coming when he scored 21 points and dished out ten assists against Kingsborough. He had a season-high 12 rebounds against Post JV, and also once had a season-high 11 assists against Monroe Bronx. Aquino scored 14 points, pulled down nine rebounds, and dished out four assists against Raritan.
 
Kevin Stein is second on the team at 18.3 points per game this year. Stein shoots nearly 58% from the field, and hits around 52% from downtown, averaging a team-high 2.6 three-pointers per game. Stein leads the country in assists per game, dishing out 9.8 helpers per game. He also finds time to rip down 6.8 rebounds per game, third on the squad. Stein has hit double-figures ten different times this season, going over 20 points on six different occasions. He had a season-high 30 points against Mercer County CC, where he was 10-for-14 from the field, five of those being three-pointers. Stein has one triple-double on the year, when he had 25 points, ten rebounds, and ten assists in a win over Kingsborough. He also has seven double-doubles on the year, five coming because of double-digit assists. Stein had a season-high 18 assists against the Post JVs. He's hit double-figure assists in his last five games, averaging 13.2 assists per game over that span.
 
Nicholas Molina is third on the team at 18.1 points per game. Molina is also shooting well, hitting 56% from the field, and is 38% from beyond the arc. Molina averages 2.3 assists per game, and is third on the team with 1.5 steals per game this year. Molina has scored in double-figures in 11 games this year, including his season-high of 31 against Monroe College Bronx. He had a season-high 14 field goals made in that game. Molina had 21 points and hit a season-high four three-pointers against Raritan Valley.
 
Darius Boben and Tim Linton are tied for fourth on the squad, averaging 14 points per game, apiece. Boben is shooting 60% from the field, and leads the team in steals at 2.1 per contest. He also averages 2.3 assists per game and 3.8 rebounds per game. Boben has hit double-figures nine times this year, twice over 20 points, and had a season-high 22 points against SUNY Rockland earlier this year. Boben had a season-high five steals against Mercer, and had 21 points, five rebounds, and three steals against Raritan Valley.
 
Linton is among the most efficient shooters in the country, hitting a team-high 72.8% from the field, ranking him third in the NJCAA DII. Linton also leads the team with 8.6 rebounds per game this year, and also leads the team in blocks at 1.3 per game. Linton has topped double-figures ten times this year, including three games of 20 or more, and his season-high of 26 points came against Monroe College Bronx. Linton has not had a game in which he's hit less than 50% of his shots. Linton has six double-doubles on the year, snagging a season-high 14 rebounds against Monroe College Bronx. Linton scored 20 points, on 10-for-13 shooting, and grabbed 12 rebounds against Raritan Valley.
 
The head coach for the Colts is Tom Rickard, now in his 11^th year at SUNY Orange, and 10^th full season overall, since the Colts did not compete last year due to COVID. Rickard was originally hired as the head coach of the program back in 2006, succeeding his father Paul, who had been the coach for 25 years. Rickard, a SUNY Orange alum who scored over 1,000 points as a Colt, spent eight seasons as an assistant before taking over. He was head coach for seven years, and guided the program to four 20+ win seasons. After six years away, Rickard came back to the program for the 2018-2019 campaign, and has helped the Colts to another 20-win season in 2019-2020. Rickard is 180-99 in his 10 seasons at SUNY Orange.    
 
Game Information
The match-up is set for a 7:00pm tip-off at the Lackawanna Student Union. Tickets will be sold at the door for both adults ($5) and students ($3), with Lackawanna College students getting in for free with their Student ID. A reminder that current Lackawanna College Athletics policy is that all spectators MUST wear a face mask at all times in the gymnasium. The Lackawanna College Spectator Policy can be found HERE.
 
For those who cannot attend, the game will be video livestreamed at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube. Steve Young will provide the play-by-play, and Sports Information Director Tom Ferguson will provide color commentary.
 
The next game for the Falcons is scheduled to be an away contest on Saturday, January 29^th, when they travel to Newark, NJ to take on the Essex County College Wolverines in a key Region XIX match-up. The game is set to be the second of a doubleheader with the women's teams. The men's game will tip at 3:00pm ET.