12/10/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – After dropping Thursday night's road contest at the buzzer, Lackawanna College is set for its third road game in five days on Saturday, December 10^th, when they travel to Stone Ridge, NY to take on SUNY Ulster.
 
The game is set for a 1:00pm ET tip-off inside the Senate gymnasium on the campus of SUNY Ulster. There is no video livestream available for the game.   
 
About The Falcons
Lackawanna College (7-3) is off to one of its best starts since going 11-2 to open the first half of the 2017-2018 season. That year, the Falcons won their first six games, and were 8-1 before their second loss. This afternoon's match-up is the third away game in five days, and the last away game of the fall semester for the Falcons. Last time out, Lackawanna overcame multiple deficits, including an eight-point gap in the final minute, to push Raritan Valley CC to the brink, but missed a shot at the buzzer, falling 82-80 on the road against the Lions in New Jersey on Thursday evening. Nasir Brown and Rahmad Ali each had 15 points for the Falcons, while Malek Mims added 13 points, and Nashawn Johnson had 12 points. Read the full recap HERE.  
 
The Falcons are averaging 81 points per game this season, allowing 73 points per game on the year. The Falcons are shooting 45.7% from the field, but have struggled from deep, hitting just 29%. Lackawanna gets to the free throw line a lot, going 152-for-249 so far this season, a 61% clip. The Falcons average 41.4 rebounds per game, with a nearly +6 margin, and they have forced an average of 19 turnovers per game, with just shy of ten steals per contest for the Falcon defense. Opponents are shooting 40% from the field this season, and have hit 30% of their three-point attempts this year. Falcon opponents have forced an average of 18 Lackawanna turnovers per game.   
 
Nasir Brown (Wilmington, DE) leads the Falcons in scoring at 17.8 points per game on the season. He's second on the team in rebounding (5.4) and leads the team in 3PT FGs made (18). Brown is tops on the team in FT% (72%), and is tied for third on the team with 14 steals this season. He's hit double-figures in eight of the first ten games, and had gone for 20 or more points in four straight games already this season. His season-high of 25 points came against Essex two weeks ago. Brown hit a season-high ten shots from the field, and had four steals, tying a season-high. Against Raritan Valley, Brown had 15 points on four made three-pointers, while pulling down six rebounds and dishing out three assists.  
 
Malek Mims (Bethlehem, PA) is second on the team with 12.2 points per game this season. Mims leads the Falcons in steals (21), and averages 3.6 rebounds per game from his point guard spot. Mims has hit on 44% of his shots this season, and is second on the team in assists (26) this year. He's third on the team in made three-poitn shots (10) this season. Mims has scored in double-figures eight times this season, going for his season-best 20 points against Dundalk. In that game, he went 7-for-10 from the field, while pulling down six boards and compiling six steals. Against Raritan Valley, Mims had 13 points and five rebounds.    
 
Aamir Mack (Atlantic City, NJ) is third on the team in scoring, averaging ten points per game. Mack averages 4.3 rebounds per game, and hits around 51% of his shots from the field. Mack also hits around 60% of his shots from the free throw line this year. He leads the Falcons with five blocks this season. Mack has hit for double-figures in points five times this season, going for his season-high of 17 points in the opening contest against CCBC Catonsville. His best rebounding output was his seven boards against Baltimore City CC. Mack had 12 points and seven rebounds coming off the bench for the Falcons, shooting 5-for-11 from the field. Mack had six points and a pair of rebounds in the loss to Raritan Valley.      
 
Caleb Mims (Bethlehem, PA) is fourth on the team at 9.5 points per game this year. Mims leads the Falcons in assists (30), and averages 3.7 rebounds per game from his guard position. He's also second on the team in steals (15). Mims shoots 41.7% from the field, and leads the Falcons in free throw attempts (49), shooting 65% overall from the line. Mims has scored in double-figures five times this year including four games in a row at one point. He went for his season-high 16 points against SUNY Rockland. Mims had five assists in the win, and hit four shots from the field, while going 7-for-12 from the free throw line. Caleb had four points, four rebounds, and three assists in the loss to Raritan Valley.
 
Rahmad Ali (Newark, NJ) is averaging 7.8 points per game this season, while also pulling down 4.6 rebounds per game, third on the team. Ali is third on the squad with 23 assists, and is tied with Brown for third on the team in steals (14). Ali is shooting 50% from the field this year, and is shooting 44% (11-for-25) from downtown this season. Rahmad has gone for double-figures four times this season, and had his best game in his last game, where he put up a season-high 15 points in the loss to Raritan Valley. Ali made a season-best six shots from the field, including a season-high three three-pointers, and pulled down six rebounds, while posting two steals for the Falcons. Ali did not play last season, so he missed the match-up with SUNY Ulster.
 
Nashawn Johnson is averaging 7.4 points per game this year. He's first on the team with 7.2 rebounds per game, and is shooting around 40.6% from the field so far this season. He has scored in double-figures twice this year, and scored his season-high with 14 points in the win over Rockland, pulling down ten rebounds for his first double-double of the year. Johnson was an efficient 5-for-7 from the field. Johnson set a season-high with 16 rebounds in the win over Delaware Tech, also scoring seven points for the Falcons in the win. Johnson had 12 points and nine rebounds in the loss to Raritan Valley. Johnson had seven points and four rebounds in 13 minutes of action against SUNY Ulster last season.  
 
Julian Wilson (Williamsport, PA) missed the first few games with injury, but has seen his minutes increase as of late. Wilson is averaging 6.7 points per game in his six appearances, and has pulled down 4.2 rebounds per game so far this campaign. Wilson is shooting around 64% from in close at the basket, and has really come on as of late. Against Mercer, Wilson had 20 points and 12 rebounds, scoring 18 points in the last ten minutes of the second half. Against Hazleton, the big guy had 13 points in 18 minutes of work, pulling down four rebounds and going a perfect 6-for-6 from the floor. Wilson had five points and seven rebounds in his last game against Raritan Valley. Wilson is a former Lackawanna football player, who joined the basketball team this season.
 
Niare Poplar (Philadelphia, PA) has so far been one of the better bench players for the Falcons this year, averaging five points per game and 3.7 rebounds per contest in his nine appearances. Poplar is hitting 49% of his shots this season, and has gone 6-for-17 from three-point range this season. Poplar has scored in double-figures twice this year, posting his season-high of eleven in the win over PSU Hazleton, last time out. He made a season-high five shots from the field, and pulled down four rebounds in the victory. He did not appear against Raritan Valley.  
 
In his third season in charge, Landon Gabriel returns to the sidelines to lead the Falcons. Gabriel, who spent ten seasons coaching at Carbondale Area HS in the rough and tumble Lackawanna League, feels like this can be a season of positive momentum for the Falcons, where, now with his first true recruiting class, he can really implement the high-tempo defense and energy he wants to see from his squad. Gabriel is a King's College graduate, where he played for the Monarchs, after graduating from Carbondale Area HS before that.
 
About the Opponents
The SUNY Ulster CC Senators (2-5) come in on the wrong end of a five-game losing streak. In their last game, the Senators fell to Westchester 61-53 on Thursday evening. The Vikings held a 12-point lead at the break, and managed to hold off Ulster in the second half, despite both teams struggling to score. Westchester had nine blocks and six steals, while shooting around 33%. The 61 points was the lowest amount of points the Senators have given up in their five-game losing streak. In three games during this streak, Ulster has given up 99 or more points, including 123 to SUNY Orange in a 123-59 loss back on November 29^th.
 
SUNY Ulster is averaging around 74 points per game this season, and giving up a little more than 86 points per game this season. Through four games of statistics, the Senators are hitting around 47% of their shots, and are shooting a strong 47% from downtown. Their opponents are hitting around 44% and 36%, respectively, but average more makes from the free throw line (16) per game than Ulster attempts (11). Ulster opponents hold a +8 rebounding margin, and have forced the Senators into an average of 18 turnovers per game, and opponents have 12 steals per contest this year.
 
AJ Piedra is one of two Senators in double-figures, leading the team with 14.8 points per game this season. Through five games, Piedra had shot 60% from the field, and nearly 68% from downtown on the year. His 2.8 assists per game was tied for second on the team, and his 1.6 steals per game were first, heading into the game against SUNY Rockland. Piedra had scored in double-figures in four of the first five games for Ulster this season, posting his season-high with 25 points in the 87-59 win over Columbia-Greene. He was 9-for-14 with seven made three-pointers in the win for the Senators.
 
Youssouf Sissako is second on the team with 10.8 points per game this year. Entering the Rockland match-up, Sissako was shooting an impressive 62% from the field. He was the team leader in rebounds at ten rebounds per game, and had four blocks per contest on the year. Sissako had scored in double-figures in three of his first five games this season, including a season-best 15 points in the opener, a 106-84 win over UConn Avery Point. In that game, Sissako made seven shots, far-and-away his best of the year, and posted ten rebounds for a double-double. His season-high in rebounds came against Mercer, when he posted 12 rebounds and 14 points for a second double-double in the 79-64 loss.
 
Justin Green is third on the team, averaging 8.4 points per game this season. Green was shooting 65.5% entering the Rockland game. He averages two rebounds per contest in his five games, all off the bench. In his five games of action, Green has only hit double-figures once, scoring 15 points on 7-for-10 shooting in a 99-66 loss to SUNY Sullivan. Green set his season-high in rebounds with five against Mercer County earlier this season.
 
Jamik Carter is averaging 7.8 points per game this season, shooting 39% from the field on the year. Carter leads the team in assists (3.0 per game) and averages around three rebounds per game on the year, while also averaging one steal per game this year. Carter has one game where he scored in double-figures, which came in the first game of the year, scoring 12 points in the win over UConn Avery Point, pulling down a season-best six rebounds and dishing out four assists in the win.
 
Osman Murillo is averaging 7.6 points per game this season, shooting 38% from the field and hitting around 50% from deep on the season (5-for-10). Murillo is averaging 2.8 assists per game, and 2.6 rebounds per contest this year. Murillo hit double-figures in scoring just once this year, going for 11 points in the win over UConn Avery Point. He had a season-high five rebounds in the loss to Mercer, and set his season-high in assists with six in the win over Columbia-Greene.
 
The head coach for SUNY Ulster is Marques McKinney, now in his third full-season and fourth year overall at Ulster. McKinney took over the program ahead of the '19-'20 season, after several assistant coaching stints at Cazenovia College, Medaille College, New York Institute of Technology, and Onondaga Community College. McKinney has been a coach on the various summer basketball camp circuits for a number of years, and competed at the junior college level when he played at Dutchess CC from '02 to '04. McKinney has his Associates Degree from Dutchess in 2005, and earned a Bachelor's Degree from SUNY Empire State College in 2016. 
 
Game Information
The game is set for a 1:00pm ET tip-off inside the Senate gymnasium on the campus of SUNY Ulster. There is no video livestream available for the game.  
 
Lackawanna College has one more game in the fall semester, a home game on Thursday, December 15^th against County College of Morris. Tip-off is set for 7:00pm ET, and will be the second game of a doubleheader, with the women's teams set to play first at 5:00pm ET.