12/8/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – Lackawanna College men's basketball has a little payback on its mind, as the Falcons travel to Raritan Valley CC for a big Region XIX clash on Thursday, December 8^th.  The Falcons dropped all three of their contests to Raritan Valley last year, including falling in the Region XIX semi-finals on the road, ending their season.
 
The game is set for a 7:00pm ET tip-off inside the Raritan Valley CC gymnasium, and will be the second game of a doubleheader, with the women's teams scheduled to start at 5:00pm ET. There will be a video livestream available via the Raritan Valley CC Athletics YouTube channel, linked HERE.  
 
About The Falcons
Lackawanna College (7-2, 2-1) is off to its best start 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. Tonight's match-up is the second of three straight away games this week for the Falcons. Last time out, Lackawanna won a blowout on the road at Penn State Hazleton, 97-60. It was the most points in a win and the biggest margin of victory for the Falcons since March of 2019. Against Hazleton, the Falcons had eleven of 12 players score, and put five players in double-figures in the win. Lackawanna was an efficient 62% from the field for the game, and were led by Aamir Mack's 16 points, all off the bench. Julian Wilson added 13 points off the bench, and Rahmad Ali and Malek Mims each had eleven points for the Falcons.  
 
The Falcons are averaging 81 points per game this season, allowing 72 points per game on the year. The Falcons are shooting 46.6% from the field, but have struggled from deep, hitting just 28%. Lackawanna gets to the free throw line a lot, having made almost as many free throws as a team (141) as their opponents have attempted this year (156). Lackawanna is shooting 61% from the free throw line. The Falcons average 41.3 rebounds per game, with a nearly +7 margin, and they have forced an average of 20 turnovers per game, with around 10.7 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 19 Lackawanna turnovers per game.   
 
Nasir Brown (Wilmington, DE) leads the Falcons in scoring at 18.1 points per game on the season. He's second on the team in rebounding (5.3) and leads the team in 3PT FGs made (14). Brown is tops on the team in FT% (72%), and is third on the team with 14 steals this season. He's hit double-figures in seven of the first nine games, and had gone for 20 or more points in four straight games before the game against PSU Hazleton. 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 Hazleton, Brown scored nine points, all in the second half, in 13 minutes of work.
 
Malek Mims (Bethlehem, PA) is second on the team with 12.1 points per game this season. Mims leads the Falcons in steals (21), and averages 3.4 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 (25) this year. Mims has scored in double-figures seven 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 PSU Hazleton, Mims had eleven points on 4-for-6 shooting, and put up three assists and a pair of steals in 18 minutes of action.   
 
Aamir Mack (Atlantic City, NJ) is third on the team in scoring, averaging 10.4 points per game. Mack averages 4.6 rebounds per game, and hits around 51% of his shots from the field. Mack also hits around 61% 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. In his last game, Aamir went for 16 points on a season-best seven made shots, while pulling down five rebounds and dishing out a pair of assists in 21 minutes against PSU Hazleton.      
 
Caleb Mims (Bethlehem, PA) is fourth on the team at 10.1 points per game this year. Mims leads the Falcons in assists (27), and averages 3.7 rebounds per game from his guard position. He's also second on the team in steals (15). Mims shoots 44% from the field, and leads the Falcons in made free throw shots (32), shooting 65% overall from the line. Mims has scored in double-figures five times this year including four games in a row prior to the Hazleton match-up. 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 six points and three steals in 14 minutes against PSU Hazleton. He's had two or more steals in four straight games.    
 
Rahmad Ali (Newark, NJ) is averaging seven points per game this season, while also pulling down 4.4 rebounds per game, fourth on the team. Ali is third on the squad with 22 assists, and is fourth on the team in steals (12). Ali is shooting around 52% from the field this year, and is shooting 40% (8-for-20) from downtown this season. Rahmad has gone for double-figures three this season, and had his best game against Essex, scoring a season-high 14 points on 5-for-6 shooting, including a pair of three-point shots. He also had four rebounds against the Wolverines. Ali had an all-around stellar game against Hazleton, scoring eleven points, putting up six rebounds and a season-high six assists, and also posting a season-best four steals in 21 minutes against the Nittany Lions. Ali was not healthy for last year's trifecta of games against Raritan Valley.    
 
Julian Wilson (Williamsport, PA) missed the first few games with injury, but has seen his minutes increase as of late. Wilson is averaging seven points per game in his five appearances, and has pulled down 3.6 rebounds per game so far this campaign. Wilson is shooting around 69% from in close at the basket, and has really come on in his last two contests. 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 is a former Lackawanna football player, who joined the basketball team this season.
 
Nashawn Johnson is averaging 6.9 points per game this year, and has started the last five games for the Falcons, where they've gone 4-1. He's first on the team with seven rebounds per game, and is shooting around 43.6% from the field so far this season. Johnson 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 four points and a pair of rebounds in 16 minutes of action against PSU Hazleton. Nashawn has faced Raritan six times in his Lackawanna career, and he's averaging 10.8 points and 4.2 rebounds per contest against the Lions. Johnson put up 23/7/4 against the Lions back in March of 2021, helping the Falcons win the Region XIX championship. Last year, Johnson played in two games against Raritan, scoring a combined 19 points, 13 of which came in the Region XIX semi-final on the road.
 
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.  
 
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
Raritan Valley (7-4, 2-1) had a bumpy start to the season, going 2-4 through its first six games, but the Lions have rattled off five in a row, most recently staving off an upset bid by Mercer County CC, 80-67, this past Tuesday night. The Lions fell behind early to the Vikings, trailing 21-10 with 12 minutes to go in the first half, before rocketing back in front, outscoring the Vikings 37-8 the rest of the half. Mercer made a comeback, getting within a pair of possessions of the Lions, but Raritan managed to stay in front for the win. Veteran Dan Dextraze led the team with 24 points and nine rebounds, banging home five three-pointers, while Elijah Bruno added 19 points and five assists. Damon Strand came off the bench to score 16, while Malachi White added 12 as a sub.
 
Raritan Valley is averaging 83.4 points per game this year, while giving up around 75 points per game to their opponents. The Lions are hitting 42% of their shots this year, while knocking down 33% from downtown, around eight threes per game. The Lions are also great from the free throw line, averaging 77% on an average of 26 shots from the charity stripe per game. Raritan takes care of the ball, turning it over an average of 13 times per game, while forcing around 14 turnovers per game, ten per game coming on steals. Opponents are shooting 43% from the field against the Lions this year. The Lions have a -4.2 rebounding margin this season.
 
Raritan Valley has four players averaging double-figures, and the team-leader is the aforementioned Dextraze, scoring 21.5 points per game so far this season, jumping nearly ten points from his average last year. Dextraze is shooting 48% from the field this season, and leads the Lions from three-point land, hitting 38% of his shots from deep, and averaging just shy of three makes per game from downtown. Dextraze also hits 79% of his shots from the free throw line, and averages six makes per game. Dextraze leads the team in rebounding (9.3 per game), and blocks (2.2 per game), and is second on the team in steals (2.1 per game). Dextraze has scored in double-figures in every game this season, and has gone for 20 or more in eight games, including his last five appearances. His season-high came in the 89-63 win over Lehigh Carbon, where he scored 28 points on 9-for-17 shooting. Dextraze has six double-doubles on the year, his best game coming in the OT loss to Chesapeake, where he scored 25 points and had a season-best 15 rebounds. Dextraze had 24 points and nine rebounds, hitting five three-pointers, in the win against Mercer County CC.  In three games last year, Dextraze had a combined 33 points, 25 rebounds, and six blocks against Lackawanna.
 
Damon Strand is second on the team with 15.1 points per game this year. Strand is shooting nearly 54% from the field this season, best on the team, and is averaging 36% from three-point range, second on the squad. Strand is second on the Lions with six rebounds per game this year, and is also averaging 1.5 assists per game and 1.6 steals per contest. Strand has hit double-figures in scoring seven times this year, going for his season-high 31 points in an 87-81 win over SUNY Westchester. He was 11-for-17 from the floor, a season-best, and made four three-pointers in the win. He set his season-high with eight rebounds in a loss to County College of Morris earlier this season. Strand had 16 points and four rebounds in the win over Mercer County on Tuesday.
 
Eddie Davis is third on the team, averaging 14.7 points per game so far this season. Davis is hitting around 41% from the field, and 23% from deep this season. He's the team-leader in free throws (86%), and also leads the Lions in assists (3.6 per game) and steals (2.2 per game). Davis also averages 4.3 rebounds per game from his guard position. Davis has hit double-figures in scoring eight times this season, scoring his season-high in the opener, a 68-67 loss against Monroe CC, where he scored 25 points on a season-high seven made shots. Davis has gone over 20 points three times this year, including his last appearance, where he scored 22 points in an 82-70 win over Delaware Tech last Saturday. Davis also had a season-high six assists in that win. He did not play against Mercer on Tuesday. Davis had 28 points, 13 assists, and seven rebounds in two games against the Falcons last season. He saved his best for the most important game, scoring 19 points and dishing out ten assists in the Region XIX semi-final, hitting a team-high five three-point shots in the win.
 
Alif Bass is fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 11.4 points per game this year. Bass is shooting around 41% from the field this year, and is hitting just over 31% of his three-point attempts. Bass is second on the team in assists (3.5 per game) and averages just over a steal per contest. Seven times he's gone for double-digits, including his season-high of 21 points in the OT loss to Chesapeake. Bass has twice hit six assists in one game, and had a season-best three steals in the win over Bergen earlier this year. Against Mercer, he was held to 3-for-11 from the field, scoring seven points and posting four rebounds in the win against the Vikings.
 
Ruben Reyes is averaging 7.9 points per game this season, having started all eleven games for the Lions this year. Reyes is an 82% free throw shooter, and is shooting 29% from the field on the year. He averages around three rebounds per contest, and just shy of two assists per game. Reyes has gone for double-digits in points on five separate occasions, including his season-high of 21 in the OT loss to Chesapeake, where he hit a season-best six three-pointers. Reyes was held without a bucket, but had three rebounds and three assists in 19 minutes of work against Mercer county.
 
The head coach for Raritan Valley is Kevin Ryan, now on his second stint with the Lions. Ryan took over the program in 2012, going 10-14 overall. That would be the last season in which the Lions did not make the Region XIX playoffs under Ryan. The next year, he went 20-7, capturing a GSAC championship, COTY aware, and finishing as runner-up in the Region XIX playoffs. Ryan would step away after the '17-'18 campaign, only to come back a year later, leading the Lions to the Region XIX championship game, where they'd finish as runners-up. He'd do it again a year later in the pandemic-shortened '20-'21 campaign, only to finish as runners-up again, this time against Lackawanna College. Ryan is in his tenth season at Raritan Valley, and is 147-92 in his tenure
 
Game Information
The game is set for a 7:00pm ET tip-off inside the Raritan Valley CC gymnasium, and will be the second game of a doubleheader, with the women's teams scheduled to start at 5:00pm ET. There will be a video livestream available via the Raritan Valley CC Athletics YouTube channel, linked HERE.  
 
Lackawanna College continues its road swing with one last game this week, when it travels to SUNY Ulster on Saturday, December 10^th. That game is set for a 1:00pm ET tip-off in Stone Ridge, NY.