2/17/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College Men's Basketball team, with their Region XIX playoff appearance guaranteed for next week, will close out the regular season with a tough road test. The Falcons will travel to Loch Sheldrake, NY to take on the third-ranked SUNY Sullivan Generals on Thursday, February 17^th. Tip is set for 7:00pm ET. It's a rematch from a game played last month, where the Generals handed a short-handed Falcons squad a 104-66 loss at the Lackawanna Student Union. Read the recap HERE.
 
About The Falcons
The Falcons (8-15) come into the game with a little momentum on their side, having won their last two in-a-row, and three out of their last four. Lackawanna College knocked off SUNY Rockland on Tuesday night in their home finale. The Falcons won 73-56, overcoming a painful offensive start for both teams, thanks to Will Johnson's hot three-point shooting in the second half. Johnson led the Falcons with a season-high 25 points, including 7-for-9 shooting from downtown. Read the recap HERE.
 
Jaylen Davis is the team-leader in scoring, averaging 15.4 points per game so far this year, along with 8.8 rebounds per game, also first on the team. "JD" has scored in double-figures in 15 games this year, going over 20+ points five times, and scoring a season-high 31 points against Monroe College last weekend, where he went 13-for-16 from the field and had 14 rebounds. Davis had 16 rebounds against Morris earlier this year, which is his season-high, and he now has seven double-doubles this year. Davis is shooting 54.6% from the field on the year, and averages 2.1 assists per game. Against Delaware Tech, he set his season-high with seven assists. Davis has not hit double-figures in his last two games. He scored six points and had six rebounds in the win over Rockland. JD was not available and did not play against SUNY Sullivan back in January.  
 
Will Johnson is the second-leading scorer this year, averaging 11.7 points per game. Johnson has scored in double-figures in 14 of his last 18 games. Earlier this year, Johnson had back-to-back games of 20+ points. He had 21 against Raritan Valley in December, then followed it up with 20 points, on 6-for-11 shooting against Ulster on December 11^th. He hit his season-high with 25 points against Rockland in his last game. He set his season-highs of nine shots made, and seven three-pointers made. Johnson leads the Falcons with 4.1 assists per game this season, and also leads the Falcons with 24 steals this year. Johnson is tied for the Lackawanna lead in free throw shooting, hitting 79.1% from the charity stripe this season. Johnson leads the team with 32 made three-pointers, and is averaging 4.8 assists per game in his last five contests. He had seven points, six assists, and three steals in the loss to Monroe, but hit what looked to be a go-ahead three with 10 seconds remaining in the first overtime, before the Mustangs rallied to tie it. Johnson is averaging 21 points per game in his last two contests. He had 12 points, five rebounds, and five assists in the loss to SUNY Sullivan earlier this year.   
 
Daryl Coleman is the third-leading scorer for the Falcons, averaging 10.7 points per game this season. Coleman is also averaging 4.8 rebounds per game, good enough for third on the team, and is tied for second on the team in three-pointers, hitting 29 threes this year. Coleman has scored in double-figures nine times this season, including season-high 32 points against Essex County College earlier this week, where he scored 23 points in the second half alone. Coleman has hit double-figures in four of his last six gamesHe had eight points, a pair of assists, and a pair of blocks against Monroe, and he hit a big three-point shot late in regulation.  Coleman was held to just three points against SUNY Rockland. Coleman was not available and did not play in the first match-up with SUNY Sullivan.
 
David Pope is fourth on the team with 9.6 points per game on the year. Pope is hitting around 41% of his shots this year, and is tied for second on the team with 29 made three-pointers. Pope is also tied for the team-lead in free throw shooting, hitting 79.1%, and has scored in double-figures eleven times this year, eight times since January 1^st. Pope has hit 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 ten games, before the Del Tech game last week, Pope was averaging 13.3 points per game, 3.3 rebounds per game, and shooting 46.1% from the field, while knocking down 18 three-pointers. Pope, after being held scoreless in two of his previous three games, had nine points and six rebounds against Rockland. He had a season-high 19 points against SUNY Sullivan earlier this year.
 
Ahmir Ellzy is fifth on the team, averaging nine points per game this season. Ellzy had a breakout game against Raritan, scoring a season-high 23 points for the Falcons off the bench. Ellzy hit a season-best nine shots, including five three-pointers, and also grabbed six rebounds. Ellzy has hit double-figures eight times this year, including four times in his last eight games games. In that span, Ahmir is averaging 11.6 points per game, 4.3 rebounds per game, and 2.6 assists per game. Ellzy is third on the team with 2.6 assists per game this season, and set his season-high with five assists against Rockland. Ellzy is fourth on the team at 22 made three-pointers on the year. Ellzy, an All-Region selection last year, has started his last four games, scoring a combined 37 points. Ellzy had 13 points, six boards, and four assists against Monroe. He only scored two points against Rockland, but dished out five assists for the Falcons. Ahmir did not play against SUNY Sullivan last month.  
 
Magd Abdelwahab is averaging 6.7 points per game this year. Magd has hit double-figures five times this year, including his season-high 23 points against Niagara County CC earlier this season. Magd is hitting 33% of his shots this year, is fifth on the team with 20 made three-pointers, and is also second on the team with 2.6 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, after missing the previous two games, returned in a big role for the Falcons against CCBC Dundalk, leading the bench mob in the first half with 12 of his team-high 16 points. Magd had 16 points, seven rebounds, and a pair of assists against Dundalk. Magd had six points, seven rebounds, and four assists against Monroe. Magd had eight points and four assists in the win over Rockland. Magd scored four points against SUNY Sullivan earlier this year.
 
Brandon Scott is averaging 6.2 points per game in his 17 appearances this year. He's an efficient 53% from the field, and is also averaging 3.1 rebounds per game as a guard. Scott has scored in double-figures three times this season. He had a season-high 16 points against Harcum College. Scott had 13 points on 6-for-7 shooting in the win over Delaware Tech. Scott had nine points to help the cause against Essex on Monday, and followed that up with a seven-point performance against Rockland on the next night. Scott was held to just two points against SUNY Sullivan last month.
 
Nashawn Johnson, who was also an All-Region selection last year, is averaging 5.9 points per game this season. Johnson has seen his role increase with absences from some other players in recent games, and had his best games to date in back-to-back contests, against both Delaware Tech and Monroe College. On Thursday against Del Tech, Nashawn scored 17 points, 15 in the first half, and grabbed seven boards to help the Falcons to their win. On Saturday, he set his season-high with 18 points and five rebounds against Monroe College, starting his second straight game. Nashawn had eight points in the win against Essex.  He had just two points in the win over SUNY Rockland, and went for six points and four rebounds against Sullivan last month.
 
Gabe Springer is second on the Falcons with 7.1 rebounds per game, and is averaging 5.9 points per game, while also leading the team in blocks (25) 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 had eight points, six rebounds, and a pair of blocks against Monroe College. He scored six points and had nine rebounds in the win over Essex.  He was held to just three points against SUNY Rockland, and did not play earlier this year against Sullivan.
 
Lackawanna College is averaging around 77 points per game as a team, while shooting at 42.7% overall and 27.6% from beyond-the-arc. The Falcons are also hitting around 68% from the free-throw line. Lackawanna College holds a +5 rebounding margin, and has 99 blocks as a team, but the Falcons average around 19 turnovers per game, and are allowing their opponents to shoot 42% from the field so far this year. Teams are hitting 32% from downtown against the Falcons defense, while putting up around 83 points per game.
 
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 SUNY Sullivan Generals enter the contest at 20-3, and hold the #3 ranking in the latest NJCAA Division II polls. The Generals have won eight straight, with their last loss coming at Monroe College on January 16^th. Sullivan was victorious in its last game, a 103-77 thrashing of Bryant & Stratton this past weekend. The Generals shot 55% from the field and put five players, all starters, in double-figures. Jay Alvarez led all scorers with 26 points on 11-for-17 shooting, while Jalen Reneau had 15 points and 12 assists, and Jarell White had 19 points and ten rebounds. Kareem Welch added 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and five steals for Sullivan, which topped 100 points for the sixth time this year.
 
The Generals average 93 points per game, scoring a season-high 119 against SUNY Ulster. Sullivan is only giving up around 70 points per game on the year. The Generals shoot an impressive 48% this season, while their opponents are hitting around 42% from the field on the year. Sullivan shoots around 36% from deep, and owns an impressive +15 rebounding margin on the year. The Generals average eleven steals per game, and just shy of five blocks per contest.  
 
Sullivan has five players averaging double-figures on the year, led by Kareem Welch, who averages 21.4 points per contest, on 56% shooting, including nearly 45% from downtown. Welch is first on the team in steals (3.0), second in assists (5.0), and second in rebounding (7.2). Welch has hit double-figures in all but one of his 21 appearances, and has gone for over 20 points on 12 different occasions. Welch's season-high was a 34-point performance against Erie CC, where he went 13-for-22 from the field, including four made three-pointers, matching a season-high from deep. Welch has five double-doubles this year, twice reaching his season-high of 13 rebounds. Welch is averaging 20.5 points in his last four games, including a 28-point showing against SUNY Orange, in a game where Sullivan handed the Colts their first loss of the year. Welch had 23 points on 10-for-13 shooting, along with six rebounds and seven assists, in the win over Lackawanna earlier this year.  
 
Jarell White is second on the team with a 15.9 points per game average. White is averaging 61% from the field on the year, a team-best, and is also the team-leader at 9.2 rebounds per game this year. He also leads the Generals in blocks, with a 1.4 per game average. He scored in double-figures in 14 of his appearances, including a season-high 24 points twice this year, against Raritan Valley and SUNY Orange County. White has eight double-doubles on the year, and set his season-high with 16 rebounds against Raritan Valley. White did not see time against the Falcons in their match-up last month.
 
Jay Alvarez is third on the team at 13.9 points per game this year. Alvarez shoots 46% from the field, is third on the team in 3PT shooting at 34.4%, and is third on the team at 1.5 steals per contest. Alvarez has scored in double-figures 13 times this year, including his last eight games. Alvarez had a season-high 29 points against County College of Morris, where he made a season-high eleven field goals, and hit four three-pointers. His season-high makes from downtown came against SUNY Orange earlier this year, when he hit six threes. He's got one double-double on the year, coming against Hagerstown where he pulled down a season-high 11 rebounds. Alvarez missed out on his second double-double against the Falcons, where he torched Lackawanna for a then-season high 28 points and pulled down nine rebounds. He led the Generals with 26 points against Bryant & Stratton.  
 
Jalen Reneau is fourth on the team at 13.5 points per game this year. Reneau is shooting 41% overall on the year, and leads the Generals with 6.4 assists per game. Reneau is second on the team in 3PT shooting, hitting 38.8% of his shots from deep, and is also second on the team in steals at 1.8 per game this year. Reneau has scored in double-figures 17 times this season, including his season-high 25 points against SUNY Rockland, where he made a season-best ten shots from the field. He had a season-best ten assists against SUNY Orange, and has dished out 5+ assists in 17 different games this year. He hit his season-high with his 12 assists against Bryant & Stratton. Reneau had 21 points, nine assists, and six rebounds in the win over Lackawanna earlier this year.
 
Sam DeSousa is averaging 10.8 points per game this year. DeSousa is shooting 49% from the field on the year, and is second on the team with 6.6 rebounds per game this year. DeSousa has scored in double-figures in 12 games this year, with the season-high of 25 points coming against Essex County College, where he hit twelve shots. DeSousa has two double-doubles on the year, and had a season-high 12 rebounds against SUNY Ulster. DeSousa had 15 points and seven rebounds against Lackawanna earlier this year. He had 12 points and three rebounds in the win over Bryant & Stratton.
 
The head coach for SUNY Sullivan is Brent Wilson, entering his ninth overall year, and eighth season in charge with the Generals. Wilson's teams have had success from the moment he stepped on campus. The Generals have won 20+ games in every season under Wilson, including a 28-2 record in the 2019-2020 season, where they finished with a #2 ranking in the NJCAA Division II polls, and qualified for the DII National Championships. Wilson has won multiple Region XV championships, produced five All-Americans, and sent 30 players onto four-year institutions. Wilson, a thousand-point scorer in his time at the University of Albany, spent time on the bench for the Great Danes as an assistant, as well as an assistant at North Dakota before his time at SUNY Sullivan. Wilson has an impressive 189-47 record in his time at SUNY Sullivan.
 
Game Information
The match-up is set for a 7:00pm ET tip-off at the Paul Gerry Fieldhouse at SUNY Sullivan on Thursday, February 17^th, as the second game of a doubleheader with the Sullivan women's team, who will play CC of Rhode Island at 5:00pm ET.  
 
There will be a video livestream of the game available via the SUNY Sullivan Athletics YouTube Channel, which you can access by clicking HERE.
 
After the end of the regular season, the Falcons will await the details of the Region XIX playoffs, set to begin next week.