2/5/21
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College Men's Basketball team will host the County College of Morris in a key Region XIX match-up inside the Lackawanna Student Union on Saturday, February 5th. The Falcons will look to avenge a 100-86 OT loss from earlier this season against the Titans, and try to get back to .500 in Region play. The game is set for a 1:00pm ET tip-off inside the historic Lackawanna Student Union. If you can't attend, you can watch the game live on the Lackawanna College Athletics YouTube channel at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube.
 
About The Falcons
The Falcons (5-12, 3-4) return to action less than 48 hours after a tough home loss to CCBC Dundalk, 67-61. The Lions used a key 13-0 run in the second half to turn a five-point deficit into an eight-point lead forcing the Falcons to play catch-up. Lackawanna managed to tie the game with 5:39 to go, but Dundalk immediately regained the lead on their ensuing possession, and hit big shots down the stretch to put the Falcons away. Lackawanna suffered through several scoring droughts in the second half, and had 23 turnovers in the game. Magd Abdelwahab led Lackawanna College with 16 points off the bench. Read the full recap HERE.
 
Jaylen Davis is the team-leader in scoring, averaging 15.1 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 ten 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, and he now has five double-doubles this year. Davis is shooting 52.2% from the field on the year, and averages 1.7 assists per game, along with 1.3 blocks per game this year. Davis had 13 points and 16 rebounds against Morris earlier this year, but was held to a season-low four points in his last game against CCBC Dundalk.
 
Will Johnson is the second-leading scorer this year, averaging 11.8 points per game. Johnson's six points against CCBC Dundalk snapped an 11-game streak in which he scored in double-digits. Earlier this year, Johnson had 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 3.9 assists per game this season, and also leads the Falcons with 16 steals this year. Johnson is second on the team in free throw shooting, hitting 77% from the charity stripe this season. Johnson had 14 points and four rebounds against Morris earlier this year, and had six points, five rebounds, and four assists against CCBC Dundalk in his last game.
 
David Pope is third on the team with 10.8 points per game on the year. Pope, who has started for the Falcons in his last eight games, is hitting around 40% of his shots this year, and leads the Falcons with 23 made three-pointers. Pope also leads the team from the free throw line, shooting 81%, and has scored in double-figures nine 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 eight games, all starts, Pope is averaging 13.4 points per game, 3.1 rebounds per game, and shooting 41% from the field, while knocking down 13 three-pointers. Pope was held to four points in eleven minutes against CCBC Dundalk in his last game, and scored eight points and pulled down four rebounds against Morris earlier this season.
 
Daryl Coleman is fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 9.6 points per game this season. Coleman is also averaging five rebounds per game, and is the team's second-best three-point threat, hitting 19 threes this year. Coleman has scored in double-figures five times this season, including a season-high 20 points against Mercer County CC. Coleman had ten points and six rebounds against Morris earlier this year, but was 0-for-6 from downtown. Against CCBC Dundalk, Coleman had nine points, four rebounds, and three blocks.
 
Magd Abdelwahab is fifth on the team, averaging 8.2 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 36.6% of his shots this year, is third on the team with 17 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, after missing the last 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. He had six points against Morris earlier this year.
 
Ahmir Ellzy is averaging 8.1 points per game this season. Ellzy had a breakout game against Raritan, scoring a season-high 23 points for the Falcons. Ellzy hit a season-best nine shots, including five three-pointers, and also grabbed six rebounds. Ellzy has hit double-figures five times this year. Ellzy is third on the team with 2.4 assists per game this season. Ahmir had five points, four rebounds, and three assists against CCBC Dundalk in his last game, and managed 13 points, seven rebounds, and four assists in the first game against Morris this year.  
 
Gabe Springer is second on the Falcons with 7.3 rebounds per game, and is averaging 5.9 points per game, while also leading the team in blocks (20) 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. Springer had 13 points and four rebounds earlier this year against Morris, but was held to just two points against Dundalk in his last game.
 
Brandon Scott is averaging 5.9 points per game in his 11 appearances this year. He's an efficient 49% from the field, and is also averaging 3.4 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. Scott didn't see action in the first game against Morris, and had four points, three rebounds, and a pair of assists against Dundalk in his last game.  
 
Nashawn Johnson, who was also an All-Region selection last year, is averaging 4.8 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. Nashawn had four points and eight rebounds against Dundalk, one rebound shy of his season-high. He had seven points in the first game against Morris earlier this season.
 
Lackawanna College, averaging around 75 points per game as a team, is shooting at 40.8% as a team this season, and is shooting 26.0% from beyond-the-arc. Lackawanna is also shooting 67% from the free-throw line. Lackawanna College holds a +5 rebounding margin, and has 78 blocks as a team. The Falcons are allowing their opponents to shoot 43.7% from the field so far this year, and teams have hit 32.2% of their three-point attempts against the Lackawanna College defense. Falcon opponents are scoring around 83 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 County College of Morris Titans (7-7, 5-2) come in having won three straight, and five of their last seven games. Morris was an 82-71 winner in their last game, a Region XIX win at home against Delaware Tech. The Titans outmuscled the Terry Hawks on the glass, using a 50-36 advantage in rebounding, boosted by 14 offensive boards, while forcing 20 turnovers to grab the win. Morris shot 38% from the field, but hit 16-for-20 from the free throw line, and had four different players in double-figures. Nigel Marshall led the way with a 15-point, 12-rebound double-double, while Christian Waters provided 15 points of his own off the bench. Kymani Dunbar added 13 points, and D'Andre Williams scored 11 for the Titans.
 
As a team, Morris is scoring just shy of 80 points per game, while giving up 75.6 on the year. Morris is shooting around 46% this season, and their opponents are hitting around 46%, too. Opponents have hit 31% from three-point range, and the Titans have done the same, so far this year. Morris has an impressive +13 rebounding margin this year, and is averaging just over 11 offensive boards per game. The Titans force around 17 turnovers per game, and average just over 12 steals per contest.   
 
Morris has four players averaging double-figures on the season, though the leading scorer has only played in three games, all in the spring semester. That player is forward Avante Gilbert, who is averaging 14.3 points per game on 51% shooting in his three appearances, all starts. Gilbert is the team-leader in rebounding (8.3 per game), steals (2.7), and blocks (1.0) so far this season. He's hit double-figures in two of his three games, and his season-high is 21 points against Prestige Prep in his debut. Gilbert has pulled down nine rebounds twice in three games, and had a high of five steals against Prestige Prep. Gilbert had eight points, seven rebounds, and three blocks in the win over Delaware Tech.
 
Kymani Dunbar is second on the team with 13.2 points per game this season. Dunbar is hitting 62% of his shots, and is second on the team in assists per game (2.5) and steals per game (2.5). Dunbar has scored in double-figures nine times this year, including hitting his season-high 25 points twice this year, against both Mercer County and SUNY Orange. He has one double-double on the year, an 11-point, 10-rebound performance against Prestige Prep. He's had a season-high four steals twice this year, against Middlesex County and Mercer. Dunbar had 13 points and six rebounds against Lackawanna earlier this year, and had 13 points and eight rebounds against Delaware Tech in his last game.
 
Mario Haklaj is third on the Titans, averaging 11.8 points per game on the season. Haklaj leads the Titans with 18 made three-pointers this year, and is shooting around 42% on the season. Haklaj has scored in double-figures nine times this year, and went off for a season-high 25 points against Lackawanna College, where he hit a season-high ten buckets against the Falcons. Haklaj had a season-high five rebounds against Harcum College this year, and managed a season-high five assists against Essex County College. Haklaj had eight points, three rebounds, and two assists against Delaware Tech in his last contest.
 
Nigel Marshall is fourth on the team, averaging 10.8 points per game. Marshall is 45% from the field this year, and probably the second-biggest threat from downtown, hitting 41% of his attempts this year. Marshall is tied for the team-lead with Gilbert in rebounds per game at 8.3, and is third on the team at two assists per game. Marshall has scored in double-figures in eight games, including his last five contests. He's averaging 13.6 points per game over that span, and scored his season-high 19 points against Mercer County CC, where he hit a season-high nine shots, and pulled down a season-high 16 rebounds. Marshall has four double-doubles on the year. Marshall had just three points and two rebounds against the Falcons earlier this year.   
 
Christian Waters will see significant time, scoring eight points per game so far this season. Waters is shooting a hyper-efficient 69% from the field this year, and is second on the team at 6.4 rebounds per game. Waters has scored in double-figures four times this year, including his season-high 19 points and 13 rebounds against Raritan Valley in the second game of the year. Waters has a pair of double-doubles on the year. Waters did not score in eight minutes of action against Lackawanna earlier this season. Waters had 15 points and six rebounds against Delaware Tech in his last game.
 
Andres Moreno and D'Andre Williams will also see significant time for the Titans. Moreno is averaging 7.1 points per game, while pulling down 6.4 rebounds per game this year, tied with Waters for second on the team. Moreno is shooting 58% from the field, and is 36% from downtown, when he pulls the trigger. He's scored in double-figures five times this year, with a season-high 15 points coming against Sussex County. Moreno scored 12 points against Lackawanna College earlier this season, and had two points in the win over Delaware Tech.
 
D'Andre Williams is averaging 6.2 points per game this year, and leads the team with 3.2 assists per contest. Williams has hit double-figures three times this year, scoring a season-high 14 points against SUNY Sullivan. Where he was a season-best 5-for-9 from the floor. He had a season-high nine assists against Mercer County CC two games ago. He had 11 points, four assists, and three steals against Delaware Tech in his last game, and had seven points and five rebounds against Lackawanna earlier this season.
 
The head coach for County College of Morris is Anthony Obrey, who has been in charge of the Titans since January 2016, when he took over on an interim basis midway through the year. At the time, the Titans were 1-11, with their one win coming from a forfeit. Obrey would guide Morris to a 4-7 record the rest of the way, and, after a four-win first full season, he'd have the Titans at 21-9 in the '17-'18 season, followed by a 23-5 season the next year. The Titans were 6-0 last year in the pandemic-shortened, truncated '20-'21 season. Obrey has gone 76-59 as the head coach at Morris.
 
Game Information
The match-up is set for a 1:00pm ET tip-off in the Lackawanna Student Union, on Saturday, February 5th. The game is open to the public, and tickets will be sold at the door for adults ($5) and students ($3). Lackawanna College students get free admission with their college ID. Fans are reminded that current Lackawanna College policy is for all spectators in the gym to be masked. For more on the policy, click HERE.
 
For those who cannot attend the game, there will be a video livestream available on the Lackawanna College Athletics YouTube Channel at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube. Steve Young will have the play-by-play, while Sports Information Director Tom Ferguson will provide color commentary.
 
The Falcons will be back in action on Tuesday, February 8^th, when they travel to New Rochelle, NY to take on the Monroe College Mustangs. That game will be the second of a doubleheader, with the women's teams playing first. The men's game is slated to tip-off at 7:00pm ET.