2/8/21
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College Men's Basketball team will look to get off their four game slide when they take on another tough opponent in the Monroe College Mustangs on Tuesday, February 8^th, at 7:00pm in New Rochelle, NY. The Mustangs are receiving votes this week in the latest NJCAA Division I polls, and have won their last six games, including an impressive 16-point win over NJCAA DI #8 Harcum College. The game will be video livestreamed live HERE.
 
About The Falcons
The Falcons (5-13) are on the wrong end of a four game slide, and have lost nine of their last ten, with five of those losses coming by single-digits, and one coming in overtime. The latest in the line of close decisions was an 89-85 loss at home to County College of Morris this past Saturday. The Falcons had their best shooting performances of the year, hitting 51% overall and 47% from downtown while putting five players in double-figures, but they committed 21 turnovers, some in key situations, as Morris rallied from a ten-point deficit to down the Falcons. You can read the recap from that game HERE.
 
Jaylen Davis is the team-leader in scoring, averaging 15.5 points per game so far this year, along with 8.9 rebounds per game, also first on the team. "JD" has scored in double-figures in eleven games this year, going over 20+ points four times, and scoring a season-high 25 points against PSU-Hazleton on opening night. Davis's 16 rebounds against Morris earlier this year was a season-high, and he now has six double-doubles this year. Davis is shooting 52.6% from the field on the year, and averages 1.8 assists per game, along with 1.4 blocks per game this year. Davis had 20 points and 11 rebounds on 9-for-16 shooting against Morris in his last game for the Falcons.  
 
Will Johnson is the second-leading scorer this year, averaging 11.8 points per game. Johnson has scored in double-figures in 12 of his last 13 games. 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 17 steals this year. Johnson is second on the team in free throw shooting, hitting 78.6% from the charity stripe this season. Johnson had 12 points, three rebounds, and four assists against Morris.
 
David Pope is third on the team with 11.0 points per game on the year. Pope, who has started for the Falcons in his last nine games, is hitting around 41% of his shots this year, and leads the Falcons with 26 made three-pointers. Pope also leads the team from the free throw line, shooting 80%, and has scored in double-figures ten 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 nine 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 16 three-pointers. Pope had 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting, hitting three triples against Morris in his last appearance.
 
Daryl Coleman is fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 9.7 points per game this season. Coleman is also averaging five rebounds per game, and is the team's third-best three-point threat, hitting 20 threes this year. Coleman has scored in double-figures six times this season, including a season-high 20 points against Mercer County CC. Coleman had eleven points and five rebounds against Morris in his last appearance.
 
Ahmir Ellzy is fifth on the team, averaging 8.9 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 six times this year. Ellzy is third on the team with 2.5 assists per game this season. Ellzy is tied with Abdelwahab for third on the team at 20 made three-pointers on the year. Ahmir scored 19 points on 8-for-11 shooting, while dishing out four assists against Morris in his last appearance.   
 
Magd Abdelwahab is averaging 7.7 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 36.3% of his shots this year, is fourth on the team with 17 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 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. Abdelwahab did not score in seven minutes against Morris in his last appearance.
 
Gabe Springer is second on the Falcons with 7.1 rebounds per game, and is averaging 5.7 points per game, while also leading the team in blocks (21) 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. Spring scored just three points, and pulled down four rebounds against Morris in his last appearance.  
 
Brandon Scott is averaging 5.6 points per game in his 12 appearances this year. He's an efficient 48% from the field, and is also averaging 3.2 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 scored two points and had three assists against Morris 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. Nashawn scored four points and had a pair of assists against Morris in his last game.
 
Lackawanna College, averaging around 75 points per game as a team, is shooting at 41.2% as a team this season, and is shooting 26.9% from beyond-the-arc. Lackawanna is also shooting 67% from the free-throw line. Lackawanna College holds a +4 rebounding margin, and has 84 blocks as a team. The Falcons are allowing their opponents to shoot 43.6% from the field so far this year, and teams have hit 32.6% of their three-point attempts against the Lackawanna College defense. Falcon opponents are scoring around 83.7 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 Monroe College Mustangs (20-5) have been a team on a mission this year. After going 4-3 in their first seven games, the Mustangs have rattled off 16 wins in their last 18 games. The Mustangs had a nine-game winning streak earlier this year, and are currently on a six-game run entering Tuesday's match-up. Monroe, receiving votes in the latest NJCAA Division I poll, is coming off an 81-59 home win over ASA Brooklyn. In that game, the Mustangs fell behind 2-0, and then ran off eight straight points, never trailing again. The Mustangs shot an even 50% for the game, forced 28 turnovers, and put three players in double-figures in the win. Melvin Council Jr. led the club with 19 points on 8-for-13 shooting, while Nikola Danicic scored 15 points off the bench, and Tyje Kelton scored 12 points. The Mustangs held ASA to 36.5% shooting for the game, and scored 26 points off turnovers.
 
The Mustangs are scoring over 83 points per game this year, while giving up 73 per contest. Monroe is shooting around 43% this season, and their opponents are hitting around 41%. Opponents have hit 32% from three-point range, and the Mustangs have done around the same, at 31%, so far this year. Monroe has an even rebounding margin on the year, but the Mustangs have forced nearly 22 turnovers per game this season, averaging nearly eleven steals per contest.    
 
Monroe is extremely balanced in scoring this season, but has just one player in double-figures on the year. That is Melvin Council Jr., who is averaging 24 points per game this year. Council also leads the team in rebounding (7.7 per game), steals (3.2 per game) and assists (3.1 per game). Council is shooting around 45% from the field, and is the team-leader in free throw shooting (81.6%). Council has scored in double-figures in all 25 of his appearances this season, scoring over 20+ points 18 times, and scoring 30+ on three separate occasions this year. Council has hit his season-high of 35 points twice this season, the latest coming in a win over SUNY Sullivan, where he hit 13 field goals and was 9-for-10 from the FT line. Council has three double-doubles on the year, with his best performance being a 30-point, 18-rebound, 7-assisst showing against Cape Fear, a game where he also went 14-for-16 from the FT line. Council had 19 points and four rebounds in the win over ASA Brooklyn.
 
Isac Ahnstrand is second on the team with 9.1 points per game this year. Ahnstrand is the team-leader in three-point accuracy (38.3%) and is shooting around 43% overall this year. Ahnstrand is third on the team in assists per game at 2.1, and is second on the team in steals at 1.4 per game. Ahnstrand has scored in double-figures on ten different occasions, scoring his season-high 19 points against Monroe College Bronx, where he hit four three-pointers and pulled down a season-high six rebounds. Ahnstrand has hit four three-pointers in a game on four separate occasions. He scored six points on 3-for-12 shooting, and was 0-for-7 from downtown, in the win over ASA Brooklyn.
 
Tyje Kelton is third on the team with 8.8 points per game so far this year. Kelton is second on the team in shooting at 47.7% overall, and is third on the team in rebounding with 4.8 rebounds per game. Kelton has hit double-figures in eleven games this year, including five of his last six games. Kelton had a season-high 19 points against Niagara County CC earlier this year, where he also pulled down nine rebounds. His season-high in rebounds came against Harcum, where he grabbed ten boards and scored 12 points for his only double-double of the year. Kelton is averaging 10.5 points and 5.8 rebounds per game on 52% shooting in his last six games. He had 12 points on 5-for-9 shooting against ASA Brooklyn in his last outing.  
 
Keith Warren Jr. is averaging 8.5 points per game for the Mustangs this year. Warren is second on the team in assists per game at 2.4, and leads Monroe in free throw shooting at 85% from the line. Warren has hit double-figures nine times this year, with his season-high of 30 points coming against Cape Fear. Warren was 10-for-22 from the field, and made five three-pointers, while going 5-for-6 from the free throw line. Twice this year, Warren has made five three-pointers. Warren had a season-high seven assists against Richard Bland College, a game in which he scored 11 points. Warren had just five points, but dished out four assists against ASA Brooklyn.
 
Hamdel Mohammed is averaging 8.1 points per game this year, and is the team leader at 49% shooting so far this season. Mohammed is second on the team at 6.7 rebounds per contest, and leads the team in rejections, blocking around one shot per contest. Mohammed has scored in double-figures eight times this year, scoring his season-high 19 points against Brunswick CC in the second game of the season. Twice this year, Mohammed has reached double-figures in rebounds, including his season-best 18-point, 16-rebound performance against Howard CC, his lone double-double on the year. Mohammed had seven points and five rebounds in the win against ASA Brooklyn.
 
Nikola Danicic has seen time in 24 of the 25 games this year for Monroe, starting in half of his appearances. Danicic is averaging 5.5 points per game, and shooting around 47% from the field this year. Danicic has scored in double-figures five times this year, four of which have come since January. Danicic had a season-high 16 points against Cecil College, where he was 8-for-13 from the field and grabbed eight rebounds. His season-high in rebounding came against SUNY Sullivan, where he pulled down ten boards while scoring ten points for his lone double-double this year. He had 15 points on 7-for-10 shooting off the bench for the Mustangs against ASA Brooklyn in his last appearance.
 
The head coach for Monroe is longtime leader Jeff Brustad, now in his 19^th season and 20^th overall year at Monroe College. Brustad is a 12-time Region XV Coach of the Year at Monroe, helping the Mustangs to 12 Region XV championships in his tenure, and eight District Championships, leading to eight appearances in the NJCAA Division I National Tournament. Monroe's best finish was third place in the NJCAA tournament in 2010-2011, and they followed that up with a fifth place finish, while tying the school-record for wins in a year (33). Brustad is a SUNY Oneonta graduate, and earned his masters from Lehman College before joining the coaching ranks at Monroe. He's also a member of the faculty at Monroe College. Brustad is 494-135 in his 19 seasons at the helm of the Mustangs.
 
Game Information
The match-up is set for a 7:00pm ET tip-off at the Monroe Athletic Complex in New Rochelle, NY. It's scheduled to be the second game of a doubleheader, with the women's teams starting first at 5:00pm ET.
 
There is a video livestream available, courtesy of the Monroe College Athletics YouTube channel. You can access that by clicking HERE.
 
The Falcons will be back in action on Thursday, February 10^th, when they host Delaware Tech CC in a key Region XIX match-up. That game will be the first of a doubleheader, with the women's teams to follow the conclusion of the men's game. The men's game is slated to tip-off at 5:00pm ET.