12/12/24

SCRANTON, Pa. – It's been a long time coming, but Lackawanna College men's basketball will play at home once more in 2024 with just its third home game of the year on Thursday, December 12^th, when the Sussex County CC Skylanders come to town for a Region XIX divisional crossover match-up.
 
Thursday night's game marks the first time in over 17 years that Sussex and Lackawanna have played a men's basketball game against each other. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00pm ET inside the historic Lackawanna College Student Union gymnasium. The game is open to the public and tickets will be sold at the door for both adults ($5) and students ($3). Those with a valid Lackawanna College ID get free admission. There will be a pay-per-view video livestream available via the Lackawanna College Athletics Network at lackawannafalcons.com/LIVE.
 
About Lackawanna College
The Falcons (7-7) snapped a four-game skid in their latest contest, winning a 98-95 overtime thriller at Mercer County CC on Tuesday night. The Falcons shot 38.5% from the floor and had 22 turnovers, but hit big free throws down the stretch, going 8-for-12 from the line in the overtime period as a team. The Falcons held a lead through most of the contest, but trailed late to the Vikings with under 30 seconds to go. A key steal led to Lackawanna tying the game, and another steal gave the Falcons a chance to win in regulation, but the shot missed wide, and Lackawanna was forced to take it in OT. It was the second overtime victory for the Falcons this season.
 
The Falcons average 77.3 points per contest, while giving up 72.3. Lackawanna is shooting 38.9% from the field and just 23.9% from downtown. Meanwhile, the Lackawanna opponents are hitting 44.5% and 32.4%, respectively. Lackawanna has a + 4.5 rebounding margin, with 44 boards per game this year. The Falcons have a 0.8 assist/turnover ratio, with 182 assists vs. 224 turnovers. Lackawanna has forced 236 turnovers so far this season, a 16.9 turnovers per game average, and is averaging 11.4 steals per contest.
 
First-year guard Evan Laybourn-Boddie (Wilkes-Barre, PA) is averaging 16.2 points per game this season, 18th in Region XIX and eighth in Division II. He's shooting 36% from the floor and 73.8% from the free throw line. Laybourn-Boddie leads the team with 34 three-point makes, 45 assists and 39 steals this season. Laybourn-Boddie has scored double-digits eleven times this season, putting up a season-high 28 points in the win against SUNY Onondaga on November 10^th, making eleven shots, four of which were three-pointers, while putting up five steals, four assists, and four rebounds. He had a season-high six rebounds three times this season, coming against SUNY Ulster on November 12^th, Jamestown on November 17^th, and against Essex County College on November 19^th. Laybourn-Boddie had a season-high six assists to go with his 26 points, six rebounds, and three steals in the overtime win against Jamestown. Laybourn-Boddie had 20 points, five rebounds, and five steals against Mercer this past Tuesday.
 
Sophomore guard Shawnn Smith (Philadelphia, PA) is second on the team, averaging 15.4 points per game this season, which is tenth in Region XIX DII. Smith is shooting 44.9% from the floor and is 22-for-23 from the free throw line. He averages six rebounds per game and has 24 assists, second on the team. He has scored 20 points or more in three games this season and has scored double-figures in nine of ten games he's played. Smith had 23 points and seven rebounds, while playing all 40 minutes, in a loss to Montgomery County CC on November 6^th. He set a season-high with nine rebounds in the loss to PSU Scranton on November 4^th. Smith matched that season-high with nine rebounds against Essex, while also scoring 18 points and dishing out a pair of assists in the win for Lackawanna. Smith matched his season-best with nine rebounds and 15 points, along with a season-high five assists in the loss at Delaware Tech. Smith has not played the last three games for Lackawanna College.
 
Sophomore guard Nick Marabito (Upper Darby, PA) is averaging 14.1 points per game through his nine appearances this season. Marabito is shooting 33.1% from the floor, and has made 17 threes, second on the team. Marabito is a 74.4% free throw shooter and averages 3.1 rebounds per game this year. Marabito has scored in double-figures eight times this year, with his season-high coming in his latest game, where he had 23 points in the win against Mercer on Tuesday. Marabito made seven shots from the floor and was 7-for-9 from the free throw line, while also pulling down five rebounds and putting up four steals. Marabito set season-highs for rebounds (6) and assists (4) in the loss to Middlesex on December 7^th.
 
First-year stretch forward Noah McIntosh (Philadelphia, PA) is fourth on the team with 8.9 points per contest this year. McIntosh is shooting 40% from the floor and averages 3.6 rebounds per contest this season. He also has eleven assists, 12 steals, and nine blocks. Noah has scored double-figures in six games this season, including his last two contests. He put up a season-high 20 points against Jefferson CC on November 9^th, hitting nine shots and pulling down seven rebounds. McIntosh set his season-high for rebounds twice this season, pulling down seven boards in the opener against Thaddeus Stevens on November 2^nd, and then grabbing seven boards against Jefferson. McIntosh had ten points and five rebounds, along with a pair of assists, in the win against Mercer on Tuesday.
 
First-year forward Tyrick Moy (Williamsport, PA) is averaging 7.5 points per game and 7.3 rebounds per game this season, leading the Falcons in rebounding. Moy also has 14 assists and is shooting 49.5% from the floor. Moy has scored double-figures three times this season, putting up a season-high 17 points and eight rebounds in the win against Jamestown. Moy scored all eight points in overtime for the Falcons. Moy's season-high in rebounding came against Ulster, where he pulled down 12 boards and scored nine points on November 12^th. Moy scored eight points and pulled nine rebounds in the win against Mercer.
 
Sophomore guard Jasier Carter (North Brunswick, NJ) is averaging 7.2 points per game this season, shooting 51.6% from the floor. Carter averages five rebounds per game and has 17 assists and eleven steals this season. Carter scored a season-high 20 points against Raritan, along with a season-best eight rebounds against the Lions. He scored double-figures three this season, putting up 14 points against SUNY Ulster on November 12^th, then scoring ten points and matching his season-high rebounds with eight boards against Mercer on Tuesday.
 
First-year forward Elijah Smith (Washington, D.C.) is averaging 4.9 points per game this season, and pulling down five rebounds per contest, tied for third on the team. Smith has made nine appearances, shooting 40.9% from the floor. He has scored double-figures twice this season, setting his season-best with 12 points in the loss to Del Tech, where he also had five rebounds in 19 minutes. He set his season-high with 14 boards and nine points in the loss to Harcum on November 21^st. He also had eleven points and four rebounds in the loss to SUNY Niagara back on November 16^th. Smith has not played in the last two games for the Falcons.
 
First-year forward Jaden McMeekin (Pittsburgh, PA) is averaging 4.2 points per game this season. McMeekin is shooting 29.5% from the floor, making 13 three-pointers so far this season. McMeekin averages four rebounds per contest, with 29 assists and 15 steals this season. McMeekin scored his season-high eight points in Tuesday's game against Mercer County, also putting up his season-best with 12 rebounds against the Vikings. McMeekin set a season-high with five assists against Middlesex last weekend. He has 17 assists in his last four games.
 
Head coach Kirk Fallon is in his second season as the head coach, and his fifth overall with Lackawanna College men's basketball. Fallon came to the Falcons after a successful two seasons coaching girls basketball at Susquehanna Community HS. Fallon led the Lady Sabers to back-to-back PIAA District 2 championships and a 40-17 record in his two years. Before that, he was also a college basketball assistant at Keystone College for four seasons, where he was involved a lot of the logistics for the program. Kirk has a Bachelor's degree from Marywood, where he played three seasons for the Pacers. He's a northeast PA native, graduating from Susquehanna as a 1,000-point scorer. Fallon is 15-25 in his career at Lackawanna as head coach.
 
About Sussex County CC
The Skylanders (3-8) come into Thursday night's contest on a four-game losing streak, dropping their most recent game this past Tuesday at Passaic by a 106-97 margin. The Skylanders shot 44.6% from the floor and hit 12 three-pointers, but committed 25 turnovers and fouled Passaic enough that the Panthers made more free throws (29) than the Skylanders attempted (25). Passaic had 12 steals on the day and scored 65 points off the bench. Sussex had four players in double-figures in the loss.
 
Sussex is averaging 77.9 points per game this year, while giving up 85.3 points per game on defense. The Skylanders are shooting 40.9% from the floor this season and are making 29.3% of their three-point attempts. Sussex's opponents are shooting 48.3% from the floor this season and are hitting 38.1% from three-point range. Sussex has a negative rebounding margin of -0.7, pulling down 39.6 rebounds per game, while their opponents average just over 40 boards per game. The Skylanders average 15 turnovers per game, and 8.3 steals per game. Their opponents are averaging just under 14 turnovers per game this season.
 
First-year guard Marlon Torres is one of four different players scoring double-figures this season, leading the Skylanders with 17.3 points per game on the year. Torres is shooting 39.3% from the floor and hitting 37.2% from the three-point line. Torres is fourth on the team with 5.3 rebounds per game this year, while also leading the Skylanders with 3.6 assists per game. He is also the team-leader at 1.7 steals per contest. Torres has scored double-figures seven times this season, going for 20+ on five separate occasions. He set his season-best in the loss to Passaic on Tuesday, scoring 35 points on ten makes and a season-high seven three-pointers. He has set his season-high with nine rebounds twice this year, grabbing nine rebounds against Thaddeus Stevens on November 9^th and nine more boards in the loss to SUNY Ulster on December 5^th. He had 30 points against Thaddeus Stevens. He has tied his season-high of five assists in three games this year.
 
First-year guard Kendrick Davis is second on the team at 16.5 points per game this season, shooting 45.6% from the floor and hitting 30.6% from beyond the arc. Davis is second on the team with 3.1 assists per game and pulls down 3.2 rebounds per game this year. Davis has ten games in double-figures scoring this season, going for 20+ points in four games this year. Davis set his season-best in the win at Bergen on November 26^th, scoring 28 points on eleven makes. He's scored 20 or more points in four of his last five games, shooting 48.9% from the floor in that span, while averaging 21.8 points per game. He had a season-high five rebounds twice this year. Against Passaic on Tuesday, he had 21 points, three boards, and a season-best six assists.
 
First-year guard Edwin Dorbor is third on the team at 13.2 points per game this year, shooting at 42.7% from the floor and hitting 36.7% of his three-point attempts. He also leads the Skylanders with 62.9% from the free throw line this season. Dorbor is second on the team at 5.9 rebounds per game this season, while also averaging 2.4 assists per game and 1.3 steals per game. Dorbor has scored double-figures in eight games this year, setting a season-high with 25 points in the loss to SUNY Ulster on December 5^th, where he had a season-high eleven makes from the floor and three three-pointers. Dorbor does have a double-double this year, scoring 20 points and pulling down a season-high 15 rebounds in the win against Luzerne County CC on November 19^th. Against Passaic, he had 16 points, eight rebounds, and a season-best five assists in the loss.
 
First-year center Jayshon Williams is fourth on the team at 10.8 points per game this season, shooting 55.7% from the floor. Williams leads the Skylanders with 9.1 rebounds per game this season, while also putting up 1.3 steals per game. He has seven games in double-figures scoring this season and six games with double-figures in rebounding. Williams has five double-doubles this season. His season-best in points came with 21 points on 9-for-13 shooting in the win against Thaddeus Stevens on November 9^th. He also had 13 rebounds in that win. He had eleven points and a season-best 16 rebounds against Passaic on December 3^rd. One week later, he scored just six points and had five rebounds against Passaic this past Tuesday.
 
John O'Hara is the head men's basketball coach at Sussex, now in his second season. O'Hara was originally hired as the women's coach, which he did for the 2022-2023 season, before taking over the men's program the next year.
 
The Match-Ups
This is a cross-divisional match-up, as the Skylanders compete in Region XIX Division III. Lackawanna and Sussex have not played against each other on the basketball court since February 2007. This match-up used to be a twice-a-year affair, with both teams playing throughout the late eighties and early nineties.
 
Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00pm ET on Thursday, December 12^th, inside the historic Lackawanna College Student Union gymnasium. The game is open to the public and tickets will be sold at the door for both adults ($5) and students ($3). Those with a valid Lackawanna College ID get free admission. There will be a pay-per-view video livestream available via the Lackawanna College Athletics Network at lackawannafalcons.com/LIVE.
 
Lackawanna has one more game in the 2024 portion of the schedule after the game against Sussex, travelling to Randolph, NJ to take on County College of Morris on Tuesday, December 17^th. Tip-off is set for 7:00pm ET inside the Morris gymnasium.