ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. (Jan. 8, 2016) - Sixteen conference contests remain for the Molloy College men's basketball team in the 2015-16 campaign and the Lions desperately need to pick up the pace and net victories to stay alive in the race to the East Coast Conference Tournament. The maroon and white will look for a win on Saturday (Jan. 9) when a struggling NYIT squad comes to Rockville Centre in need of a win to save its own season as well.
The Lowdown on the Lions
The bottom fell out of Molloy's upset bid in the second half of the team's 94-74 loss to LIU Post on Wednesday (Jan. 6). Both the Lions and Pioneers hit around half of their field goals in the first half, which ended with Molloy leading 48-47, but the second half saw the maroon and white get dramatically cold from the field in hitting just 28% of its field goals in the final 20 minutes of play. Leading the Lions was junior Jaylen Morris (Amherst, N.Y.) who had 17 points and a team-high nine rebounds in just missing his seventh double-double of the season.
Career High For Gatson
Senior guard Maurice Gatson (New York, N.Y.) took some thunder away from fellow senior Brandon Williams (Baldwin, N.Y.) with a career-high 16 points off the bench for the Lions on Wednesday night. Despite Williams crossing the 1,000-point plateau late in the first half against the Pioneers, Gatson's career night was a testament to his 29 minutes of play and his good shooting from three-point territory (3-for-5) and the free throw line (5-for-8). The senior from New York City tied his prior career high with 13 points in the team's first game of the year versus Saint Anselm on Nov. 14, and he scored just 17 points two years ago as a sophomore for the maroon and white. A popular figure on campus and a well-liked teammate, Gatson has a chance to finish his career doing special things for the Lions in the next couple of months.
Jenkins' Quiet Start to ECC Play
After starting his freshman season with three games of 10-plus points in four contests, freshman guard Curtis Jenkins (Farmingdale, N.Y.) has been relatively quiet especially in conference contests. Jenkins is averaging 8.7 points per game, but his averages in ECC games are six points and 3.3 rebounds per contest. The slashing combo guard has seen an average of 26 minutes of playing time per contest and while he is averaging 2.3 assists per game, Jenkins is also facing difficult defenses that have forced him to commit 10 turnovers thus far. The old mindset is that conference season is where the real season begins and where freshmen take their first big bumps on the campaign, so Jenkins may be ready to break out and deliver a highlight-filled performance on Saturday.
Bears' Bulletin
It has not exactly been a season to remember for Rob Isme, in his first year as Head Coach of the NYIT Bears. After a season-opening victory against Goldey-Beacom on Nov. 14, NYIT has dropped 11 straight contests to regional opponents. The most recent defeat for the Bears came on Wednesday night (Jan. 6), as NYIT fell to Queens (N.Y.) by a final score of 85-72 in Old Westbury. Senior guard Khalif Chaplin (Hempstead, N.Y.) had a game-high 20 points as fellow senior Jerrel Green (Stockton, Calif.) pulled down a double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds. The Bears, though, were undone by an unproductive bench that did not score any points on the night, as all 72 of NYIT's points in the loss came from the starting five.
Hayden Steps Up When Needed
The play of freshman forward Jeffrey Hayden (New York, N.Y.) is a major bright spot for NYIT so far this season. The Cardinal Hayes product did not figure to be much of a factor in his first season in Old Westbury, but that has not stopped Hayden from contributing in ways that the team has desperately needed. The freshman is averaging a team-high 17.6 points per game while also pulling down 7.2 rebounds per contest, and he is also showcasing a deft touch from the field. Hayden has hit 52% of his field goal attempts so far this season, and can showcase quality range with a 4-for-10 (40%) mark from three-point land through his nine starts and appearances. The one part of the freshman's game that needs to improve is his free throw shooting, as Hayden currently sports a 50% (32-64) efficiency rating from the charity stripe.
Rotational Carousel
In his first season as the Bears' head coach, Isme (a former assistant under previous head coach Sal Lagano) has not been afraid to play around with the line-up card and try out new combinations to see what works and what does not. Five players have appeared in 10 or more games so far this season, but three players have started a team-high nine games: Chaplin, Hayden and junior forward Kachi Nzerem (Boston, Mass.). The diversity with which the Bears create their starting five may tend to be more based on match-ups and also just creating different looks to confuse opponents. A prime example is sophomore guard Maksis Uskans (Riga, Latvia), as the Saint Rose transfer has played in all 12 games and earned starts versus Caldwell and Mercy thus far. Meanwhile, freshman guard Kieran Hamilton (Queens Village, N.Y.) has earned the start in the Bears' most recent contests at Pace and versus Queens.
Darian's Absence Proving Detrimental
NYIT was an exciting group to watch last year because no one truly knew how many points the Bears would score per game. In particular, the East Coast Conference fan base was entertained by the scoring prowess of Darian Hooker. Hooker led all of Division II in scoring last year with a 28.3 points-per-game average, and he torched the Lions in two contests to the tune of 22.5 PPG. But without the lightning-like scoring touch of the guard from Washington, D.C., NYIT has not had the same efficiency on the offensive side of the ball and thus have not been successful in outscoring opponents this season.
