ECC Men's Basketball Report - Week 4

Player of the Week Redshirt Junior | G | Woodhaven, Mich.  Warren led the Saints with back-to-back double-doubles in D’Youville’s 2-0 conference weekend. The DYU redshirt junior put up 24 points in the 82-79 win over Molloy on Friday, shooting 69.2 percent (9-of-13) with 13 rebounds, an assist, and a block. In the 90-84 win over Queens on Sunday, Warren poured in 19 points, including an 8-of-10 showing from the stripe, to go with 10 rebounds, two assists, and two blocks. Defensive Player of the Week Redshirt Senior | F | Buffalo, N.Y. Hemphill starred on the defensive end of two Daemen victories, averaging 6.0 defensive rebounds, 4.0 steals, and 1.0 blocks as the nationally-ranked No. 3 Wildcats extended their season-opening winning streak to 10 straight games with wins over Queens and Molloy. In the 76-51 win over Queens, Hemphill hauled in 10 defensive rebounds to go with three steals and two blocks. He was also the primary defender on Queens' Tahj-Malik Campbell, who came into the game averaging 25.2 points per game, but was limited to 12 points on 6-of-20 shooting. In the 94-62 win over Molloy, Hemphill recorded a season-high five steals, helping Daemen limit the Lions to just 62 points.  Rookie of the Week Freshman | G | Rochester, N.Y.  Lowry, Jr. finished the 2-0 weekend with 36 points and a perfect 12-of-12 showing from the free-throw line. The DYU freshman put up 10 points in an 82-79 win over Molloy on Friday before pouring in 26 points to lead D’Youville to a 90-84 win over Queens on Sunday.  ECC Weekly Honor Roll Freshman | G | Cicero, N.Y. Benedict posted his first collegiate double-double in the win over Mercy last Wednesday with 10 points and 14 rebounds.  Redshirt Junior | C | Hamburg, N.Y. Bill averaged a double-double last week with 19.0 points per game and 10.0 rebounds per game to go with 3.0 blocks per game while shooting 71.0 percent from the field (80.0 percent from the stripe) to lead still-unbeaten No. 3 Daemen (10-0) to wins over Queens and Molloy to open conference play. The Preseason ECC Player of the Year opened the week by scoring a game-high 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting with nine rebounds and three blocks in Daemen’s dominating 76-51 win over Queens on Dec. 5. Two days later against Molloy, despite playing a season-low 22 minutes, Bill recorded his NCAA Division II-leading sixth double-double of the season, finishing with 14 points and 11 rebounds in a 94-62 Daemen victory.  Senior | G | Watervliet, N.Y. Chestnut matched a team-high 21 points in the win over Mercy, shooting 89.0 percent (8-of-9) from the field with three three-pointers. Junior | G | Severn, Md. Gray exploded for a career- and game-high 30 points in UDC’s matchup against Mercy, shooting 64.3 percent from the field and a perfect 11–of-11 from the free-throw line. The UDC junior guard ended the week averaging 17.0 points per game, 4.0 rebounds per game, and 2.0 assists per game.  Redshirt Junior | G | Carteret, N.J. Hearns tallied 17 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and four steals in 28 minutes in a 71-67 road victory over District of Columbia on Wednesday. The STAC redshirt junior guard shot 50.0 percent (6-of-12) from the field and made all five of his free throw attempts. Senior | G | Stratford, Conn. Holloway averaged a team-high 25.0 points per game with 6.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.5 steals per game as Mercy went 1-1 on the week. The senior opened the week with a career- and game-high 33 points with seven rebounds, two assists, and one steal at Staten Island on Wednesday. The 33 points were the most points scored by a Maverick since 2022. The guard ended the week with 17 points, five rebounds, and one steal in the 91-86 win over District of Columbia on Saturday.  Junior | G | East Aurora, N.Y. Kleitz scored a season-high 24 points in a midweek game against Clarion, shooting 8-of-11 from the floor, including 6-for-9 from three-point range. Freshman | F | Helsinki, Finland Mennander turned in an impressive performance in his ECC debut, averaging 12.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.0 blocks, and 1.0 steal, along with one double-double on the Knights’ trip to Western New York. On Sunday against D’Youville, the rookie notched the second double-double of his career, finishing with 19 points, a career-best 13 rebounds, three blocks, and one steal. Junior | G | Laurelton, N.Y. Merchant paced the Molloy offense this week. In three games, the junior averaged 17.6 points and 7.0 rebounds per game on 49 percent shooting from the floor (21-of-43). Merchant collected his third double-double of the season on Sunday at nationally-ranked No. 3 Daemen, totaling 15 points and 10 rebounds. Senior | F | Oakville, Ontario Milivojevic was a vital piece of the Saints’ 2-0 weekend on the defensive side. The DYU senior forward recorded six blocks, with four against Queens. The Saints capitalized on Milivojevic's four blocks against the Knights with ten points to help erase a 19-point deficit and take the lead. Milivojevic also recorded two steals on the weekend with seven rebounds, five of which were defensive.  Junior | G | New Hartford, N.Y.  Philipkoski averaged 18.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks while helping Daemen to wins over Queens and Molloy. The Daemen junior guard posted his third 20-point game of the season in Friday's win over Queens and matched his season-high with three blocks. Philipkoski had a team-high 16 points in the win over Molloy, despite playing just 22 minutes.  Sophomore | G | Slidell, La. Rowbatham averaged 21.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.0 steals per game as Mercy went 1-1 on the week. The sophomore opened the week with 14 points, two rebounds and two assists at Staten Island on Wednesday. The guard ended the week with a team-high 29 points to go with eight rebounds, four assists, and two steals in the win over District of Columbia on Saturday.  ECC Men's Basketball Weekly Award Winners PLAYER OF THE WEEK Nov. 17 - Benjamin Bill, Daemen Nov. 24 - Aaron Goldstein, Staten Island and Zach Philipkoski, Daemen Dec. 1 - Benjamin Bill, Daemen (2x) Dec. 8 - Elisha Warren, D'Youville DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK Nov. 17 - Ryan Heath, Daemen Nov. 24 - Benjamin Bill, Daemen Dec. 1 - Tahj-Malik Campbell, Queens Dec. 8 - Justin Hemphill, Daemen ROOKIE OF THE WEEK Nov. 17 - Henri Mennander, Queens Nov. 24 - Ky Panda-Massey, St. Thomas Aquinas Dec. 1 - Henri Mennander, Queens (2x) Dec. 8 - Lashard Lowry, Jr., D'Youville ECC PRESEASON POLL 1. Daemen - 81 points (9 first-place votes) 2. St. Thomas Aquinas - 69 points  3. Staten Island - 54 points  4. Queens - 48 points 5. Roberts Wesleyan - 45 points 6. D'Youville - 42 points 7. District of Columbia - 24 points 8. Molloy - 22 points 9. Mercy - 20 points
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