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Dec. 21, 2003
THE STORY LINE: Winners of seven straight, Lafayette (7-1) plays its last game before the holiday break when it travels to Princeton on Monday. Princeton enters at 4-3, coming off a 69-51 loss at No. 3 ranked Duke on Dec. 17. The Leopards and the Tigers have split the last four meetings.
STRONG START: The Leopards are off to their best start since the 1975-76 season when the team started 7-1 under head then coach Tom Davis. The Leopards' lone loss in that seven-game stretch was to Princeton. The Leopards' best-ever start through nine games was an 8-1 beginning to the 1971-72 season, the sole loss coming at Fordham.
KNITTER'S NUMBERS: Junior center Sean Knitter has made a significant impact on the Lafayette lineup this season. He is averaging 19.3 points per game off the bench in the Leopards' last three contests. Knitter scored a career-high 24 points against Cornell on Saturday and grabbed seven boards in 26 minutes off the bench. Knitter is averaging 10.9 points and 4.8 rebounds while playing 15.5 minutes per game.
EARLY RPI RETURNS: With Lafayette's strong start and respectable strength of schedule, the Leopards are currently (Dec. 21) ranked 49th out of 324 Division I schools in the RPI according to CollegeRPI.com. That ranks the Leopards ahead of such schools as Florida, Oklahoma and Ohio State.
RECEIVING VOTES: Lafayette received a vote in the last Associated Press Top 25 poll which was released on Dec. 15. The last time Lafayette received a vote prior to that was Nov. 6, 2000 in the AP Preseason Poll. Prior to that in the 1999-2000, Lafayette received multiple votes in several of the final weeks of the season, last earning votes March 13, 2000.
ON THE SIDELINE: Head coach Fran O'Hanlon (Villanova, 1970) is in his ninth season as the Leopards' mentor. He has twice been named Patriot League Coach of the Year as head of Lafayette's non-scholarship program and lists two NCAA Tournament appearances and three Patriot League regular-season titles among his credentials. O'Hanlon's career record stands at 130-108, a mark that includes two 20-win seasons.
COMING UP: After a brief holiday respite, the Leopards will fly to California to play USC on Dec. 28 and Cal State-Northridge on Dec. 30.
ABOUT PRINCETON: Princeton enters today's non-league contest with a record of 4-3. After winning four of their first five, the Tigers have dropped their last two at Rutgers, 51-49, and at Duke, 69-51. Princeton is playing at home for the first time since Dec. 2 and will not return to Jadwin Gym until Jan. 7. Princeton is 2-0 against Patriot League foes, downing Colgate and Holy Cross to open the season. The Tigers are led offensively by 6-10 center Judson Wallace. The junior is averaging 18 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. He collected 31 points, on 11-of-13 shooting, and nine rebounds while playing all 40 minutes against Holy Cross on Nov. 28. Last year against Lafayette Wallace chipped in with eight points before emerging as a post presence as the season progressed. Rounding out the starting five are sophomore guard Scott Greenman (8.3 ppg., 2.0 rpg.), junior guard Will Venable (7.4 ppg., 4.0 rpg.), senior guard Ed Persia (7.4 ppg., 3.3 rpg.) and senior forward Konrad Wysocki (7.4 ppg., 1.9 rpg.). Both Venable and Persia are averaging just over four assists per game. John Thompson III is in his fourth season at the helm of the Princeton program. He has posted a 48-34 record at Princeton, guiding the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament in his first season and the NIT in his second.
SERIES NOTES: Lafayette trails Princeton 14-41 in the all-time series. The Leopards lost the last meeting, 89-75, (see complete recap to left) on Dec. 7, 2002 in Easton. The two teams have played every season since 1990 and the all-time series dates back to Feb. 27, 1900 when the programs first met.
TAKING BETTER CARE OF THE BALL: If you asked head coach Fran O'Hanlon about the Leopards' lone loss at Rutgers, he would immediately point to the team's 25 turnovers. Limiting turnovers has been a focus for Lafayette since, as Lafayette sliced its game total to 19 vs. St. Peter's, 16 vs. La Salle, 15 at Drexel, 14 vs. Centenary, a season-low nine turnovers vs. Binghamton, 14 vs. Lycoming and 14 vs. Cornell.
THEY'RE GONNA SCORE: Lafayette has had nine or more players score at least one point in each of its last six games.
GARNERING A GRAND: With his first basket against La Salle on Nov. 29, senior Justin DeBerry became the 33rd player in Lafayette history to eclipse the 1,000 point plateau. DeBerry currently has 1,097 career points and is averaging 16.8 ppg.
KNOCKING IT DOWN: Lafayette has shot the ball well from the floor this season, hitting 51 percent for the year. The Leopards' best effort came against La Salle when they shot 61 percent (27-44). The Leopards' "worst" performance came at Drexel, when they hit 45 percent (25-56). Lafayette has shot over 50 percent in four of its eight games this season.
IS THE GLASS HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL?: Rebounding was not a strength of Lafayette's squad last season, and has been a mixed bag thus far in 2003-04. The Leopards have out-rebounded four of their eight opponents, the exceptions being Drexel, Binghamton, Lycoming and Cornell (the Leopards are 4-0 in those games). The rebounding duties have been spread around, as four different players are averaging 4.0 rebounds per game or more. Mike Farrell leads the way with 4.9 rebounds per game followed by Winston Davis (4.8 rpg), Sean Knitter (4.8 rpg) and Rob Dill (4.1 rpg).
INJURY REPORT: As a team, Lafayette is healthy entering Monday's game. Freshman Ryan Baum is the only definite scratch from the lineup, still recovering from a separated shoulder. Andrei Capusan and Jamaal Hilliard each sustained unspecified leg injuries on Saturday. Their status for Monday has yet to be determined.
DILL ON THE BLOCK: Rob Dill has 136 career blocks, ranking second all-time behind Frank Barr '01 (160). Dill blocked 54 shots as a junior, the second-best single-season effort at Lafayette. This season, Dill already has 24 blocks and swatted away a career-high seven shots in a win over St. Peter's (11/24). He ranks seventh all-time in the Patriot League in blocked shots and is currently 11th in the nation (3.0 bpg).
THE REAL "IRON MIKE": Despite having to deal with the daily physical challenges posed by diabetes, senior forward Mike Farrell has never missed a game in three-plus seasons on College Hill. Farrell played in 28 games and started four as a freshman, played in 29 games and started 28 as a sophomore and started 28 of 29 games in his junior season. Monday's game vs. Princeton marks his 95th straight game.
PATRIOT PRESEASON POLL: Lafayette has been picked to finish second in the Patriot League Preseason Poll. The Leopards received two first-place votes in the poll voted on by the conference coaches and sports information directors.
BOMBING AWAY: Senior Justin DeBerry is currently third on the career three-point field goals list at Lafayette, with 166. He needs two more triples to advance to second place held by Tim Bieg '01 with 167. Tyson Whitfield '01, who had 271 career three-pointers, holds the all-time record. DeBerry ranks 14th all-time in the Patriot League...DeBerry's 69 three-pointers in the 2002-03 season ranked him fourth all-time at Lafayette for single-season performances.
FARRELL ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB: For the second straight season, Mike Farrell will be writing a weekly journal for Lafayette's official athletics website www.GoLeopards.com. Farrell runs down the season and gives insight into the life of a student-athlete. His second journal entry discusses the Zoo Crew, Justin DeBerry reaching a career mark, and the dreaded finals.
THE LONE CAPTAIN: Senior Mike Farrell is in his second season as team captain. The DeLand, Fla. native has played in 94 straight games since beginning his career at Lafayette. The only two starts he has missed in his sophomore and junior seasons were to give way to seniors on Senior Day.
ACCURATE THREATS: Lafayette's post players were extremely accurate last season and that has continued on in 2003-04. Rob Dill, who led the team and finished second in the league in field goal percentage last season, is currently shooting 68 percent from the floor. Mike Farrell, who ended fourth in the Patriot League last season, is currently shooting 58 percent from the floor.
DAVIS PLAYER OF WEEK (12/1): Senior guard Winston Davis was named Patriot League Player of the Week. Davis led Lafayette to a 2-0 week against St. Peter's and La Salle, when he scored 20 and 19 points, respectively. He was held to a season-low six points at Drexel, but hit two crucial free throws in the one-point win.
IN THE HOUSE THAT THE KIRBYS BUILT: Lafayette has enjoyed plenty of success in Kirby Sports Center. Since the building's inaugural season in 1973-74, the Leopards have posted a 269-113 record (.704) in 30 seasons. Twenty-three of those seasons have been winning campaigns. Last season, Lafayette finished 9-5 at home. In 2003-04, Lafayette will play 13 home games, having already beaten St. Peter's (74-71), La Salle (83-63), Centenary (96-54), Binghamton (77-72), Lycoming (84-73) and Cornell (87-79) at home.
THE STARTING FIVE: Four senior players installed themselves into the starting lineup following the 2002-03 season. Justin DeBerry and Winston Davis fill two of the starting spots in a three-guard offense. Mike Farrell and Rob Dill re-take the floor at the forwards. A sophomore, Pat Betley, has started the first eight games at point guard, averaging 23.5 minutes an outing.
PRESEASON LAURELS: Senior guards Justin DeBerry and Winston Davis have both been selected to the Preseason All-Patriot League First Team as voted on by the conference coaches and SIDs. DeBerry was tabbed as the Patriot League Preseason player of the year by two publications, Lindy's and Basketball News.
PATRIOT LEAGUE TOP SCORERS RETURNING: Lafayette features both of the top two returning scorers in the Patriot League. Justin DeBerry led the team and finished second in the Patriot League last season with a 16.3 ppg average. Winston Davis is the second leading returning scorer this season, having dropped in 13.8 ppg as a junior.
THE HALF OF IT: Getting a strong start from the opening tap was a key in Lafayette wins in 2002-03. Lafayette was 9-2 when leading at halftime, the only losses coming against Holy Cross (1/18/03) after holding a five-point lead at intermission and at Navy (2/27/03) after leading 41-31. This season, Lafayette has only led at halftime in three of its games.
BOMBING AWAY UNDER O'HANLON: Perimeter shooting, specifically from three-point land, has been a hallmark of Fran O'Hanlon's offenses. O'Hanlon squads have hit at least one three-pointer in every one of O'Hanlon's 238 games. In his first season, Lafayette connected for 201 three-pointers, surpassing the previous team record by 54 three's. Lafayette has since eclipsed the 200-three-pointer plateau in all but one of his eight seasons. The Leopards have set three new season marks, with the top one coming in 1999-00 when Lafayette dialed up long distance 249 times. In 2002-03, Lafayette hit 209 three-pointers and is averaged 7.2 three-pointers per game. This season the Leopards have averaged 7.0 three-pointers per game.
ALL-TIME AT LAFAYETTE: In the 94 seasons of men's basketball at Lafayette College, the Leopards hold an overall record of 1140-983 (.537). Lafayette's first season of basketball was in 1900-01.
HUGHES' LINE (12/2): Junior Jamie Hughes' line on the box score at Drexel would not impress the average person -- two points, six rebounds, one turnover and one block in just eight minutes. Those watching the game, however, know just how crucial he was to the win. Hughes' block came on Drexel's final attempt at the game-winning shot and his six rebounds proved crucial. What doesn't show up on the box score was the 7-0, 280-pounder's dive for a loose ball and his defense on Drexel's Sean Brooks in the final minutes.
INTERNATIONAL FEEL: Lafayette has two players who hail from foreign countries on the roster. Senior Rob Dill is a native of Isernhagen, Germany. Sophomore Andrei Capusan comes from Bucharest, Romania, home country of former Patriot League Player of the Year Stefan Ciosici '00 who was from Timisoara, Romania. Capusan spent the 2001-02 academic year attending a school in the United States as Dill had two years prior. Jamaal Douglas, who currently lives in Miami, Fla., originally hails from Nassau, Bahamas.
CoSIDA HONORS FARRELL: Senior Mike Farrell was named to the 2003 CoSIDA Academic All-District II Men's Basketball Team, one of just five student-athletes selected. Farrell maintains a 3.29 GPA while majoring in American Studies. Nominees for the award must have a minimum GPA of 3.20 and be a starter or key reserve. The All-District II team is selected by a vote CoSIDA membership in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Washington D.C.
LAFAYETTE ATHLETICS ON THE WEB: The quickest and most comprehensive source for information on Lafayette athletics is the world wide web. Go to www.lafayette.edu and click on "Sports." The athletics site is continuously updated with gameday press releases, schedules and results, rosters, statistics, player features, photos and more. On gameday, you can listen to the radio broadcast of all of Lafayette's men's basketball games and watch a live stats feed of home games.
LAFAYETTE ON TELEVISION: For the seventh-straight season, Lafayette features the most expansive television package in the Patriot League. The Leopards will have a minimum of 14 games televised with the possible addition of three more television contests in the Patriot League Tournament. The Lafayette Sports Network will air 13 games to more than 9.1 million viewers in the Lehigh Valley, Pocono region, all of Philadelphia, central New Jersey, New York City and Boston. Locally the telecasts can be seen on RCN Cable channels 4 and 60, Service Electric Cable channel 51, Blue Ridge Cable channel 5 and broadcast channel 60. Several of Lafayette's games that appear on the Lafayette Sports Network will also be picked up by Empire Sports Network which reaches more than 17.5 million viewers in Upstate and Western New York as well as more than 59.5 million potential viewers on DIRECTV (626) and Dish Network (432). Lafayette will have two games televised on the Patriot League Television Network on Jan. 23 vs. Lehigh and Feb. 6 at Colgate which will be available on DIRECTV (615) and will be carried locally by WFMZ-69.
ON THE RADIO: Today's game can be heard live on WEST-AM 1400, the 66th year of broadcasting Lafayette Athletics. Dick Hammer is in his 36th year of calling the play-by-play for Lafayette men's basketball. Hammer is joined by Carl Schumacher at home games and most road contests by Phil LaBella (Lafayette SID).
