Dec. 21, 2009
Easton, Pa. -
Game Notes 
GAME 12 • December 22, 2009
Matchup: Lafayette (6-5) at St. Francis (N.Y.) (3-6)
Tip-off: 7:30 p.m.
Site: Brooklyn Heights, N.Y.
Arena: Pope Physical Education Center (1,200)
Radio: WSAN-AM Fox 1470 • Dick Hammer
TV: none
Internet: GoLeopards.com • www.fox1470.com
Series: LC: 3-2
First Meeting: SF: 85-47, 03/17/1956
Last Meeting: LC: 89-81 (OT), 12/06/2005
Last Lafayette Win: same
Fran O'Hanlon vs. St. Francis (N.Y.): 1-1
MATCH UP: The Leopards (6-5) look to add to their two-game winning streak on Tuesday when they travel to Brooklyn Heights N.Y. Lafayette has not played since Dec. 12, taking off nine days from game action to prepare for and take final exams. St. Francis (3-6) has not played since Dec. 13 in a 75-51 loss to
No. 6 Syracuse.
200 AND STILL GOING: Lafayette head coach Fran O'Hanlon reached the 200-win plateau on Dec. 12 with the Leopards' victory over Long Island.
O'HANLON REACHES A DIFFERENT MARK: With his 415th game at the helm of the Lafayette program, Fran O'Hanlon holds the Patriot League all-time mark for games coached. He surpassed retired Bucknell coach Pat Flannery (412) who once stomped on the sidelines of Davis Gym and Sojka Pavilion.
LAST TIME OUT: Fran O'Hanlon recorded his 200th career coaching victory on Dec. 12 in a 77-63 decision versus Long Island. Sophomore Jim Mower, needed just three days to break his own career-high in scoring, ending the game with 25 points following a 23-point effort vs. Fairleigh Dicksinon on Wednesday.
Mower, who was 6-of-7 from three-point range, was one of three players in double figures. Jeff Kari came off the bench to chip in 16 while Jared Mintz finished with 14 points and led the squad with seven rebounds.
MINTZ, FROM THE FLOOR: Junior forward Jared Mintz has been the Leopards' leading scorer from the outset of 2009-10. The Toronto, Canada native has been an efficient scorer and coming into the week was ranked 26th in the country for field goal percentage, shooting 60 percent from the floor. Mintz scored 14 points and led the team with seven rebounds against LIU.
His season shooting percentage includes a 9-of-9 night at St. Francis (Pa.), an 8-of-10 stint at NJIT, a 6-of-7 performance vs. Hartford and a 5-for-7 day at Georgetown.
MAJOR MINUTES FOR MOWER: Sophomore guard Jim Mower played the first seven games of the season off the bench, but has started the last four. Mower enjoyed a breakout game vs. FDU on Dec. 9, scoring a career-high 23 points on 10-of-16 shooting. Mower also grabbed three rebounds and had an assist in 25 minutes of action.
He broke his own scoring mark a game later when he scored 25 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the three-point range against LIU. The performance earned him his first Patriot League Player of the Week nod.
The Harleysville, Pa. native is second on the team in scoring with 13.1 ppg in 23 minutes per game. The number that stands out the most for Mower is his assist/turnover ratio which is +3.6 (25/7).
SCOUTING ST. FRANCIS: St. Francis comes in with a 3-6 mark. The Terriers have beaten Colgate, Bryant and Hartford while losing to Brown, Boston College, Canisius, UMass, Central Connecticut and No. 6 Syracuse on Dec. 13.
St. Francis is led by junior guard Ricky Cadell with 15.8 ppg, one of four players averaging more than 33 minutes per game. Sophomore guard Stefan Perunicic has started seven games and is averaging 9.6 ppg while leading the team with 20 three-pointers. Sophomore Justin Newton has started seven games and has added 27 assists and 19 steals.
Two juniors and a senior spend time up front. Senior Kayode Ayeni leads the team in rebounding (5.8 rpg) and is third in scoring (13.8 ppg). Junior Akeem Bennett is the team's second-leading scorer (14.1 ppg) and leads the team with 28 assists and 21 steals. Bennett recorded his first career double-double (15 pts., 10 reb.) against Syracuse. Senior center Herman Wrice scored 12 points vs. the Orange and is averaging 4.2 ppg and 4.4 rpg.
Head coach Brian Nash (Keene State '92) is in his fifth season at St. Francis where he has a 36-81 record. Previously, Nash was an assistant coach at Seton Hall, Siena, St. Bonaventure and Sacred Heart.
NEXT UP: Lafayette will close out 2009 at Delaware on Dec. 29 at 7 p.m., the first meeting between the two teams since 1998 when they played in a tournament in Albany, N.Y.
HANDLING THE BALL: It's early in the season, but Lafayette features a positive season assist/turnover ratio for the first time since 2000-01 (+1.03 • 434/422). Lafayette is
+1.13 (156/138) this season. Lafayette had a 1:1 assist/turnover ratio in 2003-04 (429/429).
FABULOUS FRESHMAN TO SUPER SOPHOMORE?: Sophomore forward Ryan Willen was named to the Patriot League All-Rookie team in 2008-09, the seventh freshman in school history to earn the accolade.
This season, Willen is averaging 8.6 points and 3.5 rebounds per game and has 19 assists. Willen's last solid outing came against Fairleigh Dickinson on Dec. 9 when he had 18 points, a career-high two blocks and a pair of assists.
In addition to his work on the court, Willen was enrolled in Organic Chemistry, Ethics, Introduction to Psychology, Religions in World Cultures and two labs for the fall semester.
PELHAM CHIMES IN: Sophomore J.D. Pelham played a career-high 14 minutes vs. Fairleigh Dickinson and responded with a solid stat line. The 6-10 center had four points, four rebounds and three blocks while making 2-of-2 at the line.
A HELPING HAND: Lafayette has dished out assists on 57 percent of its baskets in the 2009-10 season. The Leopards had 18 assists on 25 buckets at La Salle (72%) and 13 assists on 18 baskets vs. St. Peter's (72.2%), both losses. The Leopards' worst performance of the year in terms of assists per basket came in a win against Wagner (9 assists, 25 FG) when the Leopards made up for it by making 26-of-31 free throws. In its most recent game vs. Long Island, Lafayette had 15 assists on 25 baskets.
WHAT GARDEN STATER IS IN THAT JERSEY?: Lafayette played four New Jersey schools in the past two months: NJIT, Fairleigh Dickinson, Princeton and St. Peter's.
DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE: Junior forward Jared Mintz has been the Leopards' go-to guy during the 2009-10 season. Mintz's hard work in the off season has led to increased scoring output and solid work on the glass. The junior already has a pair of double-doubles, contributing 20 points and 10 rebounds in the season opener vs. Wagner (11/13) and following up with 18 and 10 against Hartford (11/24). Mintz now has four double-doubles for his career. For the season, he has scored in double figures in nine games.
LEADING THE LEAGUE: Jared Mintz leads the Patriot League in field-goal percentage (60%), is fourth free throw percentage (86.3%), fifth in scoring (14.7 ppg) and is also sixth in rebounding (6.0 rpg). Sophomore Jim Mower ranks first in three-point percentage (45.5%) and fifth for three-pointers made (2.4 per game). Jeff Kari ranks seventh in three-point field goals made (1.9).
Lafayette leads the league in five categories: field goal percentage (45.9%), blocked shots (3.9 bpg), three-point field goal percentage (38%), three-pointers made (7.7 pg) and assist/turnover ratio (1.1). The Leopards are second in scoring offense (70.8 ppg), assists (14.2 apg), turnover margin (+1.5).
FACEBOOK/TWITTER: Fans can follow Lafayette basketball on Facebook at
facebook.com/lafayette.leopard and Twitter at twitter.com/goleopards .
100 AND STILL GOING: What do North Carolina basketball and Lafayette basketball have in common other than Nike sneakers? For both teams, the 2009-10 season marks the 100th season of men's basketball. Lafayette's first season was 1900-01, but the school did not field a team from 1903-04 to 1912-13.
ON THE SIDELINE: The all-time winningest coach in Lafayette history and longest-tenured coach in the Patriot League, Fran O'Hanlon (Villanova, '70) enters his 15th season as the Leopards' head coach. A two-time Patriot League Coach of the Year recipient, O'Hanlon has twice led Lafayette's program to the NCAA Tournament and lays claim to three Patriot League regular-season titles.
With a 75-71 double-overtime victory over Lehigh on Feb. 18, 2007, O'Hanlon became the winningest coach in Lafayette history and now holds an all-time record of 200-215 on College Hill.
O'Hanlon's overall record does not necessarily tell an accurate story of the job he has done at Lafayette. The Philadelphia native inherited a 2-25 team when he took over in 1995-96 and won seven, 11, 19, 22 and 24 games over the next five seasons. From 1997-2000, Lafayette was 65-24 overall and 31-5 in the conference with two NCAA Tournament appearances. In 1996, the Patriot League, which was originally founded based on the principle of need-based financial aid only, began allowing athletic scholarships. However, it was not until 2006 that Lafayette chose to do so. By no coincidence, during that span, Lafayette posted a 79-91 mark and was 38-44 in the league.
SOLID START: The Leopards' 4-1 start was the best since 2003-04 when Lafayette began the season 6-1. Lafayette finished 18-10 that season.
FRESH IMPACT: Freshman Tony Johnson has made a positive impact on the court for the Leopards. Johnson is averaging 19.2 minutes per game and has 21 assists to 14 turnovers, solid numbers for a freshman who has been asked to handle the ball often. Johnson is also second on the team in steals and third in assists. A 6-0 native of Folsom, Calif., Johnson is the only true point guard on the team. Johnson was 7-for-7 from the line and finished with nine points while also adding three assists in 18 minutes against FDU (12/9).
Fellow first-year player Levi Giese has seen action in eight games while averaging 1.5 points and 0.6 rebounds per game. A 6-9 forward, Giese comes from Tulsa, Okla. and brings solid perimeter skills. Giese played four minutes vs. Fairleigh Dickinson after missing the previous two games with illness.
Meet the Captains: Senior guards Jeff Kari and Mike Gruner are holding leadership roles for the 2009-10 season. Kari, who served as a co-captain last season, played in all 30 games as a junior, starting 27 and was second on the team in scoring. This season, the Lisle, Ill. native is averaging 10.5 ppg and has 25 assists. Coming out of high school, Gruner was an all-state selection at Lisle Senior High School where he set seven school records and was a two-way player on the football team (wide receiver and defensive back).
Gruner is averaging 7.1 ppg and leads the team with 26 assists and 17 steals. He was a mainstay in the lineup the past two seasons. In 2008-09, he was the team's steadiest ballhandler, dishing out 61 assists to 44 turnovers for a 1.4 assist/turnover ratio and 196 points (8.2 ppg). Gruner is also a Marquis Scholar, the college's most prestigious academic scholarship. Coming out Bethesda, Md., Gruner led his Walt Whitman high school squad to the Maryland 4A state title while earning Gazette Co-Player of the Year honors along with the NBA's 2007-08 Rookie of the Year Kevin Durant of Montrose Christian.
SIX...IS GOOD: The Leopards had six players score in double figures against Hartford on Nov. 24. Jared Mintz led the way with 18, followed by Darion Benbow (career-high 15), Michael Gruner (13), Jim Mower (13), Jeff Kari (10) and Ryan Willen (10). The last time Lafayette had six players score in double figures, including all five starters, was Nov. 28, 2007 in an 81-69 win over Penn. Gruner is the only Lafayette player to have been scored 10+ in both of those games.
In games against Wagner and St. Francis (Pa.), Lafayette had four players score in double figures.
D.C. DANDIES: Though players from 11 states and three countries are represented on Lafayette's roster, the Leopards feature three from the geographic cluster that is the D.C. Metro area. Prior to arriving on College Hill, three of Lafayette's guards attended schools within 25 miles of the nation's capital. Michael Gruner shined at Walt Whitman High School, where he led his team to a state championship. Junior Ben Wheeler played at Chantilly where he garnered first team all-district and second team all-region accolades his senior year. Sophomore Nick Petkovich is the most recent addition from the D.C. area, an All-IAC Conference First-Team selection from Bullis Prep.
FRESH FACES: Head coach Fran O'Hanlon added two new coaches to his staff this season. Pat Doherty is a familiar face to the Lafayette program, graduating from Lafayette in 2004. Doherty was an assistant coach at Williams College in 2008-09, helping lead Williams to a 17-9 overall record. In 2007-08 Doherty served as an assistant coach at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ). Matt Blue holds down the final assistant coaching spot. Blue, a 2007 graduate of St. Lawrence comes to Lafayette after spending the 2008-09 season at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pa. He helped lead the Crusaders to an 18-8 overall mark and a 13-3 finish in the Landmark Conference.
BASKETBALL IQ: Lafayette placed a program-best three student-athletes on the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll during the 2008-09 season. The distinction recognizes those individuals who have earned a varsity letter and maintained a 3.2 GPA during the spring semester. Senior Michael Gruner and sophomores Rob Delaney and Andy Moore each earned a nod.
THE PRESEASON POLL: Lafayette was chosen to finish eighth in the Patriot League Preseason Poll. The poll is voted on by the conference head coaches and sports information directors. Holy Cross was picked to finish first with 13 first-place votes, followed by Lehigh, Bucknell, Army, Colgate, American and Navy.
IN THE RANKS: Seven of Lafayette's non-conference opponents were picked to finish within the top five of their respective leagues in the preseason polls. At No. 2, Long Island and Princeton are the highest ranked non-conference opponents the Leopards will face. Lafayette will tip off against six opponents from the Northeast Conference -- the most of any one conference on the Leopards' schedule.
AROUND THE WORLD: Five international players are featured on the roster for tonight's matchup. Lafayette boasts three international players in Jared Mintz (Toronto, Canada), Marek Koltun (Krakow, Poland) and Deirunas Visockas (Lithuania). St. Francis has Stefan Perunicic (Belgrade, Serbia) and Richard Clark (Berkshire, England).
ABOUT LAFAYETTE COLLEGE: Located in Easton, Pa. (70 miles west of New York City and 60 miles north of Philadelphia) on the banks of the Delaware and Lehigh Rivers, Lafayette is a small liberal arts school with a renowned engineering program. Lafayette, which has 23 Division I sports with a student body of 2,403 undergraduates, competes in the Patriot League with Army, Navy, Bucknell, Holy Cross, Colgate, American and Lehigh. Lafayette is the alma mater of Pete Carril and Tampa Bay Rays' manager Joe Maddon.
LAFAYETTE ON TV: The Leopards will have 13 of their regular-season games televised during the 2009-10 season. The Leopards will also lead the Patriot League with seven nationally-televised games, as MASN (available through both DIRECTV and DISH Network) will air Lafayette's entire slate of home league contests on a tape-delay basis. Emmy-nominated local sports broadcaster Gary Laubach will handle all of Lafayette's play-by-play duties for the 13th straight season. Former Lafayette men's basketball coach John Leone will provide color analysis for the 11th season.
ON THE RADIO: The road games of the 2009-10 Lafayette men's basketball season will air on WSAN-AM 1470 "The Fox." Entering his 43rd season as the radio voice of Lafayette athletics, Dick Hammer will continue to call the play-by-play action. Joining Hammer courtside for most contests will be Lafayette Sports Information Director Phil LaBella.
