KING'S BASKETBALL TEAMS TRAVEL TO CROSS-TOWN RIVAL WILKES FOR FREEDOM CONFERENCE DOUBLEHEADER
WILKES-BARRE – The King's College men's and women's basketball teams will take the short trip across town to face rival Wilkes University on Saturday in an important Freedom Conference doubleheader in the Marts Center.
The women's game is scheduled to tip off at 1:00 p.m., with the men's contest to follow at 3:00 p.m. Fans unable to attend the games can follow the action on LiveStats, available at the following links.
Women: http://www2.sidearmstats.com/wilkes/wbball/index.htm
Men: http://www.sidearmstats.com/wilkes/mbball/index.htm
Wilkes University will also be holding a canned food drive for the men's and women's basketball doubleheader. There will be free admission to any student who brings a non-perishable food item. All donated food will go to St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Wilkes-Barre to help feed those who are in need. The event is sponsored by the Student Athlete Advisory Committees from both Wilkes and King's.
The Lady Monarchs enter the game with a 10-5 overall mark and sit atop the Freedom Conference still unbeaten at 4-0 after posting a 61-47 win over Delaware Valley on Wednesday. King's has won eight of their last 10 games dating back to early December. Sophomore guard Celia Rader continues to lead the team offensively averaging 15.1 points (7th in Freedom) and 3.7 rebounds, shooting 38.5 percent (45-63) from behind the arc. Junior guard Paige Carlin (left) follows with 11.0 points and 5.7 rebounds. Carlin fired in a team-high 12 points and seven rebounds in the Lady Monarch win against the Aggies. Sophomore guard Katlin Michaels adds 9.5 points and 5.0 rebounds, while sophomore guard Lindsay Atchison contributes 7.6 points and a team-best 7.3 rebounds. Junior point-guard Brittany Muscatell runs the offense posting 6.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists. King's averages 67.7 points per-game while allowing 64.5 points each contest.
The Lady Colonels stand 3-10 overall entering the matchup and sit in seventh place in the Freedom Conference standings at 0-3 after suffering a 70-34 loss at Eastern University on Wednesday. Wilkes is currently on a five-game losing skid that began before the semester break in December. Senior guard Sam Lynam, the second leading scorer in the conference, averages 20.1 points and 4.7 rebounds to lead the Lady Colonel attack. Sophomore guard Megan Kazmerski follows with 9.6 points and a team-high 6.4 rebounds. Junior guard Whitney Connolly adds 8.5 points and 4.8 rebounds, while senior guard Erin Schneider contributes 7.1 points and 2.3 rebounds. Wilkes averages 56.8 points per-game while yielding 71.2 points each contest.
King's holds a decisive advantage in the series between the two rival schools, taking 25 of the last 26 games against the Lady Colonels. Wilkes snapped a 23-game losing streak against King's two seasons ago (January 29, 2009) with a 65-61 double overtime win in the Marts Center. The Lady Monarchs swept the home/away matchup a year ago, winning by an average of 24.0 points.
The King's men's squad looks for their third straight conference win Saturday standing 8-5 overall and 2-2 in league play. The Monarchs took an important road victory over FDU-Florham a week ago before defending their home floor Wednesday with an 80-74 victory against then unbeaten in league play Delaware Valley College. Senior forward Kevin Conroy (left) tops the team averaging 16.2 points and 5.1 rebounds. Conroy stands 17th all-time on the school's scoring list with 1,159 points, needing just three points to move into 15th place all-time passing John Leighton '78 (1,161 points) and John Soboleski '08 (1,161 points). Freshman guard Kyle Hammonds follows with 12.8 points and 4.0 rebounds, shooting 40.3 percent (25-62) from behind the arc. Junior guard Nick Reisig adds 8.2 points and 4.2 rebounds, ranking fourth in the conference in three-point shooting at 41.3 percent (19-46). Junior point-guard Kyle Stackhouse contributes 7.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 3.9 assists. King's averages 71.4 points per-game, while allowing 64.5 points each contest.
The Wilkes men's team (8-5) enters the game on a five-game win streak following a 67-55 victory at Eastern University on Wednesday. The Colonels stand 2-2 in league play, tied for fourth place with both King's and Misericordia. Wilkes is led by senior guard Chris DeRojas who averages 17.2 points (4th in Freedom) and 3.3 rebounds, shooting 44.6 percent (33-74) from long range. Junior guard Matt Mullins, who transferred to Wilkes from Division I Binghamton University, follows with 15.0 points and 2.8 rebounds. Junior center Kendall Hinze rounds out the double figure scorers adding 12.8 points and 7.0 rebounds. Junior forward Paul Huch contributes 9.9 points and a team-high 7.8 rebounds in 13 games played. Wilkes averages 74.5 points per-game while yielding 64.3 points each contest.
King's holds a 48-36 advantage in the all-time series between the two schools. The Monarchs posted a home/away sweep last season, taking a 67-57 win at home before posting a 77-56 victory in the Marts Center.
Following the games, both King's squads will return to the floor Wednesday when they take the short trip to Dallas, Pa. for a doubleheader matchup with Misericordia University. The women's game is set for 6:00 p.m. with the men's contest to follow at 8:00 p.m. in the Anderson Center.
