FEBRUARY 13, 2015

KING'S BASKETBALL TEAMS HOSTING MISERICORDIA FREEDOM CONFERENCE DOUBLEHEADER SATURDAY

Women's Media Notes    l    Men's Media Notes

WILKES-BARRE — With just three games remaining in the regular-season and post-season berths hanging in the balance, the King's College basketball teams return to the hardwood Saturday with an important home Freedom Conference doubleheader against Misericordia University in Scandlon Gymnasium. The women's game tips off at 1:00 p.m. while the men's game follows at 3:00 p.m.

Ticket prices are $5 for adults, $2 for seniors, and $2 for non-King's students showing I.D.  In addition, children under age-six shall be admitted free.  Fans unable to attend can follow the games online at the following links:
 
KCTV / Live Video (Both Games): http://www.kings.edu/mykings/streaming

WRKC 88.5 FM:  http://wrkc.kings.edu/list/current.html

Women's LiveStats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/kings/wbball/

Men's LiveStats:  http://www.sidearmstats.com/kings/mbball/

King's women enter the matchup with a 9-13 overall record and are in fifth-place, one game out of the fourth and final Freedom Conference Tournament berth with a 5-6 mark after  a 70-50 loss to league co-leader Eastern on Wednesday. The Lady Monarchs are still alive in the conference tournament race but likely need to win two of their final three games to qualify. King's is a game behind Delaware Valley for the fourth spot and will face the Aggies Tuesday night in what could be a make-or-break contest.  But first King's is in need of a win Saturday over Misericordia.

Misericordia, meanwhile, is looking to play the role of spoiler as the Cougars are 1-21 overall and 1-10 in conference play after a 75-57 loss vs Delaware Valley on Wednesday. Last week the Cougars pulled off a big upset with a 71-63 win over third-place DeSales. In its first meeting with King's, Misericordia led by 12 points with 10:49 left in the contest before the Lady Monarchs rallied for the win.

King's women have been paced by sophomore guard Kayla Feairheller who averages 12.7 points and 5.2 rebounds per-game with a team-high 36 three-pointers. Senior forward Marissa Manning follows with 10.5 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 12 blocks. Sophomore point-guard Kasey Seitz adds 8.5 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.8 assists with 32 three-pointers.  Junior forward Jennifer Fabian contributes 7.4 points and 6.3 boards while freshman center Olivia Hoffman has tallied 5.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and a team-high 61 blocked shots. Junior forward Tara Zdancewicz chips in with 4.4 points and 3.0 rebounds. King's is averaging 59.3 points per-game while allowing 67.6 each contest.

Misericordia is led by senior guard Lauren Smicherko with 12.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists.  Sophomore center Justine Seely follows with 11.7 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 25 blocks. Senior guard Shelby Brochetti adds 9.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, and a team-high 15 three-pointers. Senior forward Sam Baro contributes 5.6 points and 2.4 rebounds while sister Nikki Baro, a junior forward, tallies 5.5 points with 3.65 boards and ten three-pointers. Freshman guard Jaclyn Hajec chips in with 5.3 points and 4.0 rebounds. The Cougars average 57.2 points per-game while yielding 71.9.

The Monarch men enter the game with a 13-9 overall record and are currently in sole possession of the fourth and final playoff berth with a 6-5 mark with three games remaining. The Monarchs come off a hard-fought 80-74 win over Eastern Wednesday night.  Misericordia, meanwhile, is in first-place in the Freedom Conference at 17-5 and 9-2 in league play. In the first meeting between the teams on January 21, Misericordia put forth an outstanding performance in a 70-41 victory over King's in what proved to be the Monarchs' poorest performance of the season.

Sophomore forward Dan Rutecki paces King's with averages of 15.0 points and 7.2 rebounds per-game while topping the Monarchs by shooting 51.7 (109-211) percent from the field and 85.2 (109-128) percent from the foul line. In the first meeting between the teams Rutecki was saddled with foul trouble throughout the game and went scoreless for the only time in his 47-game career.

Freshman guard Chris Fazzini follows with 11.5 points and 3.6 rebounds while brother John Fazzini, also a freshman guard, adds 7.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 21 three-pointers. Freshman forward Dan Borner contributes 6.5 points and 3.9 rebounds while junior center Tom Heston adds 6.5 points, 5.3 boards, and a team-high 2.2 assists per-game. Tim O'Shea has been outstanding off the bench in recent weeks and averages 5.0 points and 3.2 rebounds per-game, but over the last six games he has averaged 9.8 points and 4.1 rebounds.  King's averages 65.1 points while allowing 65.0.

Misericordia is led by senior forward Steve Ware who tops the squad with 14.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per-game. Senior guard Joe Busacca follows with 14.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and has hit 22 three-pointers. Sophomore guard Griffin Sponaugle adds 8.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.4 assists while sophomore 6-foot-10 center James Hawk contributes 7.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 40 blocked shots. Sophomore forward Erik Kerns chips in with 6.8 points and 6.1 boards. The Cougars average 67.00 points while yielding 60.1 each game.

Following the games against Eastern both King's teams will hit the road on Tuesday for another critical Freedom Conference doubleheader at Delaware Valley College.