JANUARY 20, 2017

KING'S BASKETBALL TEAMS HOSTING CROSSTOWN RIVAL WILKES SATURDAY, A MOMENT OF MAGIC FUNDRAISER TO BE HELD

WILKES-BARRE — The first step at claiming city bragging rights will take place Saturday when the King's College women's and men's basketball teams host cross-town rival Wilkes University in a Freedom Conference doubleheader in Scandlon Gymnasium.  The women tip off the action at 1:00 PM with the men to follow at 3:00 PM. In addition, King's teams will help support "A Moment of Magic" Fundraiser for children with Pedatric Cancer.

Fans unable to attend can follow the game online at the links below:

Video (both games):  https://livestream.com/kingscollege

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

Live Stats Women:  http://www.sidearmstats.com/kings/wbball/

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

The King's women stand at 2-13 overall and 0-5 in the Freedom Conference league after a 60-49 home loss to Misericordia on Wednesday. Wilkes, meanwhile, is 4-11 and 0-5 in the conference following a 70-58 loss at DeSales on Wednesday.  King's has won 34 of the last 37 meeting between the teams, including both games last season.  The Lady Monarchs have won the last four contests between the teams.

King's has been led thus far by freshman power-forward Rebecca Prociak who averages 12.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per-game.  Senior small forward Kayla Feairheller follows with 9.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, and team highs of 35 assists and 16 three-pointers. Sophomore forward Alexis Steeber has tallied with 8.8 points and 5.0 rebounds while junior center Olivia Hoffman adds 8.7 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 67 blocked shots. Senior guard Shae Grim chips in with 5.0 points and 3.1 rebounds. The Lady Monarchs average 53.3 points per-game while allowing 63.1 each contest.

Wilkes is paced by freshman forward Gianna Robert with 8.3 points, and 4.7 rebounds per-game while senior guard Haley Mesaros follows with 8.1 points and 3.5 rebounds. Sophomore guard Ashley Caster adds 8.0 points and 5.3 boards while senior guard Missy Oertner contributes 5.9 points and 4.3 rebounds. Freshman guard Alyssa Alfano has posted 5.6 points while junior forward Catey McFadden chips in with 5.0 points and 3.8 rebounds. The Lady Colonels average 60.9 points while allowing 70.3 each contest.

King's men will look to snap a nine-game losing streak as the Monarchs enter the matchup with a 4-11 record and are 0-5 in Freedom play after a 62-48 home loss to Misericordia on Wednesday. Wilkes, meanwhile, is 8-8 overall and 2-3 league game after picking up a big 78-74 road win over perennial conference contender DeSales on Wednesday.

King's coach J.P. Andrejko has posted a 18-12 career record against Wilkes since taking over the Monarch program in 2001-02, but is 1-3 against third-year Wilkes mentor Izzy Metz.

King's has been paced by senior power forward Dan Rutecki who leads the team with 15.2 points and 8.3 rebounds while standing second on the team with 30 assists. Junior guard Connor Callejas follows with 13.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, 30 assists, and a team-high 36 three-pointers. Senior guard John Fazzini adds 6.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, 28 assists, and 17 three-pointers while sophomore guard Jake Barber has tallied 6.1 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 14 three pointers. Junior forward Chris Fazzini contributes 5.9 points and 3.4 rebounds while freshman center Andrew Hudak chips in with 5.1 points and 4.2 boards.   

King's inability to score has been the key factor in its current nine-game losing streak. The Monarchs have shot below 40.0 percent in six of the nine games played with a high of just 41.2 percent.  After shooting 57.7 percent in a loss to Gwynedd-Mercy on December 9, the Monarchs have shot for a combined 35.2 (161-457) percent in the eight games since. King's high shooting performance during that stretch was 41.2 percent on December 20 against Whitman (15-0), the second-ranked team in the nation. The Monarchs average 68.7 points while yielding 72.3 each game.

Wilkes is led by sophomore guard Marcus Robinson who averages 16.1 points and 4.0 rebounds while connecting on 54 three-pointers. Sophomore guard Connor Evans follows with 12.1 points and 4,o assists with 24 treys while sophomore forward Tommy Bowen adds 8.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists with 11 three-pointers. Freshman guard Mark Mullins contributes 6.8 points and 4.5 rebounds while junior forward Zach Brunner chips in with 6.8 points and 4.1 rebounds. The Colonels average 75.4 points per-game while allowing 71.9 each contest.

After concluding their games with Wilkes, King's men return to the court Monday for its last non-conference game of the season when Muhlenberg College ventures to Scandlon Gym for a 7:00 PM matchup. Both King's teams will then return to conference play Wednesday with a doubleheader at DeSales University.

COMMUNITY SERVICE NOTE FOR SATURDAY'S GAME VS. WILKES

On Saturday during the King's vs. Wilkes women's and men's basketball doubleheader in Scandlon Gymnasium, King's basketball teams will be supporting the "A Moment of Magic Foundation" and will help raise funds during the game.

A Moment of Magic was founded by Kylee McGrane, great granddaughter Bob McGrane, who served as King's men's basketball coach from 1954-1967.

A Moment of Magic is an organization benefitting children with Pediatric Cancer and King's will aid the foundation in its fund-raising efforts on Saturday. At both the women's and men's contests, baskets passed around Scandlon Gymnasium with the hopes of raising money for the children.

In addition, there will be a fundraiser at Rodano's on Public Square following the games. Admission to the fundraiser at Rodano's is $25.00 and includes unlimited pizza, stromboli, and beverages. There are also raffles for Thomas Rhett concert tickets, 100 raffle baskets from local vendors, as well as two round-trip tickets to a destination of your choice on JetBlue Airlines.

More information about the organization can be found at:  http://www.amomentofmagic.org/