WILKES-BARRE, PA (November 14, 2018) – The King's College men's basketball team played well in spurts against a strong Eastern University team on Wednesday but couldn't quite claw back into the game dropping the Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) opener. The Monarchs will now look forward to conference road action on Saturday, traveling to DeSales University in Center Valley, PA for the second and final league game before the Holiday break.

Event Details
Opponent: at DeSales University (4-4, 1-0 MAC Freedom)
Date: Saturday, December 8, 2018
Time: 3 p.m.
Location: Center Valley, PA -  Billera Hall Gymnasium (Directions)
Live Coverage: (Live Video) (Live Stats)

Last Time Out: Freshman Kevin Hunter scored a season-high 18 points off the bench for the King's College men's basketball team, but it wasn't enough as visiting Eastern University used a strong first half to defeat the Monarchs 87-76 in the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom opener for both teams in McGrane Gymnasium.

King's (1-6, 0-1 MAC Freedom) shot a remarkable 63.0 percent (17-27) to finish the game in the second half, shooting 45.6 percent from the field. The Monarchs shot a season-best 94.1 percent from the charity stripe knocking down 16 of 17 attempts.

Hunter scored 18 points in 18 minutes on 5-of-10 from the field including 3-of-6 from downtown and a perfect 5-for-5 at the line. Hudak flirted with a double-double grabbing a career-high 10 rebounds, dishing out a career-high nine assists and scoring six points. Millan finished with a season-high 15 points while Bailey was King's third player in double digits with 10 points.

A Look At The Monarchs (1-6, 0-1 MAC Freedom):

• The Monarchs have started to shoot the ball better lately, especially at home as King's has shot 50.7 percent from the field in their last two home games.
• Freshman Kevin Hunter has been strong since his return to the lineup, coming off the bench in his two games to pout in 13.5 points per game, shooting 41.7 percent from deep.
• King's has gone to the offensive boards well, grabbing 12.4 caroms of its own per game, third-best in the MAC Freedom.
• The Monarchs are best in the MAC Freedom in turnover margin, forcing teams into 6.57 more turnovers per game then themselves. King's has forced more turnovers in all seven games than they've committed.
• Sophomore Noah Tanner is averaging 10.7 points through his first seven games, starting all seven contests while chalking up eight steals as well.
• Junior Josh Bailey is pouring in 7.7 points per night, also leading the team with 14 steals.
• Big man Andrew Hudak dealt with some injuries early on, but the junior is one of the best passers on the team. Hudak finished Wednesday's game with a fantastic overall line of six points, 10 rebounds and game-high nine assists.
• Wing junior Tyler Millan was back in the starting lineup for the Monarchs on Wednesday and responded with a season-best scoring night, posting 15 points on 3-of-7 shooting, making all seven attempts at the line.
• The Monarchs have seen Jake Pawliczak shoot a team-high 56.8 percent this season as he also leads the team with 6.7 boards per game.
• King's has shot 81.3 percent or better from the free throw line in five of the last six contests, including making a season-best 94.1 percent (16-17) Wednesday.

A Look at the Bulldogs (4-4, 1-0 MAC Freedom):

• The Bulldogs have alternated losses and wins all season over their first eight games, most recently knocking off FDU-Florham Wednesday evening 80-64.
• In that win for DeSales, Ben Pratt scored a team-high 17 points, while Luke Connaghan added 13 points.
• DSU is a solid shooting squad, posting a 45.6 percent clip as a team for the season which ranks second in the MAC Freedom.
• The Bulldogs protect the rim well, averaging 5.38 blocks per game which is first in the conference and 14^th in the nation. Tracy Simsick posts 1.71 per game, best in the league.
• DeSales leads the conference in free throw attempts with 119 through eight games.
• DSU has a balanced attack, led by the 15.8 points per game from Simsick, who leads the team with 18 made three-pointers.
• Connaghan is registering 13.5 points and 7.9 rebounds per game, most on the team, while shooting 56.7 percent from the field.
• Pratt is also in double-digits per game, averaging 11.0 points a night while chalking up a league-high 21 steals on the season. His 2.71 steals per game.
• Head coach Scott Coval is in his 25^th year with the Bulldogs and is the winningest coach in program history with 460 total victories on his ledger.

Against DeSales All-Time: The Monarchs are 24-37 all-time against the Bulldogs, though DeSales has won the last seven meetings dating back to 2015. In fact, the Monarchs have defeated DSU just twice since 2009.