ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University men's basketball team (23-4, Empire 8 14-2) earned its first Empire 8 regular season title and Empire 8 crown last week. The Saxons are now taking on the NCAA Division III Tournament with a first round draw against Ramapo College on Friday, March 1 at 5:30PM.
AU will face Ramapo on Friday, March 1 at 5:30PM in the Freeman Center at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, VA. Pending a victory over the Road Runners, the Saxons will take on the winner of Albertus Magnus University and host #11 Christopher Newport. AU is in the NCAA tournament for the first time since the 1996-97 season.
Site: Christopher Newport University | Freeman Center 2019 NCAA Division III First Round and Second Round Pod at Christopher Newport Schedule Friday, March 1 - First Round Game 1 - 5:30PM – Alfred University vs. Ramapo
Live Stream |
Live Stats Game 2 - 7:30PM - Albertus Magnus at Christopher Newport
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Live Stats Saturday, March 2 - Second Round 7:00PM – Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2
Live Stream |
Live Stats | Team Stats | Albertus Magnus | Alfred University | #11 Christopher Newport | Ramapo |
| Record | 20-7, 9-2 GNAC | 23-4, 14-2 Empire 8 | 25-3, 12-2 CAC | 18-9, 11-7 NJAC |
| Total Points | 2,425 | 2,280 | 2,221 | 2,034 |
| Points Per Game | 89.8 | 84.4 | 79.3 | 75.3 |
| Points Allowed/Game | 82.9 | 72.9 | 63.2 | 72.1 |
| Scoring Margin | 6.9 | 11.5 | 16.1 | 3.2 |
| Field Goal Percentage | 0.445 | 0.474 | 0.447 | 0.442 |
| Opponents FG Percentage | 0.452 | 0.417 | 0.377 | 0.415 |
| 3PT FG Percentage | 0.318 | 0.363 | 0.372 | 0.356 |
| 3PT FG Per Game | 7.2 | 8.6 | 10.3 | 3.6 |
| FT Percentage | 0.685 | 0.734 | 0.716 | 0.727 |
| Turnover Margin | 4.4 | 3.6 | -0.1 | 0.3 |
| Assist/Turnover Radio | 0.9 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 1.4 |
| Assists Per Game | 12.3 | 16.0 | 15.4 | 11.0 |
| Steals Per Game | 9.1 | 7.4 | 5.4 | 8.4 |
| Team Leaders | Albertus Magnus | Alfred University | #11 Christopher Newport | Ramapo |
| Points Per Game | Tyreek Perkins (12.7) | Dom LeMorta (19.2) | Marcus Carter (16.1) | Kashaun Barnes (17.5) |
| Rebounds Per Game | Andrew Rice (6.2) | Sage Brown (7.2) | Marcus Carter (7.2) | Rob Lewis (10.6) |
| Assists Per Game | Ryan Pittman (4.0) | Scotty Stopera (5.5) | Tyler Femi (3.7) | Jason Battle (3.0) |
| Steals Per Game | Andrew Rice (1.5) | Sage Brown (1.5) | Tyler Femi (1.1) | Rob McWilliams (1.9)
Jason Battle (1.9) |
| Total Blocks | Liam Perryman (30) | Brewster Marshall (30) | Marcus Carter (26) | Rob Lewis (26) |
| Field Goal Percentage | Liam Perryman (0.590) | Brewster Marshall (0.589) | Luther Gibbs (0.524) | Rob Lewis (0.537) |
| 3PT Field Goal Percentage | Tyreek Perkins (0.386) | Dom LeMorta (0.396) | Jason Aigner (0.471) | Rob McWilliams (0.377) |
| 3PT Field Goals Per Game | Davon Warner (2.9) | Dom LeMorta (2.9) | Jason Aigner (3.7) | Kashaun Barnes (1.4) |
| Assist/Turnover Ratio | Ryan Pittman (1.9) | Scotty Stopera (3.4) | Tyler Femi (2.3) | Jason Battle (1.4) |
Dancin' Like It's 1997 The Saxons are in the NCAA tournament for the first time since the 1996-97 season when AU went 15-11, winning the Empire Athletic Association title. The Saxons were bounced in the tournament first round by Mount Union, 77-69, under first-year Head Coach
Jay Murphy. Murphy went on to coach both the men's and women's teams at AU. Murphy completed his tenure on the men's side with 131 total wins and ranks third in history at AU. Current Head Coach
Russ Phillips moved into fourth all-time in wins at AU (79) with the regular season finale win over Empire 8 rival Nazareth. Phillips added two more wins over Stevens and St. John Fisher in the Empire 8 tournament to add to his tally and now has 81 career wins.
Notable Saxons on that team were
Jason Amore '
97 and
Brian Quinlan '99. Amore is currently Alfred University's Vice President of University Advancement. He completed his career with 1,392 points (9th in AU history) while earning EAA Honorable Mention and Second Team honors in 1993 and 1996 respectively. He was inducted into the AU Sports Hall of Fame in 2014.
Quinlan is another AU Hall of Famer (2012) that finished his career with 1,487 points (6th in AU history). He was named the EAA Rookie of the Year during the 1995-96 season. Quinlan went on to earn NABC East Region Second Team Honors during the 1998-99 season. He is only one of eight AU players to earn NABC regional recognition.
Regional Ruckus The Saxons have topped previously regionally ranked #8 St. John Fisher three times and #5 Nazareth once over the last three weeks. AU scored an average of 97.8 PPG in those four games (scoring 103 and 104 against SJFC during the regular season).
The Saxons were unranked in the NCAA East Regional rankings until this week when they jumped up to fifth in the East Region. The Saxons look up at three SUNYAC schools in #1 Oswego St., #3 Plattsburgh State and #4 Brockport and UAA team, University of Rochester at #2. The Saxons lost to #4 Brockport at home 84-76 - the only loss that Saxons had in the Terry S. Galanis Family Arena during the 2018-19 season.
Peaking at the Right Time The Saxons set a program record with 11 consecutive regular season Empire 8 wins dating back to January 19 when they defeated Stevens 78-75 in OT. Over that time the Saxons averaged 91.0 PPG including three games of over 100 points. The previous record of nine had been held by the 2014-15 team that advanced to the Empire 8 Championship game where the fell to SJFC 77-62.
The Saxon streak is now at 13 consecutive wins - the second-most in program history. The 1988-89 team had a program record 14 consecutive wins and went 19-8 overall to advance to the NCAA tournament. Notable players on that team were
Mike Falowski '91 and
Rob Kornaker '
90, both of which are on the AU all-time scoring list.
According to HERO Sports, Alfred University men's basketball has the fourth-longest win streak in NCAA Division III at 13 consecutive wins. AU is outranked by #1 Nebrask Wesleyan (22), Northwestern (MN) (15), Nichols (14).
AU MBB in the NCAA Tournament 1984-85 - First Round vs. Buffalo State - L, 76-68
1984-85 - Consolation Round vs. Hartwick - L, 52-47
1985-86 -First Round vs. Nazareth - W, 88-86
1985-86 - Second Round vs. Potsdam - L, 80-51
1988-89 - First Round vs. Staten Island - L, 96-72
1996-97 - First Round vs. Mount Union - L, 77-69
2018-19 Empire 8 All-Conference Members Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year - Sage Brown Brown was named the Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year after accumulating 1.6 steals per game and pulling in 118 defensive rebounds (4.7 per game). He was also recognized on the Empire 8 Second Team for the second consecutive year. On top of being a vital defensive asset for the Saxons, Brown scored 12.0 points per game and collected 6.9 total rebounds per game. He has been a key contributor for the Saxons dating back to his freshman campaign.
Empire 8 Rookie of the Year - Elliot Bowen Bowen is only the second AU player to be named the Emipre 8 Rookie of the Year.
Dillon Stein '07, earned Rookie of the Year honors in 2003-04. Bowen finished the season with 10.8 points per game, leading all freshman across the conference. His mark of 5.0 rebounds per game ranks second among first-year players, trailing only teammate
Brewster Marshall who finished the regular season with 5.2 rebounds per game. Bowen also finished seventh among all players in the Empire 8 with 0.8 blocks per game while playing 22.3 minutes per game. Bowen's career-high came against (at the time) regionally ranked St. John Fisher College. The first-year from Salamanca, NY scored 27 points on 10-of-15 (0.667) shooting.
Empire 8 First Team - Dom LeMorta LeMorta was named to the Empire 8 First Team, making his debut as an All-Conference honoree. LeMorta led the Empire in total points (474) during the regular season while ranking second in points per game (19.0), three-point field goals per game (3.0) and third in free throw percentage (0.836) and three-point field goal percentage (0.397). LeMorta was a key factor in the regular season finale that clinched AU's title, scoring a career-high 35 points on 13-of-24 (54.2%) shooting.
Empire 8 Honorable Mention - Scotty Stopera Stopera was named Honorable Mention following a productive season as the orchestrator of the AU offense at point guard. He scored 9.7 points per game while leading the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.4). Stopera also finished second in the conference in assists (134) and assists per game (5.4). He currently has 657 career points and 292 career assists.
Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year Phillips and his coaches are the second staff to be honored by the Empire 8 in AU history.
Dale Wellman (now coaches defending DIII national champion, Nebraska Wesleyan) and his staff were named the Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year in 2013-14. Phillips and his staff brought AU its first Empire 8 regular season title in program history while putting together the second most wins in program history (23), trailing only the 1985-86 team (25-3). Phillips currently ranks fourth all-time in wins at AU (81).
The Fountain of Youth The Saxons are a relatively young team with four seniors, one junior, two sophomores and nine first-year players. The freshman has stepped up to the challenge in 2018-19, playing 25.1% of the minutes for AU during the year. First-years
Elliot Bowen and
Brewster Marshall have played 21.9 and 16.9 minutes per game over the course of hte 27-game season.
Unchartered Territory The Saxons enter the weekend in relatively unchartered territory having only played the three opponents a combined one time. AU's only game against the three teams within the Christopher Newport pod came during the 1981-82 season when AU defeated the Road Runners 61-58 on the road. The Saxons have not squared off against Albertus Magnus or Christopher Newport in program history.
The Scotia Connection Scotty Stopera and
Dom LeMorta have been a force to be reckoned with since the two teamed up in Scotia-Glenville Youth basketball. Both are currently seniors on the AU basketball team and have led the Saxons in 2018-19 to the program's first Empire 8 regular season title, Empire 8 Championship crown and NCAA appearance since the 1996-97 season. Dating back to their days as Tartans at Scotia-Glenville High School, the duo account for one New York State Class A Federation title, one New York State Class A title, three Section II Class A titles and three Foothill Council titles. While on the court together in the Red & Black, Stopera and LeMorta led the Tartans to a 49-1 (.980) overall record under head coach James Giammattei.
While at AU, Stopera and LeMorta have been stewards over a 61-43 (.587) overall record, including back-to-back years with at least 18 wins and an Empire 8 Conference tournament appearance. During those two seasons, LeMorta has accumulated 16.7 PPG and 3.4 RPG while Stopera has recorded 10.5 PPG and 4.8 APG.
The Dagon Denominator Junior
Sam Dagon is the son of
John Dagon '86 has been a catalyst for the Saxons coming off the bench in 2018-19, averaging 10.1 PPG and 3.1 RPG. John Dagon was a member of the 1985-86 team that currently holds the record for most wins in a season (25). Thirty-three years later,
Sam Dagon is on the same court, looking to surpass a mark set by his father's team in 1985-86. John commonly paired up with fellow Hornell native and Alfred University Hall of Famer
Brian Andrews '87 to what was noted in the
Fiat Lux as the Hornell Connection.
The Stopera Legacy Senior
Scotty Stopera is the second Stopera to play men's basketball at Alfred University. His older brother
Mike Stopera '11 played for AU from 2007-11 and scored 1,142 points. Scotty does more of the dishing out on points with 307 career assists (AU record is 554 by
Brian Andrews '87), including 149 assists during the 2018-19 season. Prior to this year, Stopera had 158 total assists. As a scorer, Stopera has 680 career points. Scotty's father coached both Scotty and teammate
Dom LeMorta in Youth Basketball back in Scotia, NY.
History Watch Below is a list of historical factors to watch during the 2018-19 men's basketball postseason:
- The Saxons (currently with 23 wins) rank second all-time in wins in a season, trailing only the 1985-86 team that went 25-3 overall.
- Senior Dom LeMorta currently has 945 career points, which is tied for 22nd all-time in scoring at AU. He most recently surpassed Pete Ryan '70 (940). He now turns his sights on Rob Kornaker '90 who scored 991 career points.
- LeMorta has scored 518 points in 2018-19, compared to 427 in his previous three years. The program record for points in a season is held by Edward Mandell '65 who scored 658 points in 1964-65.
- Senior Sage Brown currently has 634 career rebounds, which ranks 12th all-time in program history. Next, he would turn his sights to Devon Downing '02 who finished his career with 648 career rebounds.Brown pulled in 18 rebounds in the Empire 8 semifinal game against Stevens - his career-high. The school record for rebounds in a game is held by Warren Sutton who pulled in 34 rebounds in a game during the 1958-59 season.
- Brown also has 919 career points, which ranks 23rd all-time in AU history. During the 2018-19 season, he has scored 330 points - a career-high.
- Head Coach Russ Phillips currently has 81 career wins at AU, which is fourth all-time in program history. He next has the opportunity to overtake Jay Murphy who had 131 wins in 13 years at AU. Phillips is in his fifth year. Ron Frederes currently holds the program record with 158 wins.
