Game Details: Saturday, January 12 | 2:00 p.m.
Location: Owings Mills Gym | Owings Mills, Md.
Game Links:  Watch Live | Live Stats 
Twitter: @WidenerSports | @WidenerMBB |   |  Stevenson Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Stats | Game Notes

Opening Tip
The Widener University men's basketball returns to conference play and goes on the road for the first time in 2019, traveling to Stevenson on Saturday, January 12. Tipoff is slated for 3:00 p.m. 

Last Time Out - Laverty Scores Career-High 21 as @WidenerMBB Battles Middlebury
Connor Laverty eclipsed the 20-point mark for the first time in his collegiate career, but the Pride fell to the Middlebury Panthers 95-75 in a non-conference matchup on Tuesday evening.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Laverty topped the Pride scoring list for the fourth straight game, dropping 21 on 8-for-14 shooting, including a pair of threes. The total surpassed his previous career-best of 16, achieved on two occasions, most recently on November 28 against Messiah.
• Elijah Boyd also reached double figures with 12. Jared Peters posted seven, all in the first half.
• Luke Patel tied a career-high, netting five.
• Ryan McMahon led WU with five rebounds and three assists.

 
Widener got off to a hot start, jumping out to a 7-2 lead before the Panthers battled back to take an 8-7 edge just less than four minutes into the contest. The Pride responded on the strength of a 16-7 run, taking its largest lead of the half at 25-17 on a layup by Jared Peters midway through the frame. During the spurt that spanned 7:33, the Blue and Gold held Middlebury to 2-for-14 shooting and forced four turnovers while connecting on 50 percent of its own shots. Fighting to stay on top, Widener pushed back to a 30-25 advantage on a trey by Boyd late in the frame. From there, Middlebury closed the final 4:08 of the half on an 11-0 run, taking a 36-30 lead at intermission.

The teams traded baskets for the opening four minutes of the second stanza as Widener pulled to 40-35 on an old-fashioned three-point play from Jalen Howard before the Panthers extended to 50-37 advantage in a matter of three minutes. A three-pointer by Laverty drew the Blue and Gold back to 54-44 with 13:39 to play. From that point, Middlebury pulled away to seal the victory.

Scouting Report
Following the completion of games on January 8, Stevenson comes into play 10-4 overall and 4-1 in the MAC Commonwealth. Most recently, the Mustangs dropped a tough 77-76 contest against CUNYAC foe John Jay on January 5. They will play Messiah on January 9 before hosting Widener. Thusfar, Stevenson's only conference loss was a five-point setback at MACC leader Arcadia on December 15. Two of its five conference wins have come in overtime, against Lycoming and Albright.

Mark Terrell leads the Mustangs in scoring at 18.8 points per game. The outside portion of the 1-2 punch is senior guard Montaque Wright with 17.9 a night. Also reaching double figures is Marcus Dentley, who is tallying 13.2 a game. Providing points off the bench is Sean Mayberry, netting 9.4 an outing. Terrell and Wright top the squad at 5.3 and 5.1 rebounds per game respectively,while Johnny Rhodes dishes 4.0 assists a contest to go along with 8.1 points and 4.4 rebounds. 

The fact that multiple players net eight or more points a game is not a surprise as Stevenson leads the MAC Commonwealth in scoring at 81.7 points per game and are second in the conference in field goal percentage at 45.8. Another part of the reason the Mustangs score the way they do is their defense, which forces opponents into 18.4 turnovers per contest, leading 78 more field goal attempts on the season than their foes.

Gary Stewart is in his eighth season as the head coach of Stevenson with a record of 100-100 in Owings Mills. He has had a long career in the college coaching ranks with an overall record of 330-367 in his 26th year. He started with eight years at his alma mater before spending two season at Cal State East Bay. Stewart then took the helm of UC Davis and oversaw the program's transition to Division I during the 2007-08 season.

Last Time Against Stevenson - @WidenerMBB Topples Stevenson to Win Fourth Straight
Four players scored in double figures and the Widener University men's basketball team used a big second half run as the Pride won its fourth game in a row, downing Stevenson 85-65 on February 3, 2018. Widener methodically built a first half lead as the Blue and Gold went up by as many as 10 at 31-21 with 4:15 to go before the visitors cut the lead to three in the waning moments. The Pride recovered and eventually took a 38-33 lead into halftime. The Blue and Gold opened the second half on a 10-3 run, pushing the lead to 48-36 just more than four minutes in. Stevenson never came closer than seven the remainder of the contest. Leading 60-52 at the midway mark of the stanza, Widener put the game away, closing the contest on a 25-13 spurt. Sam Smith led all scorers with 19 points in the game and added five rebounds. Sardayah Sambo fell just shy of a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds. He also blocked three shots.

Dishing It Out
During his career, Ryan McMahon is averaging 5.6 assists per game against Stevenson, his most against any opponent. Next closest is Hood, against whom he dishes 4.2 dimes a contest. 

Long Distance Plan
The Blue and Gold leads the MAC Commonwealth in three-point percentage, delivering on 36.5 percent of its attempts from beyond the arc. The Pride also is limiting the opposition, allowing just 31.3 percent from three-point range.

Holding On To The Ball
Ryan McMahon once again leads the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio, logging a 2.39 clip. Last year, McMahon also led the MAC Commonwealth and was 11th in NCAA Division III with a 3.27 A:TO mark.

Up Next
Widener returns home for a date with conference leading Arcadia on Wednesday, January 16. Tipoff from the Schwartz Center is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.