Game Info: Friday, February 15 - 3:00 p.m.
Location: Schwartz Center - Chester, Pa.
Social Media: @WidenerSports |
@WidenerMBB
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Opening Tip
The Pride honors three of its senior players (
Elijah Boyd,
Connor Laverty, and
James Gillespie) during its final home game of the regular season on Saturday as it takes on Alvernia. Tip-off from the Schwartz Center is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.
Last Time Out - @WidenerMBB Falls In Tight Battle To Lions
The Widener University men's basketball team fought a tight battle against Albright on Wednesday night, but ultimately fell 74-71 to the Lions as it was dealt just its second conference setback of the season.
GAME NOTES
- Kolbey Woodard posted a career-high 17 points to go with eight rebounds.
- Steven Matlack added 16 points and grabbed eight boards off the bench.
- Jared Peters chipped in 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds.
- Connor Laverty dished out a career-high ten assists to go with nine points.
- The Blue and Gold recorded a season best 35 points off the bench.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After finding itself down 5-0 early, the Pride went on a 16-4 scoring that run put it up by seven at the 11:30 mark in the first. The Lions were able to claw back on a run of their own as the opening act came to a close and took a 36-29 lead going into halftime.
Albright extended its leads to as many as nine in the second stanza's opening minutes. With two senior captains out due to foul trouble, the Blue and Gold's bench stepped up to pull it back within reach, even regaining a one point advantage at the 8:15 mark. However, the Lions fended off the Pride's late efforts and held on to grab the win.
Scouting Report
Alvernia enters play at 11-11 overall and 7-7 in the MAC Commonwealth. The Golden Wolves were pegged third in the coaches' poll before the start of the season.
Leading the offense for Alvernia is sophomore forward Justin Thomas. Thomas is averaging 20.5 points per outing, good for third among all MAC Commonwealth players, and pulling in a team-high 5.9 rebounds per game. Feeding Thomas the ball is Keon Taylor, who is dishing out 4.6 assists a contest to go with 11.1 points per game of his how own. Also averaging double-digits in the scoring column are Malik Green and Steve Pierce with 13.0 and 10.3 points per night, respectively.
The Golden Wolves are a team that takes care of the ball. Their 12.3 turnovers per matchup is the lowest in the MAC Commonwealth and gives them a strong +3.6 turnover margin on the season. They have also shot extremely well as a team, boasting a conference best 45.7 percent field-goal percentage.
Mike Miller is in his 16th season at the helm for Alvernia and has accumulated 269 wins in that period. During his tenure, the Golden Wolves have won six conferences titles, made six NCAA Tournament appearances, and secured one ECAC title. He has also coached two PAC Players of the Year, 17 All-MAC Commonwealth players, and two MAC-Commonwealth Players of the Year.
Go Deep!
Widener has excelled at defending the three, ranking second in the conference in three-point defense by holding opponents to just 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. Offensively, the Pride has two players,
Connor Laverty (48.1 pct) and
Pat Holden (43.5 pct), who are shooting better than 40 percent from deep on 60 or more attempts this year.
Valuing The Ball
The Blue and Gold have limited turnovers to single digits in three of the past six games and its +3.2 turnover margin ranks third in the MAC Commonwealth..
Line It Up (Part I)
The Pride has both gotten to the line and made its free throws this season, ranking 66th in NCAAD3 with 470 FT attempts and is 37th with 350 makes at the stripe. Individually,
Jared Peters (84.3) and
Pat Holden (81.7) are both connecting at better than 80 percent with more than 45 attempts each.
Line It Up (Part II)
As much as the line has been a boom for Widener, its been a bust for its opponents who are hitting just 64.8 percent of their free throw attempts and getting just 18.1 attempts per game.
Four Score
With
Connor Laverty (24),
Elijah Boyd (17),
Jared Peters (12), and
AJ Sawyers (12) all posting double digit scoring at Messiah, the Blue and Gold have posted 17 games this year where four or more players scored at least 10 points. Four of the Pride's starters are also averaging double digit points on the season.
Mr. Buckets
Connor Laverty's career-high 28 points at Lycoming was the highest scoring single game performance for a Pride player since Drew Tyler dropped 30 against Lycoming on December 15th, 2018. It also broke a personal best 24 that the senior set just a week prior at Albright and tied in the following game against Hood. Laverty currently leads the team with 14.0 points a contest and has posted 20+ in the scoring column in four of the past eight games.
Comeback Kids
Widener's comeback from down 21 points on the road against Stevenson was the largest deficit the Pride has overcome in over a decade since being down 25 against Elizabethtown and winning 88-77 on February 5th, 2008.
Rank and File
Widener continues to receive votes in the D3hoops.com Top 25 poll, earning three points in this week's rankings. It is the sixth poll this season that the Pride has received votes.
Brotherly Love
If you're looking at the name Gillespie on the Widener men's basketball roster and are asking yourself "is he related to..." you can stop wondering. Senior guard
James Gillespie is in fact the older brother of Villanova junior guard Collin Gillespie. The elder brother did not play basketball until this season, however has made his impact on Widener athletics and the NCAA on the gridiron, spending four seasons on the Pride football team. He was named the 2019 Middle Atlantic Conference Offensive Player of the Year and a D3football.com All-American, pulling in 75 passes while leading NCAA Division III with 1,326 receiving yards and ranking fourth with 17 touchdown grabs.
More Than A Decade
Widener is off to its best season in over a decade at 18-4 overall, matching the 2007-08 team that started 18-4 on its way to a 23-6 finish and an appearance in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. The Pride's 11-2 record in the MAC Commonwealth is its best conference run in the past 15 years.
Bicentennial
With a 78-52 win against Misericordia on November 25, head coach
Chris Carideo became just the second coach in program history with 200 or more wins at Widener. C. Alan Rowe, who coached Carideo from 1991-95, accumulated 536 victories and led the Blue and Gold to the 1978 national championship game.
Up Next
The Pride begins its final road stint as it travels to play Arcadia on Tuesday night. Tip-off from Alumni Gymnasium is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
