| Matchup |
Merrimack (0-0) vs.
Jefferson (2-1) // Holy Family (0-0) |
| Date/Time |
Saturday, Nov. 11, 2017 (2 pm) // Sunday, Nov. 12, 2017 (2 pm) |
| Venue |
Campus Center // Philadelphia, Pa. |
| Multimedia |
Live Stats // Video (Sat.) // Video (Sun.) // Twitter // Instagram |
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The No. 18/18 Merrimack College men's basketball program will get the long-anticipated start to the 2017-18 regular season underway on Saturday when the Warriors head to the East Region Conference Challenge hosted by Holy Family University. The Navy and Gold will face Jefferson University at 2 p.m. tomorrow before taking on the host Tigers at 2 p.m. on Sunday to conclude the opening weekend.
Merrimack Returnees:
- Merrimack returns eight student-athletes overall, including all five starters from the program's two NCAA Tournament games
- Fifth-year senior Tawayne Anderson Jr. (Garden City, N.Y.) and senior Kyle Howes (Maynard, Mass.) are the two most tenured Warriors. Anderson Jr. returned from a two-year injury battle last season, coming on late to average 9.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game over his last four contests. Howes started in all but one game last year, posting a career high 7.9 points per game
- Juniors Ryan Boulter (Mansfield, Mass.) and Troy McLaughlin (Old Tappan, N.J.) emerged as major contributors. Boulter earned a third-team all-league selection after leading Merrimack in scoring with 18.0 ppg, hitting 99 3-pointers, the most for a member of the program since Darren Alix's 114 in the 1994-95 season. McLaughlin went from averaging less than 2.0 ppg as a rookie to nearly double figures (9.2) as a sophomore. Merrimack went 10-4 when he scored at least 10 points
- Sophomore point guard Juvaris Hayes (Paterson, N.J.) was named NE10 Rookie of the Year, breaking the program's single-season assist record (287) while leading all collegiate basketball players in Division I and Division II in total assists and assists per game. Hayes was an all-league second-teamer and was a Preseason All-American Honorable Mention selection in Street & Smith's annual basketball yearbook
- Other key returners include sophomore wings Jaleel Lord (Jersey City, N.J.) and Devon Moore (Hanover, Pa.). Lord hit 31 triples, the third-most on the Warriors, while Moore drained 41.2 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc (14-34)
Nationally Recognized:
- Merrimack begins the season ranked No. 18 in both the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Preseason Poll and the national D2SIDA Media Poll. The No. 18 ranking in the coaches poll marks the highest for the program since the 1990-91 campaign
- Earlier this fall it was announced that the Warriors were ranked No. 20 nationally in the Basketball Times NCAA Division II Preseason Top 20 and No. 15 in the 2017-18 Division II Bulletin Preseason Preview issue.
- In the Bulletin's 27th year of publication, the selection in the top-25 marks the first for the Warriors since 2009, when Merrimack earned the No. 7 spot in the annual poll
The Opponents:
- Jefferson – formerly Philadelphia University and led by Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Herb MaGee – already has three games under its belt, winning twice at the Disney DII Tip-Off Classic over the weekend
- The Rams averaged 72.3 points per game, shooting 44.6 percent from the field and 33.8 percent from distance. Following MaGee's track record in his nearly 60 years as head coach, three Rams emerged from the weekend playing every minute of all three games. Freshman Alexander Gorton led the group with 20.0 points per contest, while three Rams averaged in double figures
- Holy Family is coming off an 11-win season including a nine-win CACC campaign. The Tigers play American International at 12 p.m. on Saturday before their game with the Warriors
The Series:
- Saturday will be the fifth all-time meeting between the Warriors and Rams. Jefferson won the most recent contest held during the 2015-16 year, while Merrimack's last win came during the 2014-15 season when the Navy and Gold upset the 14th-ranked Rams, 72-69
- It was also be the fifth contest between the Warriors and Tigers. Merrimack has won three of the previous four contests including a 15-point triumph two years ago
Up Next
Merrimack opens Northeast-10 Conference play on Wednesday night when the Warriors travel to Assumption to face the Greyhounds at 7:30 p.m. from Laska Gym in Worcester, Mass.
