DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Jan. 10, 2023) – The Mercy College men's basketball team plays at ECC foe No. 18 St. Thomas Aquinas College on Wednesday, January 11th at 7 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Wednesday, January 11th 7 p.m.
Records: Mercy (2-11, 1-4 ECC), No. 18 St. Thomas Aquinas (14-2, 5-0 ECC)
Location: Sparkill, N.Y.
Last Meeting vs. St. Thomas Aquinas
St. Thomas Aquinas earned an 83-48 win over Mercy on February 2, 2022.
Scouting the Mavericks
Mercy is coming off a 91-88 overtime loss to Roberts Wesleyan on Friday. The Mavericks were led by graduate student Sean Smith Jr. who had a season-high 23 points. Junior Jayden Dewaal had 14 points and a game-high 13 rebounds and senior Garrett Kirkland netted 12 points. Senior James Taylor Jr. was named to the ECC Honor Roll on December 5th. Dewaal was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week and freshman Sean Conroy was tabbed Rookie of the Week on November 28th. The Mavericks won their ECC opener for the first time since 2017 on November 30th against Staten Island. Mercy picked up their first win over Bridgeport since 2013 on November 22nd and the Mavericks also won their home opener for the first time since 2017. The win over Bridgeport gave Interim Head Coach Chris Watts his first win as a collegiate head coach. Mercy is 2-35 in their last 37 meetings against the Spartans and have lost 19 straight meetings. The Mavericks last beat St. Thomas Aquinas on February 13, 2013. Leading the Mavericks so far this season is Smith Jr. who averages a team-high 13.5 points per game with 6.0 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. Taylor Jr. averages 11.4 points per game with 1.9 assists and 0.9 steals per game. Dewaal is third on the team averaging 11.0 points per game on a team-best 53.7 percent shooting and posts a team-high 8.7 rebounds per game. Junior Braelon Joe posts 6.3 points per game with a team-high 3.5 assists per game and senior Brandon Wilson nets 7.1 points per game. Senior Garrett Kirkland is averaging 8.3 points per game and Conroy is posting 6.0 points per game. Mercy was selected eighth in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 6-19 overall last season and 6-12 in ECC play. The Mavericks just missed out on qualifying for the ECC Championship and are looking to make the Championship for the first time since 2021. Mercy has not qualified for the ECC Championship without every team making it since 2016. The Mavericks will be led by Watts who returns eight student-athletes from last year's team. Leading the returners is Taylor Jr. who averaged a team-high 13.3 points per game and Wilson who posted 11.2 points per game. Dewaal netted 9.7 points and a team-high 8.8 rebounds per game last season and Kirkland also returns after averaging 10.1 points per game in 2021-22. Watts will also look to graduate transfer Smith Jr. who had 11 points in the Mavericks exhibition contest against Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday. Conroy had five points against Fairleigh Dickinson and Joe will also see action after posting three points and three assists in the exhibition.
Scouting the Spartans
St. Thomas Aquinas earned a 108-70 win over Roberts Wesleyan in their last game on Sunday for their fourth straight win. The Spartans were picked second in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 28-5 overall and 17-1 in ECC play. St. Thomas Aquinas has won six of the last seven ECC titles. St. Thomas Aquinas is ranked No. 18 nationally in the NABC Top 25 Poll. The Spartans are ranked fourth in the latest D2SIDA East Region Top 10 poll. St. Thomas Aquinas is led by one-time ECC Player of the Week and four-time ECC Rookie of the Week freshman James Patterson who averages a team-high 15.5 points per game with a team-high 7.3 rebounds per game. One-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week junior DeVante Jamison averages 12.8 points per game and a team-high 5.7 assists and 2.3 steals per game. One-time ECC Player of the Week junior Jamal Barnes posts 12.8 points per game and one-time ECC Player of the Week senior Antonio Vendola produces 11.4 points per game and 1.9 assists per game.
Next Game
The Mavericks next game is on Wednesday, January 18th when they play at Molloy at 7 p.m.
