DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Dec. 1, 2023) – The Mercy University men's basketball team plays at ECC foe RV/#16 St. Thomas Aquinas College on Saturday, December 2nd at 3 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Saturday, December 2nd 3 p.m.
Records: Mercy (0-7, 0-0 ECC), RV/#16 St. Thomas Aquinas (7-1, 0-0 ECC)
Location: Sparkill, N.Y.
Last Meeting vs. St. Thomas Aquinas
St. Thomas Aquinas earned an 81-63 win over Mercy on February 8, 2023.
Scouting the Mavericks
The Mavericks are coming off a 97-80 loss to Bridgeport on November 21st. Mercy was led by senior Jayden Dewaal who had a team-high 21 points and 11 rebounds. Mercy was selected ninth in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 6-20 overall and 3-13 in ECC play last season. The Mavericks are looking to make their first ECC Championship appearance since 2021. Mercy has not qualified for the ECC Championship without every team making it since 2016. The Mavericks are looking to win their season opener for the first time since 2017. Leading the returners for second-year Head Coach Chris Watts is senior Jayden Dewaal who was named Third Team All-ECC, ECC Player of the Week once and ECC Defensive Player of the Week twice last season. Dewaal averaged 12.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game last season, leading the ECC in rebounds per game and ranking fifth with 1.5 blocks per game. Dewaal ranked fifth in Division II in rebounds per game and third in offensive rebounds per game a year ago. Also, returning is graduate student Garrett Kirkland who averaged 8.1 points per game last season in 16 starts. Senior Braelon Joe returns after averaging 5.1 points and 3.2 assists per game last season, leading the team in assists per game. Also returning for Watts are seniors Alex May and Jay Turner and sophomores Sean Conroy, Asa Kone and Robert Zmujdzin. The newcomers are led by junior Taj Chiles who joins the Mavericks from University of Bridgeport where he led the CACC in assists last season with 5.2 per game. Junior Max Mitchell joins Mercy from Roberts Wesleyan University where he averaged 3.3 points per game and shot 44.4 percent from downtown last season. Also, joining the Mavericks as transfers are sophomore Jamal Jacobs (West Virginia Wesleyan College), sophomore Thomas Mandell (Penn State-Berks) and junior Elijah Botnick (UConn Avery Point). Watts also welcomes a strong freshman class led by Zein Wahdan who joins the team from Egypt. Derek Long and Ashton Sannasi will also look to compete for time in their first season at Mercy. The Mavericks have been led by Dewaal who was named to the ECC Honor Roll last week and averages a team-high 19.3 points and an East Region-best 11.6 rebounds per game on a team-best 57.8 percent shooting. Dewaal recorded his 500th career rebound against Goldey-Beacom on November 18th, becoming the 13th Maverick in program history to record 500 career rebounds. May was named to the ECC Honor Roll on November 13th and is second on the team with 13.6 points per game and averages 4.0 rebounds per game. Kirkland is fourth on the team with 8.7 points per game and is making a team-high 2.9 three-pointers per game. Conroy averages 5.6 points per game and Kone is netting 5.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Chiles is posting 9.3 points per game and a team-high 2.6 assists per game. The Mavericks look to defeat the Spartans for the first time since 2013. Mercy has dropped 21 straight meetings to St. Thomas Aquinas. The Mavericks look to win their ECC opener for the second straight season.
Scouting the Spartans
St. Thomas Aquinas is coming off an 87-70 win at Georgian Court on Wednesday. The Spartans were picked first in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 26-5 last season, qualifying for the NCAAA Tournament. St. Thomas Aquinas has won four straight ECC Championships and seven of the last eight. The Spartans are receiving votes nationally in the NABC Poll and are ranked No. 16 nationally in the D2CSC Poll. St. Thomas Aquinas is led by James Patterson who averages an ECC-best 24.9 points per game and averages team-high 8.8 rebounds per game. Jamal Barnes is second on the team with 13.3 points per game and Kyle Pulliam is third with 10.0 points per game.
Next Game
Mercy hosts Staten Island on Wednesday, December 6th at 7 p.m.
