DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Feb. 21, 2023) – The Mercy College men's basketball team hosts ECC foe Molloy University for Senior Night on Wednesday, February 22nd at 7 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Wednesday, February 22nd 7 p.m.
Records: Mercy (5-19, 2-12 ECC), Molloy (11-15, 10-4 ECC)
Location: Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.
Last Meeting vs. Molloy
Molloy earned a 97-85 win over Mercy on January 18, 2023.
Scouting the Mavericks
Mercy is coming off an 82-51 loss to Daemen on Sunday. The Mavericks were led by junior Jayden Dewaal who had 10 points and nine rebounds. The Mavericks won at Bridgeport for the first time since 2005 on February 11th and swept the season series with the Purple Knights for the first time since the 2004-05 season. Dewaal was named ECC Player and Defensive Player of the Week on February 6th and was named to the ECC Honor Roll last Monday. He was also named Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA) Division II-III Player of the Week on February 7th. Graduate student Sean Smith Jr. was named to the ECC Honor Roll on January 30th and was tabbed Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA) Division II-III Player of the Week Honorable Mention on January 31st. 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 on November 22nd gave Interim Head Coach Chris Watts his first win as a collegiate head coach. Mercy is 8-29 in their last 37 meetings against Molloy, but have won three of the last four meetings and last meetings in Dobbs Ferry. Leading the Mavericks so far this season is Smith Jr. who averages a team-high 15.5 points per game with 5.9 rebounds and a team-high 1.5 steals per game. Smith Jr. ranks fifth in the ECC in points per game. Taylor Jr. averages 11.4 points per game with 2.7 assists per game. Dewaal is second on the team averaging 11.9 points per game on a team-best 52.7 percent shooting and posts a team-high 10.6 rebounds per game. The junior leads the ECC in rebounds per game and is fifth in field goal percentage. Junior Braelon Joe posts 5.2 points per game with a team-high 3.4 assists per game and senior Brandon Wilson nets 7.3 points per game. Senior Garrett Kirkland is averaging 8.1 points per game and Conroy is posting 5.1 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 Lions
Molloy earned a 77-57 win over Staten Island in their last game on February 11th. The Lions have won four of their last five games and sit in third place in the ECC standings. The Lions were picked third in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 12-17 overall and 10-8 in ECC play last season. Molloy is led by three-time ECC Player of the Week Darren Fergus who leads the ECC with 20.5 points per game. Fergus also averages 7.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.0 steals per game in 36.2 minutes per game. ECC Preseason Player of the Year William Muller is second on the team with 11.5 points per game and leads the team with 8.4 rebounds per game. Kenny Lazo is third on the team with 9.9 points per game and is second with 3.1 assists per game. Kendell Ogilvie posts 9.5 points per game and one-time ECC Player of the Week Billy Reyes nets 7.4 points per game.
Next Game
The Mavericks next game is on Saturday, February 25th when they play at Queens at 1:30 p.m.
