DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Feb. 23, 2023) – The Mercy College men's basketball team concludes its season at ECC foe Queens College on Saturday, February 25th at 1:30 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Saturday, February 25th 1:30 p.m.
Records: Mercy (6-19, 3-12 ECC), Queens (7-20, 4-11 ECC)
Location: Flushing, N.Y.
Last Meeting vs. Queens
Queens earned an 82-56 win over Mercy on January 21, 2023.
Scouting the Mavericks
Mercy is coming off an 83-76 Senior Night win over Molloy on Wednesday. The Mavericks were led by senior James Taylor Jr. who had a team-high 20 points. Junior Jayden Dewaal had 17 points and nine rebounds and graduate student Sean Smith Jr. had 13 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. 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. 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 has won three of their last four games entering Saturday's game. The Mavericks are 8-27 in their last 35 meetings against the Knights. Mercy looks to win at Queens for the third straight time. Leading the Mavericks so far this season is Smith Jr. who averages a team-high 15.3 points per game with 6.0 rebounds and a team-high 1.5 steals per game. Smith Jr. ranks fifth in the ECC in points per game. Taylor Jr. averages 11.8 points per game with 2.8 assists per game. Dewaal is second on the team averaging 12.1 points per game on a team-best 53.7 percent shooting and posts a team-high 10.6 rebounds per game. The junior leads the ECC in rebounds per game and is fourth in field goal percentage. Junior Braelon Joe posts 5.2 points per game with a team-high 3.3 assists per game and senior Brandon Wilson nets 7.4 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 Knights
Queens dropped a 76-74 decision to St. Thomas Aquinas on Wednesday for their eighth straight loss. The Knights have been eliminated from ECC Tournament contention. Queens was picked seventh in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 11-12 overall and 9-9 in ECC play last season. The Knights are led by Sunnie Diamond who averages a team-high 16.6 points, 3.3 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Three-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week Tyler Carey is second on the team with 10.6 points per game and leads the team with 9.3 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game. Shamar Chester and William Ellis both net 9.7 points per game and Jayden Seraphin records 8.5 points per game.
