DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. – The Mercy University Men's Basketball Team hosts #3 Daemen University in an ECC matchup on Friday, December 12th at 7 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Friday, December 12th 7 p.m.
Records: Mercy (1-7, 1-1 ECC), #3 Daemen (10-0, 2-0 ECC)
Location: Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.
Last Meeting vs. Daemen
Daemen earned an 80-60 win over Mercy on February 9, 2025.
Scouting the Mavericks
Mercy enters the 2025-26 season picked ninth in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 7-18 last season just missing out on qualifying for the ECC Championship. The Mavericks are looking to make the ECC Championship for the first time since 2021 and make it for the first time without every team making it since 2016.
First-year Head Coach Charles Marquardt and the Mavericks return six student-athletes from last year's team and add six newcomers. Leading the returners is senior TJ Holloway who averaged 11.6 points per game last season and led the team with 42 three-pointers. Junior Derek Long also returns after averaging 7.3 points per game a year ago. Senior Thomas Mandell also returns after playing in 12 games last season with 12 points and sophomore James Connolly is back after playing in 23 games last season with 24 points in 6.6 minutes per game. Sophomore Joshua Naklen and junior Christopher Nana also return for the Mavericks. Naklen was a 1,000 point scorer at Bedford Academy and Nana is a transfer from Division I Sacred Heart University. Nana appeared in three games at Sacred Heart as a freshman during the 2023-24 season.
Leading the newcomers for Marquardt is sophomore Kohen Rowbatham who transfers to Mercy from Division I University of New Orleans. Rowbatham played in 28 games last season as a freshman, averaging 7.1 points per game with 37 assists. The guard scored a career-high 28 points against Stephen F. Austin. Also, joining the Mavericks is junior Daniel Boateng who transfers in from Caldwell University. Boateng played in 45 games in two years at Caldwell and averaged 2.9 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. Junior Ashton Pratt joins Mercy from Chesapeake College and Virginia Union University. As a freshman at Virginia Union, Pratt appeared in 16 games and had 18 points. Last season at Chesapeake College, Pratt averaged 10.3 points per game. Junior Jordan Trahan joins Mercy from Odessa College where he averaged 2.8 points and 2.4 rebounds per game in 30 games. Joining the Mavericks as freshmen are Jeffrey Mulhern and Tyrell Miller. Mulhern was a 2,000 point scorer at Duanesburg High School and Miller averaged 9.6 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game during his senior year of high school.
Mercy is coming off a 77-55 loss to RV Adelphi on Tuesday. The Mavericks were led by senior TJ Holloway who had a game-high-tying 16 points. Mercy has been led by sophomore Kohen Rowbatham who is averaging a team-high 18.8 points per game with a team-high 3.1 assists per game. Junior Jordan Trahan is second on the team with 15.3 points per game and leads the team with 6.5 rebounds per game. Holloway is third on the team with 14.6 points per game and junior Ashton Pratt is fourth with 6.8 points per game. Junior Christopher Nana posts 3.0 rebounds and 4.0 points per game and freshman Tyrell Miller leads the team with 1.4 blocks per game. Mercy is 0-24 all-time against Daemen.
Scouting the Wildcats
Daemen is coming off a 94-62 win over Molloy on Sunday. The Wildcats were picked first in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 28-1 last season, winning the ECC Championship and qualifying for the NCAA Tournament. Daemen is currently ranked No. 3 in the nation in the latest NABC Top 25 Poll. The Wildcats are led by Benjamin Bill who is averaging a team-high 19.0 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. Zach Philipkoski is second on the team with 17.0 points per game and Justin Hemphill is third with 10.8 points per game. Ryan Heath averages 9.9 points per game and Hemphill dishes out a team-high 5.5 assists per game.
Next Game
Mercy hosts D'Youville on Sunday, December 14th at 2 p.m.
