GAME NOTES |
RHODE ISLAND STATSROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Empire 8 champion Nazareth will travel to New Jersey for the first round of the NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament. The Golden Flyers will play Little East Conference champion Rhode Island College Friday in Pomona, N.J. at 6 p.m.
Host Richard Stockton plays Immaculata in Friday's second game at 8 p.m. The winners play again Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
"It's not necessarily a bad thing to play someone different," said Nazareth Coach Mike Daley, whose team is making its first NCAA appearance since 1998. "We're just hoping to compete."
Nazareth will be making its fourth NCAA appearance in Daley's 22 seasons and its sixth appearance overall. The Golden Flyers improved to 20-7 with a thrilling 64-63 victory over St. John Fisher in Saturday's Empire 8 championship game. Rhode Island College (22-6) upset UMass Dartmouth, 55-52, to win the Little East title.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Nazareth had three players honored last week on the Empire 8 Conference all-star team. Sophomore guard Corey McAdam (Fairport, N.Y.), a first-team selection, has been spectacular at times in 2007-08. He averages 13.7 points and 8.8 assists per game. He set a single-season record for assists with 237 and tied his own single-season record with 81 steals. . . Senior guard
Joe Canori (Webster, N.Y.) was a second-team selection after averaging a team-best 20.4 points per game with 80 three-point baskets. He has broken several career scoring records, including most career points with 1,904 and counting. He also holds the career record for three-point baskets (282) and is seven shy of the single-season mark of 87. . . Junior forward Ryan McAdam (Fairport, N.Y.) was named Most Valuable Player of the Empire 8 Tournament after recording double-doubles in both weekend games. He had 13 points and 10 rebounds in Friday's 81-70 win over Stevens and 18 points and 10 rebounds in a 64-63 win over Fisher.
NAZARETH COACH MIKE DALEY: Now in his 22nd season, Daley reached a milestone earlier this season by recording his 300th career victory. He enters this weekend with a career record of 305-269. Daley has guided the Golden Flyers to previous NCAA Tournament berths in 1987, 1990 and 1998.
MISCELLANEOUS: Nazareth has never played Rhode Island College, Richard Stockton or Immaculata in men's basketball. . . Nazareth is 5-5 in NCAA Tournament games. The Golden Flyers' deepest run came in 1983-84 when they defeated Buffalo State and Staten Island in back to back games to win the East Regional title. Former NBA head coach Jeff Van Gundy was the starting point guard on that team. Nazareth lost to Clark University in the quarterfinals that year, the only time Nazareth has ever hosted an NCAA Tournament game.