Wheaton men's basketball sets sights on return trip to NEWMAC Tournament championship game

February 23, 2006

NORTON, MA- The Wheaton College men's basketball team's postseason run continues this weekend as the Lyons take part in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament semifinal round at Worcester Polytechnic Institute's (WPI) Harrington Auditorium on Saturday. Fourth-seeded Wheaton opposes top seed WPI at 1:00 p.m.

Saturday's other semifinal pits number two Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) against third-seeded United States Coast Guard Academy, with the winner facing the Wheaton-WPI victor on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. in the conference championship. The NEWMAC's top team will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Wheaton's contest with WPI is a rematch of last season's NEWMAC Tournament championship game, in which the Engineers pulled out a 64-60 victory. Wheaton and WPI split a pair of regular season contests this winter, each winning at home. The Engineers took an 82-77 decision on January 21 before the Lyons knocked off nationally-ranked WPI, 64-62 on February 8.

Wheaton has posted a 16-9 mark after going 6-6 during conference play, and the Lyons have won five of their last seven contests against NEWMAC opponents. This season marks the seventh during the conference's eight-year history that the Lyons have qualified for the semifinals, and they are seeking their third title tilt berth. Entering its semifinal game, the Blue and White is second in the league in scoring at 75.3 points per game, narrowly trailing Coast Guard's 75.4 average. The Blue and White's last three wins have come by a total of 17 points, while three of its last four losses have come by eight points or fewer.

On Tuesday, the Lyons downed number-five Springfield College, 82-78 during the first round of the NEWMAC Tournament. Junior Brian Zukowski (Dracut, MA/Dracut) tied his career high with 29 points, including 19 after halftime, thanks to 4-of-6 three-point shooting. Sophomores Brent DiGiovanna (Hanover, MA/Hanover) and Jake Otto (Glastonbury, CT/Glastonbury) each went 6-of-9 from the field and finished with 16 and 13 points, respectively. Senior point guard Sean Kelly (Providence, RI/Wheeler School) added 11 points, six rebounds and three assists.

Zukowski now stands fourth in the conference with 17.1 points per game and averages a team-high 5.6 rebounds, while Kelly paces the NEWMAC with 158 assists and 92 steals. Thanks to a scoring average of 12.7, Kelly needs 18 points to become the 10th 1,000-point scorer in program history, and he ranks second in steals and eighth in assists among Division III players. DiGiovanna has added 10.8 points per game, while senior James Greenslit (Framingham, MA/Rivers School) entered the week as the NEWMAC's leading three-point shooter.

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 1/25/07.
Questions about this page? Use our query form.

News Headlines.

Coppola captures D3hoops.com regional rookie-of-the-year honor (more)

Coppola earns team's first league rookie honor, named to second team (more)

2008 NEWMAC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT - Seventh-seeded Lyons unable to fend off third seed Coast Guard, 68-56 (more)

Upcoming Schedule

15-Nov Sat Centenary (NJ) N 7:30pm
16-Nov Sun Plymouth St. Tip-Off A TBA
18-Nov Tue Salve Regina A 7:00pm