| Matchup |
#18/18 Merrimack (2-0, 0-0 NE10) at
Assumption (0-2, 0-0 NE10) |
| Date/Time |
Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2017 (7:30 p.m.) |
| Venue |
Hammel Court // North Andover, Mass. |
| Multimedia |
Live Stats // Video // Twitter // Instagram |
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Emerging from its opening weekend with a perfect 2-0 record, the No. 18/18 Merrimack College men's basketball program faces a three-game gauntlet this week beginning with the Warriors' Northeast-10 Conference opener on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. against the Assumption College Greyhounds
National Ranking Summary:
- With victories over Jefferson University and Holy Family University, the Warriors' maintained their No. 18 ranking in the latest D2SIDA National poll. Merrimack was ranked 18th in the National Association of Basketball Caches (NABC) Preseason Poll, while the first regular-season coaches' poll will be conducted next week
- The Warriors were also second in the second edition of the D2SIDA Regional Poll, totaling 54 points and finishing one point shy of first place
Last Time Out:
- Merrimack rallied from a six-point halftime deficit to knock off the Rams in Saturday's opener. Defensively, the Navy and Gold held Jefferson to nine points over the second half's first 10 minutes, while limiting the Rams without a field goal over a seven-minute stretch later in the half
- Sophomore Juvaris Hayes (Paterson, N.J.) led the Warriors with a 23-point, 13-rebound effort. It marked the second-year point guard's 13th career double-double after 12 as a rookie
- The Preseason All-American followed that up with a 17-assist, zero-turnover performance against Holy Family, distributing the most helpers by a Division II student-athlete in the last two years
- Junior Ryan Boulter (Mansfield, Mass.) posted 38 points on 14-of-20 shooting against the Rams, including eight three-pointers. Thirteen of Boulter's 14 field goals were assisted on, 10 of which came via feeds from Hayes
- Merrimack emerged ranking first in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.63). The Warriors committed just four turnovers on Sunday, the program's fewest single-game total since 2010. Merrimack also boasts the seventh-best field-goal percentage defense nationwide (33.1)
The Greyhounds:
- Assumption dropped a pair of games at Stonehill College over the weekend, facing a pair of Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference opponents in Bloomfield and Dominican
- Sophomore Branislav Vujadinovic averaged 16.5 points per game over the weekend, while freshman Matthew Kelly started both games, played in a team-high 37.5 minutes per game and shot 47.8 from the field
- The Greyhounds won seven games last season and were picked in seventh in the NE10 Preseason Coaches' Poll
The Series:
- Wednesday will be the 103rd contest between the Greyhounds and the Warriors
- Merrimack carries a five-game winning streak over Assumption into tomorrow's tilt. The Warriors edged the Greyhounds by three in their first meeting of 2016-17 before winning by six in the second
- Boulter netted 16 points, Hayes added 10 points, eight rebounds and seven assists while junior Troy McLaughlin (Old Tappen, N.J.) contributed nine points in the 62-59 affair last year at Laska
Up Next
The Navy and Gold travel to Long Island this weekend to take part in the LIU Post Thanksgiving Classic, facing the host Pioneers on Saturday and the University of Bridgeport on Sunday in Brookville, N.Y.
