Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Wilkes (10-7, 3-4) vs. FDU-Florham (3-14, 1-6)
Saturday, January 29, 2011 / 3:00 p.m.
Marts Center / Wilkes-Barre, PA

LIVE STATS
GoWilkesU.com

LIVE AUDIO
ESPNWilliamsport.com

AT A GLANCE
The Colonels start the second half of their conference schedule as they host FDU-Florham on Saturday at the Marts Center. WU is looking for revenge after falling to the Devils 72-50 in the first meeting back in December. Since that loss, the Colonels have gone 8-3 overall, including a six-game win streak, while the Devils have gone 1-9 and are currently in the midst of a six-game losing streak.

LAST TIME OUT
Taking a break from conference action, the WU blew past Penn College 99-63 on Monday night on the strength of a near triple-double from Jr. F Paul Huch (Tuckerton, NJ/Pinelands Regional).

Huch finished with 12 points, 14 rebounds and 9 assists in just 27 minutes of action. The first half remained close with two ties and 11 lead changes before the Colonels finished the final five minutes on a 20-6 run to take a 15-point lead into halftime. WU broke away in the second half, outscoring the Wildcats by 21 points to take the 36-point non-conference victory.

Sr. G Chris DeRojas (Dallas/Bishop O'Reilly) went for a game-high 24 points, hitting 6 3-pointers. Jr. C Kendall Hinze (Lewisberry, PA/Red Land) notched a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds while So. G Tyler Breznitsky (Freeland, PA/MMI Prep) added 12 points off the bench.

THE CENTURY MARK
Already hitting the 1,000-point mark as a junior, Sr. G Chris DeRojas (Dallas/Bishop O'Reilly) is now 9th all-time at WU with 1,384 career points. He's gone for 20+ points five times in the last eight games, including a 24-point performance against Penn. He scored a season-high 26 points against Baptist Bible back in December and is averaging 19.6 ppg with a 47.8 3FG% (22-46) over the last six contests.

DeRojas has a career average of 15.1 ppg with 26 20-point games and 4 30-point games, including a career-high of 37 points last year at Lycoming and two seasons ago against Alvernia. His 17.3 ppg this year is 3rd in the conference.

SHOOTING THE “3”
A pure shooter, DeRojas has hit 209-563 3FGs (37.1%) in his three-plus seasons,
including 62 as a freshman. This year he has a 44.8 3FG% (43-96), 1st in the Freedom Conference. His 2.5 3's per game is 3rd in the conference.

FROM THE FOUL LINE
In addition to being lethal from the outside, DeRojas has also been successful from the charity stripe. He's hit 269-307 career free throws, an 87.6 percentage, including a career-best 94 as a sophomore. He's gone 55-50 (91.7%) from the line so far this season, 2nd best in the conference.

BIG TIME BACKCOURT DUO
DeRojas and Jr. G Matt Mullins (Binghamton, NY/Chenango Valley) were on fire in the first six games back from the holiday break. In those contests, the two combined for 38.8 ppg and a 48.8 FG% as the Colonels won six straight games.

DeRojas went 18-38 from 3 during the win streak, scoring 20.7 ppg and posting a 90.3 FT%. He dished out 19 assists and had a 1.6 assist-turnover ratio and averaged 33.2 mpg.

Mullins put together the best six-game stretch since coming to WU, averaging 18.2 ppg, including a season-high 29 against Marywood. He shot an incredible 52.6 pct from the floor, while averaging 4.2 rpg with 18 assists and 10 steals.

THE TRANSFER
After playing in eight games as a freshman at Division I Binghamton, Mullins moved onto Broome C.C. where he earned 1st team all-conference honors in averaging 17 ppg, 5 rpg and 5 apg last year.

Mullins has started all 17 games for the Colonels this year and is 2nd on the team with 13.1 ppg, hitting double-figures 10 times and scoring 20 points on four different occassions. He leads the team in steals with 23 and has a 41.8 FG% (84-201).

ALL-AROUND THREAT
Jr. F Paul Huch (Tuckerton, NJ/Pinelands Regional) has contributed a lot of ways for WU so far this season, as he leads the Colonels with 7.9 rpg and is also 1st on the team and 2nd in the Freedom with 28 blocks. He's 2nd on the team with 19 steals, 2nd with 45 assists and 4th on the team with 9.7 ppg.

Huch nearly notched a triple-double against Penn, going for 12 points, 14 rebounds and 9 assists in just 27 minutes on the floor. He has four double-doubles on the season, getting them all in the past 10 games. Over that span he's averaging 10.5 ppg and 9.1 rpg, including a 17-point, 18-rebound performance against Curry.

Starting in all 17 games, Huch is averging 28.5 mpg and has a 41.6 FG% (67-161).

MAN IN THE MIDDLE
Entering his first year as a full-time starter in 2010-11, Jr. C Kendall Hinze (Lewisberry, PA/Red Land) has been a force for WU down low, leading the Freedom with a 60.0 FG% (84-140). Hinze has posted four double-doubles, with his latest being a 13-point, 1-rebound performance against Penn and is averaging 12.6 ppg and 7.5 rpg, 5th in the conference.

Hinze has reached double-figures in scoring 13 times this year, including each of the past 6 games. Over that stretch, he's averaging 12.8 ppg and 7.8 rpg. His 14 blocks are 5th in the conference.

POST EFFICIENCY
So. C Bernard Edmonds (Exeter/Wyoming Area) has been extremely efficient in his 16 games played this season, averaging 6.3 ppg and 3.4 rpg in just 14.1 mpg and has an incredible 68.3 FG% (41-60). He posted a career-high 22 points in just 23 minutes off the bench against Delaware Valley, converting 9-9 FGs and 4-4 FTs.

Edmonds has started four games for the Colonels, averaging 23.5 mpg, 7.0 ppg and 4.8 rpg in those contests. In the first start of his career against FDU, he posted career-highs with 12 points and 9 rebounds.

BACKCOURT RESERVES
So. G Tyler Breznitsky (Freeland, PA/MMI Prep) has given the Colonels quality scoring off the bench this season, reaching double-figures four times, including 12 points on 5-7 shooting against Penn. For the season Breznitsky is scoring 5.1 ppg with a 52.5 FG% (31-59) and a 39.1 3FG% (9-23) in 16.9 mpg.

Fellow So. G Cliff Richardson (Bernville, PA/Tulpehocken) has played in all 17 games this season, and has proven to be the Colonels defensive stopper. In the upset win over Manhattanville, Richardson came up with a huge rebound and putback that put WU up for good, followed by a key turnover on the other end of the court with 1:08 left in the game.

THE FRESHMEN
Among the Colonels seven freshmen this year, Fr. G Craig Thomas (Avenel, NJ/Cardinal McCarrick) and Fr. F Brendan Sheldon (Milford, PA/Delaware Valley) are receiving the most playing time, combining for 29 games played and 10 starts.

Sheldon has played in all 17 games and is averaging 15.5 mpg, starting each of the past seven games. He played his best game of the season against King's, getting season-highs with 10 points and 7 rebounds, going 5-8 from the floor in 28 minutes.

Thomas has played in 12 games and is averaging 6.2 mpg and 2.2 ppg, including 7.4 mpg and 4.4 ppg over the last five. Against Albany Pharmacy, he put in a season-high 8 points on 3-5 FGs with 3 rebounds in 14 minutes.

THE HEAD MAN
Wilkes head coach Jerry Rickrode enters his 19th season at the helm, compiling a 331-142 (.699) career record heading into the season. He has taken the Colonels to the conference playoffs 15 times, including 10 straight from 1992-93-2001-02. He has also led Wilkes to five straight NCAA Tournament appearances (1994-95-1998-99), including four Sweet Sixteens, three Elite Eights and one Final Four appearance. He's also a four-time NABC Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year and a three-time Freedom/MAC Coach of the year.

Wilkes Under Rickrode:
1992-93 16-9 MAC Playoffs
1993-94 20-6 MAC Playoffs/ECAC South Playoffs
1994-95 25-5 MAC Playoffs/NCAA Tournament
1995-96 28-2 MAC Playoffs/NCAA Tournament
1996-97 20-6 MAC Playoffs/NCAA Tournament
1997-98 26-5 MAC Playoffs/NCAA Tournament
1998-99 25-4 MAC Playoffs/NCAA Tournament
1999-00 16-9 MAC Playoffs
2000-01 23-3 Freedom Playoffs/NCAA Tournament
2001-02 15-11 Freedom Playoffs
2002-03 17-7
2003-04 18-9 Freedom Playoffs
2004-05 15-10 Freedom Playoffs
2005-06 14-10 Freedom Playoffs
2006-07 12-11
2007-08 13-12 Freedom Playoffs
2008-09 15-11 Freedom Playoffs
2009-10 13-12
Totals      331-142

THE FRIENDLY CONFINES OF MARTS
The Colonels have been very successful playing at home under Rickrode, putting together a 198-51 (.795) record through this season. In 1997-98, when the Colonels advanced to the Final Four, they went 17-0 and the next year went 14-0, moving on to the Elite Eight. This season the Colonels are 7-2 at home, including the 74-68 upset of then-25th-ranked Manhattanville.