Steve Finkernagel

WILKES MEN’S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES VS. EASTERN

1/24/2012 3:09:00 PM

(Complete Game Notes)

WILKES MEN'S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES VS. EASTERN

Wilkes Colonels (13-3, 6-0) vs. Eastern Eagles (11-5, 4-2)
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 - 8:00 P.M.
Wilkes-Barre, PA / Marts Center

Live Stats

Live Audio (ESPNWilliamsport.com/Play-By-Play: Trevor Turner)

AT A GLANCE
Wilkes looks to make it eight straight wins when the Colonels face Eastern Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. in the Marts Center. Wilkes remained perfect in Freedom play with an 81-69 victory over FDU-Florham on Saturday. Wilkes took both meetings last season posting a 67-55 win in St. Davids, then claimed a 73-53 victory on its home court.

LAST TIME OUT
Matt Mullins (Binghamton, NY/Chenango Valley) continued his fine shooting pouring in a game-high 24 points as four Colonels hit double figures in an 81-69 win over FDU-Florham Saturday afternoon at the Marts Center.

Wilkes stormed out to a 19-10 lead with 10:54 on the first half clock following two driving layups from Jourdon Wilson (Mechanicsburg, PA/Cumberland Valley). An inside score from Kendall Hinze (Lewisberry, PA/Red Land) followed by a deep Wilson three-pointer extended the Colonel lead to 24-12 with 8:46 left in the half. From there Wilkes used a 10-4 run to close out the half taking a comfortable 41-23 advantage to the break.

The lead grew to 26 points, 55-29, after a Paul Huch (Tuckerton, NJ/Pinelands Regional) transition trey giving Wilkes its largest lead of the contest with 14:35 remaining. The visiting Devils used a late rally midway through the frame to come to within nine at 67-58 with 3:53 left, but the Colonels proved to be too much connecting on eight straight free throws down the stretch to seal the conference win.

Mullins was just as effective from the floor as he was three nights earlier when he scored a career-high 30 tallies including nine threes in the win at King's finishing 7-for-12 from the floor and 3-for-6 from behind the arc. He added three rebounds and three assists in 36 minutes of action. Wilson followed with 19
points, six rebounds, and three helpers controlling tempo for the high-scoring Wilkes offense. Huch added 13 points on 5-for-9 shooting grabbing four rebounds and dishing out three assists. Hinze was the fourth Colonel to reach double figures contributing 11 points and a game-high eight rebounds.

Wilkes was efficient from the floor shooting 56.0 percent (28-50) and 45.0 percent (9-20) from long range. The Colonels held a 36-27 advantage on the glass throughout including nine offensive rebounds.

Adam Katz led FDU-Florham with 18 points and three rebounds, while Ardell Roberts added 12 points (all in the second half) and Mike Williamson chipped in 11 points.

THE CAPTAINS
The trio of captains for the Colonels this season are Mullins, Huch and Hinze. The top three returning scorers for Wilkes, Mullins, Huch, and Hinze are the senior leaders of this year's squad.

Mullins leads the backcourt attack averaging 16.2 ppg and 4.2 rpg. The senior sharpshooter is connecting on 45.6 percent (83-182) from the field and 39.6 percent (36-91) from the charity stripe. Huch and Hinze have controlled the paint combining for 28.7 ppg and 14.8 rpg.

MAN IN THE MIDDLE
Hinze enters his second year as a full-time starter in 2011-12 and has anchored a Colonels frontcourt loaded with experience and depth at all positions. Hinze topped the conference in field goal percentage (61.4 %) last season, and continues to be the premier big man in Freedom play this season shooting over 62.2 percent (79-127) from the field (1st in Freedom).

His best game in a Wilkes uniform this season came in the Colonels victory at Manhattanville. He poured in a season-high 24 points on 7-for-7 shooting from the field and 10-for-12 from the foul line. Hinze also netted 22 points in a win at Penn College going 12-for-14 from the charity stripe. He also flexed his muscle on the glass finishing with 12 rebounds and one block for his third double-double of the year. Hinze finished with 18 points and eight boards in the win over Del Val.

HUCH INSIDE AND OUT
At 6-5, Huch is a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses every night as the senior guard-forward can play on the perimeter as well as with his back to the basket. He provides productivity in three different categories for Wilkes scoring points, grabbing rebounds, and blocking shots. He continues to fill the stat sheet averaging 15.1 ppg and 7.5 rpg (team-high). Huch has reached double figures in 13 of 16 contests this season recording two double-doubles. Huch went for a career-high 29 points in the Colonels win at Marywood shooting 13-for-16 from the field.

MULLINS FOR MAYOR
Mullins averages 16.2 ppg and 4.2 rpg through the Colonels hot stretch. Mullins has enjoyed several outstanding performances this year starting in a loss against Dickinson pouring in 26 points on 5-for-12 shooting from the floor while grabbing four rebounds in 37 minutes of action. He also found a way to get to the free throw line all night finishing 14-for-16 from the stripe. He followed that performance with a 19-point effort in the win over BBC and a 23-point outpour at Marywood making 7-of-10 from behind the arc including his first four. Mullins is shooting 39.6 percent (36-91) from three-point range including a career-high nine three-pointers at King's (9-for-16). Mullins went for a career-high 30 points on 10-for-18 shooting while grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out two assists in the win over King's. For his play Mullins was named Freedom Conference Player of the Week.

ROOKIE TAKEOVER
Wilson, who earned Freedom Player of the Week in early December, had a career night in the Colonels blowout win over Misericordia to start the conference campaign. The rookie point guard finished with 26 points on an efficient 12-for-16 shooting from the floor while hitting both of his three-point attempts. For the season, Wilson is averaging 11.6 ppg and 3.1 apg in 26.4 mpg reaching double figures in ten of 16 contests.

BACKCOURT RESERVES
Tyler Breznitsky (Freeland, PA/MMI Prep) saw his minutes increase as last season went on, providing a spark off the bench. He continues to provide a spark off the pine this year averaging 7.9 ppg, hitting on 44.9 percent (22-49) of his three-point attempts. Breznitsky went for a season-high 18 tallies against PSU Wilkes-Barre on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting from behind the arc. Fellow guards junior Cliff Richardson (Bernville, PA/Tulpehocken) and sophomore Craig Thomas (Avenel, NJ/Cardinal McCarrick) continue to add depth to the Wilkes backcourt as Thomas averages 1.3 ppg in 8.9 mpg, while Richardson averages 3.7 mpg.

THE FRESHMEN
The Colonels feature six true freshmen this season, including Wilson, Cameron Hinkel (Millerstown, PA/Greenwood), Trevor Gilliam (Powhatan, VA/Blessed Sacrament Huguenot), Mike Sharpe (Saylorsburg, PA/Pleasant Valley), Jeremy Hartman (Little Egg Harbor, NJ/Pinelands Regional), and Lee Strause (Port Carbon, PA/Pottsville Nativity). Hinkel has six starts under his belt averaging 2.7 ppg and 2.7 rpg in 12.7 mpg. Hartman has started seven times averaging 3.3 ppg in 13.0 mpg hitting for a career-high 10 points in the win against Del Val.

THE HEAD MAN
Wilkes head coach Jerry Rickrode enters his 20th season at the helm, compiling a 359-155 (.698) career record. He has taken the Colonels to the conference playoffs 16 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.

THE FRIENDLY CONFINES OF MARTS
The Colonels have been very successful playing at home under Rickrode, putting together a 207-52 (.798) record. 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. Last season Wilkes is 7-0 at home this year with wins over PSU Hazleton, Baptist Bible, Misericordia University, PSU Wilkes-Barre, Delaware Valley, FDUFlorham, and Lebanon Valley.

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