UTICA, NY – The Utica College men's basketball team returns home on Tuesday after playing just one game on the road, to face Sage in an Empire 8 Conference matchup. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
 
Last Time Out: The Pioneers are currently 10-9 with a 4-6 record in the Empire 8. They are coming off a 64-91 road loss against St. John Fisher. Sophomore Avery Coston (Kerhonkson, NY/Rondout Valley) had a big game, scoring a career-high 29 points and grabbing five rebounds. Coston shot 64% from the field and 57% from 3-point land.
 
Empire 8 Standings: With a 4-6 conference record, UC is currently sixth in the E8 behind Sage, Stevens, Alfred, St. John Fisher and Nazareth. There are only six games remaining in the regular season and the Pioneers will need to get hot down the stretch in order to make the conference tournament for their third straight year.
 
Scoring Leaders: Sophomore Shawn Gashi (Central Square, NY/Bishop Grimes) is the current leading scorer for UC, as he is averaging 16.5 points per game and is ranked sixth in the conference. Second for the Pioneers is Coston, averaging 12.4 points per game with a shooting percentage of 53%. Behind them are freshman Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) and sophomore Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle), who each average over eight points per game.
 
Home Court Advanced Statistics: More in-depth statistics are being recorded during home games this season for the Pioneers, mainly including plus/minus ratings and a shooting breakdown for main areas on the court. In nine home contests this year Shawn Gashi (Central Square, NY/Bishop Grimes) (+35) and Tyler Jollie (Marlboro, NY/Marlboro) (+32) have the top two plus/minus ratings on the team. Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) and Coston are both shooting 70% or better in the painted area at home. Gashi has been the most efficient shooter from both mid-range and top of the key 3-pointers, shooting above 50% in both areas. Gashi and teammate Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle) are both shooting 48.3% from long range when pulling from the wing. De'andrae McFarlane (Elizabeth, NJ/Union) has the top percentage when shooting the corner-three, hitting at a 42.9% clip.
 
Scouting Sage: The Gators are 9-12 overall this season and hold a 5-7 mark inside of Empire 8 competition. The team has lost its last two games to Nazareth and St. John Fisher. In the recent 98-83 loss to Fisher, Sage's Joshua Gonzalez put up a team-high 19 points on 9-for-10 shooting. Christian Larson, Chris Kidd, and Anthony Mitchell all reached double-digits in the loss. Kidd is leading the pack with averages of 12.6 points and 8.2 boards per game. So far this season Sage is 2-6 when playing on the road.
 
Against Sage: Earlier in the season, UC faced Sage on the road for the first game of conference play on the schedule. The Pioneers fell, 89-95, in overtime despite Darius Hopkins' (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) explosion of 24 points off the bench. Following him was Lufkin with 19 points, making four threes in the game. Justin Strielkauskas (Waterbury, CT/Holy Cross) did a lot of the dirty work inside, finishing with six points, seven rebounds, and three blocked shots. UC looks to get back in the win column with a revenge game against the Gators on Tuesday.
 
Looking Ahead: The Pioneers will head to Elmira this Friday for the first of two consecutive road games. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.