Utica, NY - The 12-4 (3-2 Empire 8) Utica College men's basketball team is set for a busy road weekend, as its two-game slate includes matchups against Houghton on Friday at 5:30 p.m. and Alfred the following day at 2 p.m.

Last Time Out:  The Utica College men's basketball team dropped to 12-4 on the year with a 79-71 loss to the Nazareth Golden Flyers Saturday afternoon. Junior forward Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) had one of his best performances as a Pioneer, posting a career-high 17 rebounds and a season-high 14 points en route to his third double-double of the season. Nazareth worked an early lead in this contest, heading into the locker room with a 42-32 advantage at halftime. The Golden Flyers eventually worked this lead all the way up to an 18-point advantage with 14:54 left to play. Utica came roaring back, drawing within seven with just under two minutes left to play. However, this comeback proved to be too little too late for the Pioneers, as Nazareth was able to weather the storm and secure the victory. Sophomore Chris Green (White Plains, NY/Alexander Hamilton) had a career night as well, scoring a career-high 13 points coming off the bench. Sophomore guard Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) led the team in scoring for the second consecutive game, poring in a team-high 15 points. Junior guard Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle) matched Murphy with 14 points of his own on 4-of-8 shooting from the field.

Where We Stand: The Pioneers have the best overall record in the Empire 8, and they currently sit at third in the conference with a 3-2 E8 record. Hartwick also sports a 3-2 conference record at this point, but UC holds the tiebreaker by way of an 85-75 victory over the Hawks on Jan. 11.

Best in the Nation: UC leads the nation in 3-point percentage, shooting 43 percent so far this season. Freshman forward Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) leads the way for this team from downtown, shooting a team-best 45.7 percent. Sophomore guard Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) and senior forward Hunter Remley (Cranford, NJ/Cranford) sit right behind Morreale, each shooting a 45.6 percent clip from 3-point land.

Team Effort: This year's squad leads the Empire 8 in all of the following categories:

Points per game (84.3)
Field goal percentage (47.3%)
Field goals made (457)
3-point percentage (43.2 %)
Free throw percentage (73.8%)
Defensive rebounds per game (28.4)
Defensive rebounds (454)

Leaving No Doubt: The 2019-20 Pioneers also lead the Empire 8 in margin of victory, averaging a spread of 10.3 points per game.

Sharing The Rock: At this point in the season, five different Pioneers are averaging double-digit scoring figures: Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) (13.4), Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) (11.9), Hunter Remley (Cranford, NJ/Cranford) (10.8), Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle) (10.8) and Brett Talbert (Deer Park, NY/Knox School) (10.4)

Young Guns: Freshman Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) is currently the second-leading scorer on this team. Morreale is averaging 11.9 points per game, and he is also the second-leading rebounder on the team with 99 boards so far. Another Freshman in Brett Talbert (Deer Park, NY/Knox School) has done a little bit of everything as well for this team, averaging 10.4 points per game while totaling team-highs in steals (18) and assists (36).

Block Party: Junior center Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) is currently tied for 24th in the nation and first in the Empire 8 in blocks with 34 (2.7 per game) while totaling 136 rebounds (8.5 per game) thus far, which ranks second in the Empire 8. The 6-foot-8 center is also adding 8.8 points per game for the Pioneers.

Free Throws: Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) has been lights out from the charity stripe, as he is currently shooting 83.3 percent (50-for-60) on his free throws. This percentage currently leads the conference.

Dominating History: Utica holds a combined 38-18 all-time record against this weekend's opponents and has won its last six matchups with Houghton.

Scouting Houghton: The Highlanders currently sit at 3-12 overall and 1-3 in Empire 8 play, which slots them at second to last in the conference. Junior forward Jordan Holmes leads the team in scoring with 14.4 points per game, while Isander Ramos-Net is right behind him with 13.3 points per game. Nearly everything for this team runs through Holmes, as he also holds team-highs in 3-pointers (31) and rebounds (95). The last win for Houghton came last Friday in an 83-77 victory over Elmira.

Scouting Alfred: The Saxons are in the five spot with a record of 8-7 (2-2 Empire 8) heading into their matchup with Utica. Senior guard Sam Dagon enters this contest averaging a team-high 16.7 points per game, which ranks second in the Empire 8. Sophomore forwards Brewster Marshall and Elliot Bowen have added averages of 12.4 and 12.3 points per game, respectively.

Up Next: The Pioneers return home for a mid-week matchup against the Hartwick Hawks on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.