UTICA, NY - The Utica College men's basketball team will host Russell Sage College on Saturday in the Coaches vs. Cancer Suits & Sneakers Game. Tip-off between the Pioneers and Gators will be at 4 p.m. from Miga Court. 
 
Follow Along: Fans not in attendance can watch live or keep up with live stats through https://bit.ly/2wtxUV5. 
 
Last Time Out: UC held off an emotional Houghton College Highlanders team for a 70-60 win on Real Men Wear Pink Breast Cancer Awareness Night last Saturday. The Highlanders opened the game on a 9-3 run with seven points coming in the paint. Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) scored the next three baskets for the Pioneers to even the game at nine with 13:30 to play. From that point until just over four minutes left, neither side was able to gain more than a three point lead until the Highlanders went up 29-24. UC ended the half on a floater by Hopkins and a Layup by Justice Brantley (Catskill, NY/Catskill) to enter the half behind 29-28. After Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) started the half with a layup to put Utica up by one, Houghton went on a 16-3 run over four minutes for a game-high 12 point lead with under 16 minutes to play. This lit a spark underneath the Pioneers as the team went on a 18-0 run of their own to lead the Highlanders 51-45 at the 10 minute mark. A pair of layups by Chris Green (White Plains, NY/Alexander Hamilton) and a big three-pointer by Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle) helped push UC ahead 60-57 until under four minutes left when Hopkins extended the lead to five on a jumper. Over the last three minutes the Highlanders were held to three points while a Damien Call (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) breakaway dunk with 30 seconds left iced the game and sealed the win for Utica.  With his 19 points tonight on 4-for-8 three-point shooting, Lufkin now sits two points away from 1,000 in his career. For the second night in a row, Hopkins led Utica in points as he ended the game with 23 on 9-for-16 shooting. Off the bench, Brantley added nine points on 50 percent shooting while Avery Coston (Kerhonkson, NY/Rondout Valley) made his presence felt with 10 rebounds and three assists. 
 
Suits & Sneakers Week: On Saturday the Utica College men's basketball team will participate in the American Cancer Society's Coaches vs. Cancer - Suits And Sneakers Week which goes from January 24-30, 2022. This is a nationwide event that unites coaches across the country to raise funds and awareness about the fight against cancer and promotes the American Cancer Society as a source of inspiration and hope for those facing cancer. While coaching games during the week, coaches wear sneakers with their game attire as a visible reminder of their support of the American Cancer Society. 
 
No Free Lunch: There's a reason why the Pioneers have allowed the 16th fewest points per game in the nation at 62.1 per game. Havoc defense and consistent closeouts on shots have helped pin Utica as the 11th best defensive field goal percentage team in Division III as opponents have converted on 37.8 percent of shots against UC. As if protecting the paint hasn't lifted the defense enough, Utica is the fourth-best three-point defending team in the nation with opponents hitting on just 26 percent of three's against the team. The three teams ahead of UC in three-point defense are Saint Joseph (CT), who is the only undefeated team left in DIII, 14-1 Maryville College and Saint Lawrence. 
 
Kobe's Quest: Kobe Lufkin's (Argyle, NY/Argyle) recent shooting tear has inched him closer and closer to 1,000 career points since it began in early December. Now just two points away from becoming the 15th 1,000 point scorer in program history, the Empire 8 leading three-point shooter at 47.3 percent will have an amazing opportunity to do so on Saturday. Lufkin has scored in double figures in eight of his last 10 outings and has averaged over five three-point attempts in the same span. On the year, Lufkin is 10th in the conference averaging 12.5 points per game while his three-point percentage not only leads the E8 but it places him near the top-10 in the country. 
 
D-Hop Loading: Senior Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) put together a phenomenal week to help guide UC to wins over Sage, Alfred and Houghton. Hopkins averaged 17 points per game on 55.8 percent shooting while also averaging just under three steals per game, including four against Sage on Tuesday. The guard also went a crucial 11-for-13 from the free throw line, four of which coming in the final minutes last Friday against Alfred to put the game away. He led the team with 17 points against Alfred and then again with 23 the following day against Houghton. Hopkins is currently within the top-15 in the E8 with 11.3 points per game, a 43.9 field goal percentage, a 71.7 percent mark from the charity stripe, 2.1 assists per game and 1.5 steals per game. 
 
Bring the Hamma Down: Center Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) can be added to the list of players that has been on a bit of a hot streak lately as well as a major asset to UC's paint protection. Murphy is coming off of a week where he recorded a 13 point, 13 rebound double-double at Sage and a season high 30 minutes against Alfred where he filled the box score with seven rebounds, four points, three assists, two blocks and two steals. Murphy's 1.2 blocks per game places him sixth in the Empire 8 and he has also recorded at least one block in four straight games as well as in eight of his last nine. 
 
About Sage: The Gators will step onto Miga Court 9-7 overall and 3-4 in Empire 8 play. Since losing to the Pioneers two games ago, Sage has gone on to defeat Keuka College 112-92 and fall at home to Elmira College 60-46. Senior Jalon Borders remains one of the top-five scorers in the conference with 16.4 points per game on 40.9 percent shooting. Amani Cummings and Stuart Phair also average just over 10 points per game each for the Gators. The Pioneers defeated the Gators on the road 66-61 on January 18. UC held off a strong second half comeback by Sage behind a Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) 13 point, 13 rebound double-double and 15 points by Chris Green (White Plains, NY/Alexander Hamilton). UC held Sage to 34.4 percent shooting from the field and 20 percent three-point shooting that night. 

Up Next: UC will travel to nearby SUNY Poly on February 2 for a rematch against the Wildcats. Tip-off will be at 7 p.m.