UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's basketball team will travel to face crosstown rival SUNY Poly on Monday, November 21 at 6 p.m.
 
Follow Along: SUNY Poly will provide live video and stats through https://bit.ly/2EH6kIm. 
 
Last Time Out: The team opened its 2022-23 season with a 94-81 win at home over the SUNY Morrisville Mustangs on Tuesday night. While the Pioneers started the game on a pair of layups by Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) thanks to quick feeds by Avery Coston (Kerhonkson, NY/Rondout Valley), it was the Mustangs offense that hummed early as the visitors pulled ahead 10-4 over the first five minutes of the contest. Following a Utica timeout, the Pioneers went on to outscore Morrisville 13-2 to go up 17-12 with 10:30 left in the first. With the game even at 17-17 with under nine minutes left, the new-look Utica offense began to click. A pair of three-pointers by Luke Bourgault (Troy, NY/LaSalle Institute) and another by Chris Ward (Elmsford, NY/Alexander Hamilton) suddenly helped the team pull ahead 28-17. Utica ended the half with a 45-27 edge thanks to 58.06 percent shooting from the field and 46.15 percent from beyond the arc. The second half came with a plethora of fouls by both teams as free-throws came into play down the stretch. The Pioneers jumped out to a 24 point cushion with 17:24 to play before the Mustangs eventually came within 12 points with 11:12 to play. Holding a 60-48 lead, Utica could not put Morrisville completely away. The Mustangs pulled within nine at 80-71 with 2:11 left before the Pioneers capitalized on a Griffin Barasa (Clearwater, FL/Calvary Christian) three-point play, a pair of Justice Brantley (Catskill, NY/Catskill) buckets, and clutch free throws by Coston to fend off Morrisville 94-81. The Pioneers attempted 24 free-throws in the second half while for the game the team went 24-for-30 from the charity stripe. Hopkins led the team with 25 points on 6-for-12 shooting from the field, 3-for-6 from three and 10-for-12 from the line. Morreale added 22 points and six rebounds while Brantley (13 points, eight rebounds) and Coston (eight points, seven assists, seven rebounds) played large roles on both ends of the floor. Newcomers Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy) (nine points, 4-for-7 FG) and Bourgault (seven points, 2-for-2 3FG) added some fire to the offense off the bench. 
 
Tommy Time: Senior Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) was terrific in the team's opening win and had his way in the paint. Morreale dropped 22 points on 10-16 shooting while adding six rebounds, three assists, and three blocks as he was phenomenal down low. Last season against the Wildcats, Morreale scored 37 points over two games, including 24 in the team's win at Poly on February 2, 2022. 
 
Deadeye Darius: Veteran Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) continued to add to his stellar career as he dropped 25 points in the team's first game against SUNY Morrisville. Hopkins was lights out from the field as he shot 6-12 including 3-6 from behind the arc and 10-12 from the free throw line. 
 
Pair of Playmakers: Justice Brantley (Catskill, NY/Catskill) and Avery Coston (Kerhonkson, NY/Rondout Valley) are two key pieces to the Pioneers' success. The duo both netted over 30 minutes in the team's win over SUNY Morrisville and will play big minutes this season. Brantley put up 13 points, eight rebounds, and one block in the team's opening game. The senior had a few flashy plays including a nice spinning reverse layup and his high IQ was certainly on display. Coston was a force on the boards and a playmaker down low as he was able to find open teammates consistently. The graduate student nearly had a triple-double as he compiled eight points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. 
 
New Contributors: The Pioneers have had a handful of new contributors as newcomers Luke Bourgault (Troy, NY/LaSalle Institute) and Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy) made their impacts. Bourgault had seven points and three rebounds in 14 minutes of play. The junior is no stranger to scoring as he averaged 14.3 points per game last season at Hudson Valley Community College and will be a key scorer off the bench for the Pioneers. Freshman Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy) was displaying his high motor with physical defense and was attacking the rim on offense while collecting two hard fought three-point plays.
 
Old Foes: The rivalry between SUNY Poly and Utica has always been gritty. The Pioneers have won three of the last four meetings including an impressive 79-59 win when the teams last met on February 2, 2022. The trio of Morreale, Hopkins, and Justice Brantley (Catskill, NY/Catskill) combined for 48 of the team's 79 points and the team will lean on these veterans come Monday.
 
Scouting Poly: The Wildcats currently own a 2-2 record as the team opened the year with wins at Alfred State and Alfred University before dropping its previous two games at home against SUNY Potsdam and at Russell Sage College. Poly has netted 71 points per game over its four outings led by Jesse O'Dell's 16.8 as well as 12 by Dylan Ernst and LJ Randle. Each of the Wildcats' big three also shoot over 50 percent from the field while attempting at least eight shots per game. Over its first four games, Poly has also outrebounded opponents 43.5-33.3 per contest however, opponents have caused the team to commit over 18 turnovers per game. 

Up Next: The Pioneers will return home to host Cazenovia College on Monday, November 28 at 6 p.m.