UTICA, NY- The Utica Pioneers men's basketball team will travel to Houghton College and Alfred University this weekend to wrap up the regular season. The Pioneers and Houghton Highlanders tip-off at 7:30 p.m. on Friday while Utica and the Alfred Saxons will play game 25 at 4 p.m. on Saturday. 
 
Follow Along: Live video and stats will be available at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/houghton/ for Friday's game and https://portal.stretchinternet.com/alfred/ for Saturday's game. 
 
Last Time Out: The Utica Pioneers men's basketball team secured it's second 20-win season in program history with an 89-77 win over Keuka College on Tuesday night. The last and only prior time the team reached the 20-win mark dates back over 15 years to the 2005-2006 season. That season, Utica advanced to the Division III tournament round of 16 and set the program record with 23 wins that year. On Tuesday, the Pioneers were led by Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) who tied a personal game high with 28 points coming off of 9-for-14 shooting with an impressive 7-for-10 from three-point range. Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle) and Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) also added healthy contributions with 17 points from Lufkin, who averages 13.1 points per game and 15 from Morreale who averages 14.3 points per game.
 
One for the Ages: In addition to the Pioneers reaching 20 wins on Tuesday, the team won their 13th conference game which also marks the most for a single season in program history. Utica will need to win just one out of its next two games or have Nazareth lose just one game to clinch the regular season Empire 8 title. This would be the first ever regular season title for the Pioneers and would also give the team home court advantage in the conference tournament.
 
Recognizing Real: In the initial Division III regional rankings that came out on Monday, Utica was ranked third in Region III trailing only Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Nazareth College. The No. 3 spot ties the program record for highest regional ranking as the 2006-07 team was also ranked as high as third at one point that season. 
 
Defense Dominates: While offense has shown out recently the Pioneers have been astounding on defense over the course of the season. Utica ranks 22nd in the nation allowing 63 points per game, 12th in opposition field goal percentage, as well as eighth in opposition three-point field goal percentage. The paint presence held by Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson), Avery Coston (Kerhonkson, NY/Rondout Valley), and Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) has been a difference maker for the Pioneers as well. Murphy and Morreale rank eighth and ninth in the E8 in block totals and blocks per game, the pair averaging just over a block per game at 1.15 and 1.13.
 
For the Namesake: Kobe Lufkin's (Argyle, NY/Argyle) remarkable month shooting the ball from deep has taken him to a national scale. The graduate student now leads all of DIII shooting an impressive 48 percent from three on the year (61-for-127) on a Pioneers team that is ranked 32nd in the country in three-point percentage. Lufkin has recorded at least one three in his last six games as well as in all but one game this season. As if his season totals weren't eye-popping enough, Lufkin has gone 13-for 21 (61.9 percent) from beyond the arc over the last three games. 
 
Hopkins Hype: Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) has been in a zone for well over a month, having reached double figures in points in 10 of his last 11 games. The most notable performances being his 28 and 24 point outings against Keuka and Nazareth in two of Utica's past three games. Hopkins has now brought his season average up to 12.6 points per game with his recent scoring efforts, which is on pace to beat his scoring average of 11.5 from the 2020-2021 season. 
 
The Monster of Morreale: While Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) leads the team in scoring at 14.4 points per game on a conference-leading 56 percent shooting, it's been his defense that has gone under the radar as of late. He has still made his usual impact recording six rebounds and over two blocks per game over the team's last four outings despite scoring three and six points in two of those games. In the Pioneers most recent outing against Keuka his full game was on display, filling the stat sheet with 15 points, five rebounds and seven assists in the win. 
 
Scouting Houghton: The Highlanders enter the weekend 4-19 overall and 4-10 in the conference. Houghton is led by Jordan Holmes, who averages 11.3 points per game on the season. Houghton also has a defensive presence in Billy McCrae who is fifth in the conference in blocks per game at 1.4. The last time the Pioneers and Highlanders faced off it was a close game with Utica coming out on top 70-60. A 23 point performance from Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) led the Pioneers, accompanied by a 19 point outing from Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle). Utica is 16-2 all-time against Houghton while having taken the last 10.
 
About Alfred: The Alfred men's basketball team is 15-8 on the season as well as a healthy 8-6 in the E8 conference. The Saxons are led by big man Brewster Marshall who is averaging 15.9 points per game and is top-five in the E8 in blocks, rebounds, and assists. Alfred has defended the three-point ball well this year as the team is ranked fourth in the country holding opponents to 26.7 percent shooting from three. The last time the two teams faced off the Pioneers came away with a 64-51 win. Lufkin and Hopkins combined for 34 of Utica's 64 points while the defense held Marshall to eight points on 30 percent shooting. Alfred has already clinched a spot in the postseason and can lock up the fourth seed with one win this weekend. 

Up Next: Utica can be seeded as high as first and as low as second in the conference tournament next weekend - meaning the team avoids the opening round game on Tuesday. With one win this weekend or one Nazareth loss, Utica will host the four-team tournament beginning next Friday. However, Nazareth still has a mathematical chance to host the tournament with two wins and two Utica losses. All other information regarding the 2021-22 Empire 8 Conference Tournament is TBD.