UTICA, NY - Fresh off its second-straight regular season Empire 8 crown, as well as its NCAA Tournament Second Round appearance, the Utica University men's basketball team will open its 2023-24 season by hosting SUNY Potsdam on Friday, November 10 at 7 p.m. in a non-conference competition. 
 
Follow Along: Those unable to attend the season opener can tune in for live video and/or stats here.
 
Last Year: The Pioneers are coming off another fantastic season in 2022-23 with a 23-5 overall record and 17-1 in Empire 8 Conference play. The 23 victories tied the single season record for wins in a season while securing the second Empire 8 regular season title. Utica's 17 conference victories was also a program record. The team made its second all-time NCAA Tournament appearance in 2023, defeating Babson in the round of 64 before falling to Rowan in the round of 32. Four Pioneers received all-conference honors for their exceptional efforts during the 2022-23 season. Justice Brantley (Catskill, NY/Catskill) and Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) received All-Empire 8 First Team honors, Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) made second team, and Griffin Barasa (Clearwater, FL/Calvary Christian) was Utica's Empire 8 Sportsman of the Year. Head coach Sean Coffey was the Empire 8 and ECHC Coach of the Year. The Utica offense was solid throughout the year, scoring 77.9 points a game which ranked third in the conference while shooting 44.7 percent from the field and 34.4 percent from beyond the three point arc. The Pioneers allowed only 67.7 points per game which also marked them third in the conference. 
 
In the Polls: The team will open the 2023-24 season represented in the D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll. The Pioneers received votes to be one of two Region 3 teams represented in the initial poll. 
The 2023-2024 preseason poll had Utica receiving 23 votes. The Pioneers received the 14th most votes out of the 31 teams that received votes outside of the top 25. The D3hoops.com Top 25 is voted on by a panel of 25 coaches, Sports Information Directors, and media members from across the country, and is published weekly. 
 
Pulling the Reins: After earning the ECAC Division III Men's Basketball Coach of the Year, head coach Sean Coffey is back for his eighth season to lead the team. Through seven seasons at Utica, Coffey has led the Pioneers to a 115-56 overall record and 78-28 mark in conference play. Coffey has led the Pioneers to six Empire 8 Tournament appearances in seven years, including three conference title appearances with an Empire 8 championship in 2021. He and his staff have been recognized for Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year in back-to-back seasons now. Richard Coffey and Luke Fredsell return to the coaching staff this season while Zach Zoll and Trevor Hardin join them as assistant coaches. 
 
Looking at the Schedule: The Pioneers' regular season will run from November 10 to February 17, 2024. If qualified, the Empire 8 Conference Tournament will be held from February 20-24, 2023 with the highest remaining seed holding home court advantage. Utica will play 25 games this season and host 12 games during the regular season. It will also host its annual Utica University Classic running from Friday, December 29 to Saturday, December 30 with Colby Sawyer College, RPI, and Connecticut College being in the field. The team will begin the season with nine of its first 10 games being non-conference before diving into Empire 8 play. Beginning on Friday, January 5, Utica will play 15-straight conference games. The Pioneers non-conference matchups will feature SUNY Potsdam, Morrisville State College, Buffalo State, SUNY Poly, Ithaca College, (RV) Hamilton College, SUNY Cortland, Colby Sawyer College and either RPI or Connecticut College in the Utica University Classic.
 
Key Losses: The Pioneers will enter the 2023-24 season without key veterans Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) and Avery Coston (Kerhonkson, NY/Rondout Valley). Hopkins averaged 12.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game throughout his five year career for Utica. He helped the Pioneers win their first ever Empire 8 championship in 2021 and also led the team to its second NCAA Tournament appearance in 2023, averaging 25.5 points across the two NCAA Tournament games. Hopkins netted 1,469 points in his career while draining 172 three-pointers, both of which rank fourth all-time in program history. He was selected to the Empire 8 All-Conference team twice, and was awarded Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year in 2022. Recently, Hopkins signed a professional contract with the Killarney Cougars Basketball Club of Basketball Ireland. Hopkins was the first player to sign a professional contract under coach Sean Coffey. Avery Coston (Kerhonkson, NY/Rondout Valley) was another key contributor to the program across his six seasons spent with the team. Coston scored 937 points in his career while averaging 8.1 points per game, 3.9 rebounds per game, and 1.8 assists per game. He is tied with Darius Hopkins (Tampa, FL/Seffner Christian) for most games played in program history with 116. Coston played a large role in helping the Pioneers win the Empire 8 Conference Tournament in 2021 and was an integral part of Utica's Empire 8 regular season titles in the 2022 and 2023 seasons. 
 
Day Time: Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy) will look to take a leap in his second season with the team. As a freshman, Thompson served as the sixth man and provided a spark for the team whenever he entered the game. Thompson averaged 10.5 points per game, 2.8 rebounds per game, 1.4 assists per game and 1.2 steals per game across 20.6 minutes a contest. The talented guard should see his role increase this season where he will be called upon for more offensive production while providing lockdown defense as well. 
 
Ring, Do You Hear Me Callin'?: After missing some time at the beginning of last season due to injury, Damien Call (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) enters this season fully healthy and ready to be a difference maker for the Pioneers. Playing a key role off the bench last season, Call averaged 5.6 points per game and 5.5 rebounds per game while shooting 55.4 percent from the field. The senior forward is a gifted athlete with explosive abilities and exceptional skill on the interior to provide consistent scoring and toughness for the Pioneers.  
 
Justice For All: The Pioneers return star graduate student Justice Brantley (Catskill, NY/Catskill) for the 2023-24 season. Brantley is a veteran leader who has been a part of the winningest stretch in program history over the past four seasons with an accumulative record of 74-19 (.796 winning percentage). He made a huge leap in production last season, emerging as an every game starter and the team leader in points and rebounds. Brantley averaged 15.6 points per game, 7.6 rebounds per game, 1.9 assists per game and 1.3 steals per game across 28 contests. His efforts earned him First Team All Empire 8 honors and propelled Utica to its second consecutive Empire 8 regular season title and second NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. Brantley's scoring, ball handling and rebounding skills make him a complete player who will help lead the Pioneers once again this season. 
 
T-Time: Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) has been a four-year starter for Pioneers and has been as solid as they come in those years. Morreale has averaged double-digits in points every season in his career, and joined the 1,000 point club last season. In the 2022-23 season, Morreale averaged 13.2 points per game, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game. His presence is equally as valuable on the defensive end where he averaged 1.3 blocks per game, and 1.0 steals per game as well. For a player who scores a lot of his points on the interior, Morreale is also a deadly shooter with an incredible career three-point percentage of 42.9. The local product was another crucial piece to the 2021 championship team as well as the consecutive Empire 8 regular season titles.  He enters this season with an already impressive resume, looking to add more to cement his legacy. Morreale is 10th all time in program history for points and three-pointers made with 1,161 points and 126 threes made. He looks to become the second player in program history to reach 1,000-plus points, 500-plus rebounds and 100-plus blocks. The five-time All-Empire 8 selection will look to have another strong campaign in his final season with the Pioneers. 
 
Veteran Presence: Griffin Barasa (Clearwater, FL/Calvary Christian), Luke Bourgault (Troy, NY/LaSalle Institute), Jackson Atty (Johnstown, NY/Fonda-Fultonville), and Neruda Perdomo (New York, NY/Kimball Union Academy) are returning for another season with the Pioneers and will serve vital roles in the team's success. Returning as a junior, Barasa played an essential role in the starting five last season having started 27 out of the 28 games played. Averaging 3.4 points, 2.0 assists, and 3.2 rebounds, 1.1 steals, and 0.43 blocks per game, Barasa serves as a jack of all trades. Luke Bourgault (Troy, NY/LaSalle Institute) is returning to the team as a graduate student. Bourgault is a standout shooter from all over the floor. With over 200 total attempts last season, Bourgault averaged 40 percent from the floor and 35.7 percent from behind the arc. Recording 135 rebounds, he made his presence in the paint and around the glass on both sides of the floor well known. From Johnstown, NY, returning to the team as a senior, Jackson Atty (Johnstown, NY/Fonda-Fultonville) looks to take on a larger role in the team. Throughout the season, the pop-up shooter hit important shots and will look to do so in the upcoming seasons. Neruda Perdomo (New York, NY/Kimball Union Academy) returns for his third campaign with the program and is looking towards carving a bigger role this season. Perdomo does it all efficiently and can set up his teammates with ease while crashing the boards well for his position.  
 
Newcomers: The team welcomes in four newcomers including two NCAA Division II transfers, junior Walter deFreitas (Brooklyn, NY/Xaverian) and junior Hagan Foley. Transferring from Queens College, deFreitas averaged 3.2 points per game, 1.1 rebounds per game, in addition to a pair of steals and assists across 11 games. The guard is a standout shooter with a percentage of 56 percent from the field, 50 percent from behind the arc, and 66.7 percent from the line. From Brooklyn, NY, the junior's ability to consistently find space for shots and ability to knock them down will prove to be crucial to the Pioneers' season, especially later down the stretch. Transferring from the College of Saint Rose, Foley appeared in 17 games scoring 26 points averaging 1.6 points per game.  From Albany, NY, the scrappy guard has recorded 23 points and forced five steals in his last season alone. Freshman Ethan Rivers (Madison, NY/Madison Central) averaged 26 points, 6 assists, and 7 steals a game in high school last year, earning his team the league championship and himself the league MVP award. From Madison, NY, the freshman looks to be an exciting prospect for the Pioneers this season. Freshman Thaddeus Luke (llion, NY/Central Valley Academy) averaged 12 points and 5 rebounds a game in high school last season, earning himself All-League honors.
 
About Potsdam: The SUNY Potsdam Bears finished off last season with a record of 9-15 in non-conference games and a conference record of 7-11. The Bears finished off their season with a nail-biting finish against New Paltz where they won 85-84. The team lost its top two scorers in Brandon Segar Jr. and Ahamadou Silah who each averaged over 14.8 points per game. Jeff Williamson averaged 9.3 points per game last season and looks to take the reins and help provide the missing scoring. Parker Kelly, Colton Huestis, and MeSean Johnson all return after averaging at least 7.4 points per game with Johnson being a strong defender with 27 steals and eight blocks which both ranked top-four on the team. 

Up Next: The team will travel to Morrisville on Tuesday, November 14 to face SUNY Morrisville in a non-conference game at 7 p.m.