UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's basketball team is set to take on a final road contest before opening the 2025 home slate this season. On Wednesday, November 19, the team will travel to Morrisville, NY to take on the SUNY Morrisville Mustangs, with a tip off slated for 6pm. On Saturday, November 22, the team will open the 2025 home slate against Keystone College, with a tip off set for 5pm from Miga Court inside the Clark Athletic Center.
Follow Along: For those unable to attend, live video for Wednesday's matchup can be found here, and live stats here. Live video for Saturday's matchup can be found here, and live stats here.
Last Time Out: The team suffered its first loss of the season in the championship game of the Chuck Resler Tournament, to the host University of Rochester, by a score of 103-80 on Saturday evening. Leading the way for the Pioneers was
Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy), whose 17 points pushed the senior guard over the 1,000 career point milestone, becoming the 21st player in program history to hit the scoring mark. Another trio of Pioneers finished in double scoring figures in
Ryan McCardle (Hurley, NY/Kingston) (12pts, 4-5FG, 4-5 3PT),
Keyaton Parks (Albany, NY/Green Tech High Charter) (10pts, 4-6FG, 2-3 FT), and
Isaiah Smith (Amsterdam, NY/Schalmont) (10pts, 5-5 FG). Parks led the Pioneers' rebounding efforts with nine rebounds, while
Jordan Cain (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee) followed with four. Thompson added to his evening with a team high four assists, while
Griffin Barasa (Clearwater, FL/Calvary Christian) and
Ben Wittman (Sherrill, NY/Vernon-Verona-Sherrill) each dished out a pair. On defense, Cain registered a team high pair of steals, while McCardle tallied a pair of blocks.
1K Day: Over the Pioneers' two game weekend,
Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy) became the 21st player in Utica University men's basketball program history to eclipse the 1,000 career point milestone, accomplishing the feat in just 77 career games. Thompson averaged 14 points per game in both tournament games, shooting .375 from the floor across two contests. Thompson was perfect in both games from the free throw line, going 8-8. Against Springfield. Thompson netted 11 points, while shooting .364 from the floor, .250 from three, and was 2-2 from the line. Thompson also got in on the action defensively with a pair of steals. Against Rochester, Thompson was good for 17 points on .385 shooting from the floor, going 6-6 from the free throw line. Thompson was also able to dish out a team high four assists.
A Balanced Attack: Several different Pioneers have been able to get in on the scoring action through the first three games of the season in
Ryan McCardle (Hurley, NY/Kingston),
Jordan Cain (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee),
Liam Teague (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) and
Keyaton Parks (Albany, NY/Green Tech High Charter). McCardle averaged 11 points per game in both weekend contests, and was a total spark for the Pioneer offense off the bench. The senior guard managed to shoot .667 from the floor across both weekend games, and was an impressive .857 from three point range. Against Springfield, McCardle was good for .571 from the floor and was a perfect 2-2 in his three point attempts. Against Rochester, McCardle was good for .800 from three point range, with all of his basket attempts being threes. Cain is averaging a team leading 15 points per game after putting together an impressive pair of outings in the first two games of the season. With 18 points against SUNY Delhi and 21 points against Springfield, the sophomore forward has been consistent, shooting .500 from the field through three games. Teague's 26 points through three games has also helped to lead the Pioneers, with Teague going .500 from the floor, as well as posting a team second best 5.5 rebounds per game. Parks has made his presence known early for the Pioneers, posting just over eight points per game while shooting .500 or better in each of the three games this season. Parks has not only been able to find the basket, he has been solid off the glass for Utica, registering a team leading 7.7 rebounds per game.
Scouting Morrisville: The Morrisville State Mustangs have gone 0-2 to open the season and have been outscored by opponents by over 18 points per game. A pair of Mustangs have led the Morrisville scoring efforts in Bruce Wingate and Jacob Works. Wingate has posted a team leading 11.5 points per game, while Works falls just behind, averaging 10. Leading the Mustangs in the rebounding efforts is AJ Brunett, who has averaged 4.5 rebounds per game, alongside Works and Joseph Guerrero who have each averaged four. Robert Wiggins has been a thorn in the sides of offenses through two games with a team high five steals, while Aviion Grainger has registered the most blocks with two. In last season's matchup against the Mustangs, the Pioneers took the matchup by a score of 82-59.
A Look at Keystone: The Keystone College Giants have opened the season 1-3 in the team's first two weeks of play. Leading the scoring for the Giants has been Jden Golding and Ahmodrion Jones. Golding leads the Giants after averaging 18 points per game, while Jones falls not too far behind with 16.5 points per game. Leading the Giants rebounding efforts has been Demetrius Thomas, who has averaged over 7.5 rebounds per game, followed by PJ Murphy who has averaged over six per game. Murphy has also been able to generate the most steals on the team through four games with six, while five Giants have been credited with a block a piece. This will be the first time that the Pioneers have squared off against Keystone.
Up Next: The team remains home to take on the SUNY Potsdam Bears. Tip off from Miga Court inside the Clark Athletic Center on Tuesday, December 2, is set for 6pm.
