Men's Basketball | 2/20/2019 12:29:00 PM

PITTSFORD, N.Y. – For the fourth time in the last five seasons, the St. John Fisher College men's basketball team will vie for a conference title as the third-seeded Cardinals are set to battle the second-seeded Nazareth College Golden Flyers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday in the Empire 8 Championship semifinal.  Top-seeded Alfred University, which earned the right to host the four-team tournament, will take on fourth-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology at 5:30 p.m. in the night's other semifinal pairing with the winner of each meeting in the championship game at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Fans unable to make the journey to Alfred can still follow all of this weekend's action by clicking the links below:
  With just over 48 hours until game time, now's your opportunity to learn more about the field.

CHAMPIONSHIP PEDIGREE: Experience matters – especially in the postseason and Fisher certainly has some experience on its side.  Entering this weekend's championship, the Cardinals have won the Empire 8 crown eight times and have played in the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship 16 times overall.  Fisher last hoisted the Empire 8 Championship trophy in 2017 and went on to reach the Round of 32 in The Dance.  This year's roster is also well-versed in the postseason as its senior class has played in the conference tournament three times overall.

BATTLE OF THE BEAKS PART THREE: One of the most anticipated games of the season pits the Cardinals against the Golden Flyers.  This season was no exception as both regular season games came down to the wire.  In two previous meetings with Nazareth this year, Fisher has split with both visiting team coming out on top.  On January 22nd, Nazareth posted an 88-84 come-from-behind win before Fisher stormed out to a 91-81 triumph on February 8th.

DYNAMIC DUO: Batman and Robin, Simon and Garfunkle, peanut butter and jelly – there have been a lot of great pairings in the world, however, this year Sammy Robinson and Ryan Henderson stand above all others.  Through 25 games this season, the pair has combined to average nearly 40 points per game.  Robinson leads the conference in scoring at 19.1 points per game while Henderson ranks third at 18.7 points on average.  Both are capable of catching fire and taking over a game as Robinson will enter the postseason riding a streak of four straight games with at least 20 points while Henderson has eclipsed the 20-point plateau 10 times this season including a 35-point performance against Sage where he went 12-for-12 from the field and 11-for-11 from the free throw line. 

MILESTONE WATCH: Speaking of Henderson and Robinson – this has been a historic season so far.  Henderson became the 24th player in team history to reach 1,000 career points on Tuesday as he enters the weekend with 1,009 career points to his name.  Henderson also has a chance to make his mark on the single season charts as his .628 field goal percentage is in the top three all-time.  Robinson also has a chance to make history this season as the junior sits at 961 career points – just 39 away from the magic number.

WAIT...THEY'RE ONLY FRESHMEN?: The Cardinals have benefited tremendously from their freshmen class this season led by Brendan Trapper and Sean Williams.  Trapper is one of the Empire 8's top rookie this season as he finished the regular season averaging 5.8 points and 3.6 rebounds.  Trapper's strength, however, comes in his efficiency as the Buffalo native ranks fourth on the team in field goal percentage at .500.  Williams has proven to be one of the more electric players in the conference as his speed and agility is unmatched.  To date, Williams ranks third on the team in assists and leads the roster with 40 steals.

CAN YOU KEEP PACE?:  Perhaps Fisher's biggest strength lies in its abilities on the offensive end of the floor.  To date, the Cardinals lead the Empire 8 in scoring average at 85.0 points per game.  Fisher also leads the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (.373) and field goal percentage (.497).  What makes this team unique, however, is its knack for spreading the wealth.  Through 25 games, the Cardinals have racked up 433 assists, which is the most in the Empire 8.  Don't sleep on their defense either.   Head coach Mike Grosodonia II's squad ranks second overall in the Empire 8 in steals with 199 while its 76.3 points allowed per game ranks among the conference's leaders. 

SCOUTING NAZARETH: The Golden Flyers earned the second overall seed by virtue of an 18-7 record and a 12-4 Empire 8 standings.  Although both Fisher and Nazareth were tied in the conference standings, the Golden Flyers earned the head-to-head tiebreaker after splitting with top-seeded Alfred.  Entering the postseason, Nazareth ranks third in the conference in scoring average at 82.6 points per game while on the defensive end of the court, the Golden Flyers rank fifth overall at 76.6 points per contest.  The Golden Flyers don't typically make their bones from behind the 3-point arc, however, they get to the rim often and are currently leading the conference in free throw percentage at .744.

Head coach Kevin Broderick's team features a well-balanced offense led by Jake Burgio's 16.6 points per game and 8.0 rebounds.  Tyler Stenglein is averaging 15.6 points while Brendan Wind does a bit of everything at 10.6 points, 5.2 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game.    
   
SCOUTING ALFRED: This year's top overall seed and regular season champion, the Alfred University Saxons come into the weekend riding an 11-game winning streak.  Alfred ranks second in the conference in scoring average behind only Fisher while its 11.4 scoring margin leads all Empire 8 institutions.  Head coach Russell Phillips' team ranks second in field goal percentage (.471) while its .363 percentage from distance and 230 made 3-pointers are second overall in the Empire 8.  One Achilles heel that Alfred will need to sure up is its propensity to turn the ball over as the Saxons lead the conference at 16.8 per game this season.

Dom LaMorta leads the team and is second in the conference in scoring this season at 19.0 points per game while Sage Brown is nearly posting a double-double at 12 points and seven rebounds per game.  Elliot Bowen is one of the Empire 8's most dynamic freshman after averaging 10.8 points and five rebounds over 25 starts. 
   
SCOUTING STEVENS: The Ducks began their season with an eight-game winning streak, however, their pace cooled down the stretch as Stevens finished the season at 16-9 overall and 9-7 in the conference standings to earn the fourth and final seed.  Stevens ranks seventh overall in the Empire 8 in scoring average (75.1) while defensively, its 70.4 points allowed per game leads the conference by nearly three points.

Stevens, who lost its leading scorer just two games into the season, will look to Alec DiPietrantonio to shoulder the load.  Through 25 games, he has averaged a double-double with 13.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game.  Ryan Coffey and Kevin Florio have combined to average over 23.0 points per game this season while Frank Amari sets the tone at nearly three assists per game on the offensive end of the court.

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