Men's Basketball Set For Semi-Final Showdown Thursday Evening As 15th-Ranked Skyhawks Battle Bryant For Berth In Northeast-10 Title Game

March 1, 2006

2005-2006 Stonehill College Men's Basketball

7:00 p.m. EST

THE QUEST CONTINUES: Stonehill continues its quest for its fourth Northeast-10 Conference tournament title this evening as the second-seeded and 15th-ranked Skyhawks entertain the sixth-seeded and 2005 NCAA national runner-up Bryant Bulldogs in semi-final round play of the 2006 league championships. Stonehill advanced to the semi-finals for the first time in seven years Monday evening with a thrilling 70-67 victory over seventh-seeded Southern New Hampshire in quarterfinal round action here at Merkert Gymnasium, as senior Chris Kraus (Markham, Ont./Markham District) drained a three-pointer from the left wing as time expired to break the eighth deadlock of the night between the teams. Kraus finished with a game-high 18 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals in the win for the Skyhawks, which also received 12 points and seven boards from senior co-captain Sean Nelson (Milford, Mass./Milford) as well as 11 points each from senior Marquis Taylor (Los Angeles, Calif./Naval Prep) and freshman Nick Smith (Colonia, N.J./Colonia). Junior Lance Clarke (Somerville, Mass./Cambridge Rindge & Latin) chipped in with nine points for Stonehill, which took advantage of 16 Penmen turnovers and held a 14-6 scoring edge at the foul line in claiming their first post-season triumph since March 1999. Bryant advanced to tonight's semi-final round with a 63-61 come-from-behind victory over third-seeded UMass Lowell in another quarterfinal round contest played Monday evening at Costello Gymnasium in Lowell, Mass.

FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK: Freshman Nick Smith (Colonia, N.J./Colonia) was named on Monday as the Northeast-10 Conference Freshman of the Week for the third time this season for his efforts in Stonehill's regular season ending 80-55 victory at Assumption on February 21st. Smith netted a career-high 21 points, including a career-best five three-pointers, and grabbed five rebounds in the triumph for the Skyhawks, connecting of 6-of-11 shots from the field overall.

HONOR ROLL HONOREE: Freshman Matt Hall (Springfield, Mass./Springfield Central) earned a spot on the Northeast-10 Conference weekly honor roll on Monday for his efforts in Stonehill's regular season ending 80-55 victory at Assumption on February 21st. Hall matched his career-high with 14 points in just 16 minutes of action, connecting on 5-of-8 attempts from the floor for the contest.

STONEHILL IN THE NORTHEAST-10 CHAMPIONSHIPS: Stonehill brings a 15-19 (.441) mark in 34 previous Northeast-10 tournament outings into tonight's match-up, as the Skyhawks won the first two conference tournament titles in 1981 and 1982 and added its third league playoff crown in 1989. Stonehill has advanced to the semi-final round for the first time since 1999. Monday's quarterfinal round triumph over Southern New Hampshire was the Skyhawks' first post-season triumph since March 1999 when then eighth-seeded Stonehill knocked out top-seeded Saint Anselm in the 1999 Northeast-10 quarterfinals.

THE SEASON SERIES: Stonehill swept both meetings from Bryant during the course of the regular season, as the Skyhawks posted a 63-51 triumph over the Bulldogs on December 10th at Merkert Gymnasium before notching a 77-63 victory on January 7th at the Chace Athletic Center in Smithfield, R.I. Sean Nelson led four players in double figures with 22 points in the December win for Stonehill, while Marquis Taylor has recorded a pair of double-doubles against Bryant to date, including 22 points and 10 boards in the January victory for the Skyhawks.

THE ALL-TIME SERIES: Stonehill and Bryant are meeting for the 61st time this evening, and the Skyhawks hold a 36-24 advantage over the Bulldogs in the all-time series between the two schools. Stonehill has won the last four meetings with Bryant over the course of the last two seasons.

THE SKYHAWKS: Taylor leads Stonehill in scoring and rebounding at 15.9 ppg and 6.6 caroms per contest, while Nelson follows at 13.4 ppg and adds 5.7 rpg. Kraus is next at 10.9 ppg and leads the Northeast-10 in both assists (5.6) and steals (2.3), while Clarke is also in double figures for the Skyhawks at 10.6 ppg to date.

THE BULLDOGS: Senior John Williams leads Bryant in scoring at 20.3 ppg, while sophomore Jon Ezeokoli follows at 12 ppg. Junior Chris Burns is next at 11.8 ppg, while junior Dan Hammond paces the Bulldogs on the boards at 6.3 caroms per contest.

HEAD COACH DAVID McLAUGHLIN: David McLaughlin is in his third season as Head Men's Basketball Coach at Stonehill College. A 1997 graduate of Colby, McLaughlin has guided the Skyhawks to a 47-25 (.653) mark during his tenure after previously serving as an assistant coach, and he has led Stonehill to back-to-back 20-win campaigns for the first time in 24 years. McLaughlin, who is assisted by Derik Malone (Babson '91), Josh Meyer (Wesleyan '00) and Mike Harding (Bowdoin '03), sports a 1-1 post-season mark and is 4-0 during his career against Bryant.

HEAD COACH MAX GOOD: Max Good is in his fifth season as Head Men's Basketball Coach at Bryant University. A 1969 graduate of Eastern Kentucky, Good led the Bulldogs to the 2005 NCAA national championship game and has compiled a 93-60 (.608) mark in Smithfield while posting a career collegiate mark of 202-198 (.505) in 14 seasons. Good, who is assisted by DeShon Gaither, Dwayne Pina, Tom Sherman and Mario Correia, is 4-4 during his career against Stonehill.

TWENTY-TWENTY VISION: Stonehill has posted back-to-back 20-win campaigns for the first time in 24 years, as the Skyhawks also won 20 contests last season under David McLaughlin's tutelage. Stonehill last posted back-to-back 20-win seasons during the 1980-81 and 1981-82 campaigns under the late Tom Folliard, as those squads posted identical 21-9 marks en route to claiming two straight Northeast-7 championships.

TWENTY-TWO VISION: Stonehill's 22 victories to date ranks as the second highest single-season total in school history, matching the mark of the 1997-98 squad while standing one shy of the school record of 23 wins set during the 1988-89 campaign.

PRE-SEASON PROGNOSTICATION PREDICAMENT: For the second straight season, Stonehill has proven the pre-season Northeast-10 prognostications wrong, as the Skyhawks finished tied for first in the final league standings after being picked for eighth place in the pre-season coaches poll. Stonehill was picked 14th in the 2004-2005 pre-season poll and finished tied for third.

POLL POSITION: Stonehill is once again the only school to have both its men's and women's basketball squads ranked in their respective Division II national polls, as the women's squad is ranked 24th in this week's WBCA national poll. The Stonehill women have been ranked as high as ninth this season, while the men's team has been rated as high as 10th.

NATIONAL RANK AND FILE: Stonehill moved up eight spots to the #15 position in this week's National Association of Basketball Coaches Division II national poll released on Tuesday, as the Skyhawks have been ranked as high as 10th nationally this season. Prior to December 20th, the last time Stonehill appeared in the NABC Top 25 came in March 1998 during the Skyhawks' NCAA "Sweet Sixteen" campaign. Here is the February 28th NABC Division II poll:

RankSchool (first place votes)RecordPointsPrevious Rank

1Delta State (8)26-12002

2Saint Joseph's27-21923

3Virginia Union22-31834

4Montevallo24-31735

5Fort Hays State25-21731

6tGrand Valley State24-31488

6tWinona State23-41487

8Findlay24-313910

9Western Washington21-413512

10Southwest Baptist23-412018

11Southern Indiana Edwardsville25-511217

12Barton22-31109

13Tarleton State22-51066

14Northern State23-48920

15Stonehill22-58623

16Alderson-Broaddus21-56913

17Seattle Pacific21-55716

18Shippensburg22-55019

19Minnesota State-Mankato21-64114

20Columbus State22-738NR

21Alabama-Huntsville21-63722

22tArmstrong Atlantic State21-63615

22tSouthern Illinois Edwardsville21-63611

24Central Missouri State21-629NR

25Mount Olive22-524NR

REGIONAL RANK AND FILE: Stonehill continues to hold the stop spot in the seventh NCAA Division II Northeast Regional rankings released by the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Committee on Wednesday, as the Skyhawks have now held the top spot in the region on four occasions. The NCAA Northeast Regional rankings, with records listed through games played as of February 26th, are as follows:

1.Stonehill21-521-5

2.Bentley20-718-7

3.Saint Anselm19-719-7

4.Bryant20-820-8

5.Adelphi23-422-4

6.Massachusetts-Lowell19-819-8

7.Bridgeport21-921-8

8.Queens (New York)20-720-7

9.Saint Rose19-919-9

10.Bloomfield16-916-9

REGIONAL PROWESS: Stonehill is 6-3 against regionally-ranked teams this season, as the Skyhawks swept a pair of contests from Saint Anselm and Bryant while splitting two games with UMass Lowell and notching a single triumph over Saint Rose.

THEY CALL IT THE STREAK: Stonehill's recent 12-game winning streak matched the longest such skein in school history, as the 1970-71 squad also posted 12 consecutive victories during that campaign. The Skyhawks have posted a 12-game win streak and an eight-game win skein under David McLaughlin's guidance in the last calendar year alone.

CONFERENCE RANK AND FILE: In conference statistics released through games of February 25th, Stonehill leads the Northeast-10 in scoring defense (63.2 ppg), field goal percentage defense (.411), three-point field goal percentage defense (.309), assists (16.88 apg), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.23) and defensive rebounds (26.27 drpg) and is rated second in scoring margin (+8.4). Mike Lauricella continues to lead the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.30), while Chris Kraus is tops in both assists (5.73 apg) and steals (2.35 spg). Nick Smith leads the conference in three-point field goal percentage (.466) as well for the Skyhawks.

NCAA RANK AND FILE: Stonehill is ranked in six team categories in the latest NCAA Division II national statistical leaders through games of February 26th, as the Skyhawks are 13th in free throw percentage, 20th in won-lost percentage, 22nd in scoring defense, 30th in field goal percentage defense, 35th in three point field goals per game and 44th in scoring margin. Individually, Chris Kraus is ranked 18th in assists and 27th in steals per game.

MORE RANK AND FILE: Five Stonehill athletic teams have now cracked the top 10 in their respective sports during the 2005-2006 academic year: Field Hockey (#4), Men's Cross Country (#9), Men's Basketball (#10) and Women's Basketball (#9). The defending national champion Skyhawk women's lacrosse team has been picked as the top-ranked team in Division II circles as well in the Lacrosse Magazine pre-season poll.

GENERATION GAP: Stonehill's 14-1 start to the season was the Skyhawks' best in 56 years, as the first Stonehill was 15-1 under Head Coach George Sullivan during the 1949-50 season.

AYE, AYE CAPTAINS: Seniors Mike Lauricella (Norwood, N.J./Don Bosco) and Sean Nelson (Milford, Mass./Milford) have been named as co-captains for the 2005-2006 edition of Stonehill men's basketball. Lauricella, who also served as a Skyhawk captain last season, averaged 2.3 points and 2.2 rebounds off the bench last season, while Nelson added 5.6 points and 3.4 caroms per contest in a reserve role as well last winter for Stonehill.

BIG D-MAC ATTACK: After winning just 14 games in a two-and-a-half year stretch, Stonehill has posted a 42-13 (.764) mark in its last 55 contests under David McLaughlin's tutelage dating back to November 2004.

A GRAND ENTRANCE: Marquis Taylor became the 30th player in Stonehill men's basketball history to reach the 1,000 career point plateau with a 15-point performance in the Skyhawks' 82-64 win over Assumption on January 10th. Dezmond Morgan was the last Skyhawk to reach that plateau, as he did so last season ironically in a January match-up with Assumption. Here are the members of Stonehill's 1,000 Point Club:

1.Mike Allocco2,3991969-73

2.Jon Cronin2,3011988-92

3.Bob Reitz2,2181979-83

4.Bill Zolga1,8221977-80

5.Mike Barros1,6791984-88

6.George Peterson1,6041964-67

7.David Donnelly1,4981995-99

8.Ed Grzembski1,4861987-91

9.Brian Cronin1,4741985-89

10.Dick Munson1,4481962-65

11.Leo Denault1,3981958-61

12.Paul Sincero1,3681950-53

13.Chris Butler1,3621991-95

14.Ron Richards1,3021965-68

15.Bob Duarte1,2791983-87

16.Tony Fiore1,2551981-85

17.Jason Jacobsen1,2271988-92

18.MARQUIS TAYLOR1,2242002-06

19.Kyle Quimby1,1851999-03

20.Art Horan1,1211968-71

21.Dezmond Morgan1,1192001-05

22.Derrik Jerman1,098 1989-93

23.Henry Jackson1,0901970-73

24.Jamal Gomes1,0821991-95

25.Howie Bain1,0631971-74

26.Lorenzo Lapido1,0611990-94

27.Adrian Machado1,0431992-96

28.Rollie Hollins1,0211971-74

29.Charlie Simonds1,0111973-77

30.Justin LoVerme1,0071997-01

SKYHAWKS ON THE WORLD WIDE LEADER: Matt Hall's 75-foot buzzer beater just before the half of the February 15th victory over Southern New Hampshire was featured on the February 20th edition of ESPN's "College Game Night" program as part of its "Gym Gems" sequence. The nightly program, hosted by Dave Revsine, Digger Phelps and Len Elmore, included four "Gym Gems" clips.

SKYHAWK TALK: Stonehill has won both of its post-season match-ups with Southern New Hampshire following Monday's triumph, as the Skyhawks notched an overtime victory over the Penmen in the 1998 NCAA Northeast Regional Semi-Finals as wellSmith and Hall combined for nearly half (35) of Stonehill's offensive output (80) in the February 21st win over AssumptionStonehill has won four of its last five outings with American International dating back to January 2005Chris Kraus notched his third career double-double with 16 points and 10 assists in the February 7th setback at UMass LowellThe February 11th win at Franklin Pierce was Stonehill's third in the last four meetings with the RavensAll three of Stonehill's series victories against Saint Rose have come during David McLaughlin's tenure as head coach Taylor matched his career-high effort in the scoring column with 26 points in the February 1st win over Pace, as he also netted 26 points against the Setters in an overtime victory last season in PleasantvilleThe January 16th win over Saint Anselm was Stonehill's first over the Hawks at Merkert Gymnasium since December 9, 1997 and gave the Skyhawks a regular season series sweep of Saint Anselm for the first time since the 1990-91 campaignStonehill has won six straight in the series with Saint Michael's dating back to January 2003Clarke hit the 20-point plateau in a game for the second time this season in the January 10th triumph over Assumption, as he matched his career-high set on opening night (November 18th) against MolloyThe Skyhawks have assisted on over two-thirds of their field goals on the season, notching 450 assists on 686 field goals through 27 gamesThe Skyhawks have led at the half in 20 of their 27 outings to date Prior to last season, Stonehill's last 20-win campaign came in 1997-98 when the Skyhawks won the Northeast-10 regular season crown en route to a berth in the NCAA Division II "Sweet Sixteen" The Skyhawks have eclipsed the 80-point plateau on 22 occasions in McLaughlin's 71-game tenure as head coach.

SKYHAWKS ON THE WEB: For the second straight season, Stonehill basketball can be accessed on the world wide web through Free Teamline, a service of TRZ Sports of Kent, Ohio. A total of 15 Skyhawk regular season men's basketball broadcasts will be available throughout the 2005-2006 season via Free Teamline by accessing the official Stonehill Athletics website at www.stonehillskyhawks.com, powered by Presto Sports. Returning to call all of action of Stonehill basketball once again this winter is the tandem of Charlie Bergeron and Brian Buckley, who have served as the voices of Skyhawk Basketball since 1998.

WHO'S NEXT: The winner of tonight's Stonehill-Bryant semi-final round contest advances to the 2006 Northeast-10 Conference Championship game on Saturday, March 4th at 1:00 p.m. EST to square off with the winner of tonight's other semi-final round match-up between top-seeded Bentley and fourth-seeded Saint Anselm. The 2006 Northeast-10 championship game will be played at the home of the highest remaining seed, with the winner earning the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Division II championship.