Sacred Heart Heads to LIU Brooklyn for NEC Road Opener Thursday Night
1/7/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Game 16: Sacred Heart (7-8, 1-1 NEC) at LIU Brooklyn (4-9, 0-2 NEC)
January 8, 2015 7:00 pm - Steinberg Wellness Center (2,500) - Brooklyn, N.Y.
Setting the Scene... After playing the last three games in the William H. Pitt Center, including its first two Northeast Conference games of the season, the Sacred Heart University men's basketball game hits the road for the first time in 2015, as it heads to LIU Brooklyn for its NEC road opener on Thursday at 7 pm.
Last Time Out...Tevin Falzon's career night helped lead the Sacred Heart University men's basketball team to a, 75-66, victory over in-state rival Central Connecticut State on Monday night at the William H. Pitt Center. Falzon recorded career highs in points, rebounds, and blocks, with 22, 13, and 5, for his third career double double. It was the first time a Pioneer had five blocks in a game since Liam Potter had five on February 11, 2010. The win snapped a four game losing streak, as SHU improved to 7-8 overall and 1-1 in the Northeast Conference.
2014-15 Preseason NEC Poll... Sacred Heart was selected to finish tenth in the Preseason NEC Coaches poll, while LIU Brooklyn was chosen eighth.
1. St. Francis Brooklyn (6) 6. Bryant
2. CCSU (3) 7. Wagner
3 Robert Morris 8. LIU Brooklyn
4. Saint Francis U (1) 9. Fairleigh Dickinson
5. Mount St. Mary's 10. Sacred Heart
NEC Road Openers... This will be the 16th Northeast Conference road opener for Sacred Heart. SHU will be looking to get back to .500, as it currently owns a 7-8 record in NEC road openers, including losing two straight. The Pioneers have never lost three consecutive NEC road openers. This is the fourth time that Sacred Heart has had a two game losing streak, and in each of the previous three times, it has won.
Series History... Sacred Heart and LIU Brooklyn have met 27 times dating back to 1997, which was the only meeting in which SHU was a Division II member. LIU holds an 18-9 advantage in the all-time series, including winning the first seven before the Pioneers won three straight. They have had a strong advantage as of late as well, winning seven of the past eight dating back to 2010, as well as two straight. SHU's best winning streak in the series in three games, which has occurred twice, from 2003-04 and again in 2007-08. LIU Brooklyn holds the edge in Brooklyn and Fairfield, and was also victorious in the only time the two teams played in the postseason in 2012. The Blackbirds have been especially dominant in Brooklyn, where they are 11-3 all-time against the Pioneers, including winning the past five, as well as seven of eight dating back to 2005.
Last Meeting... The Sacred Heart men's basketball team led by two at halftime over the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds on February 25 at the Pitt Center, but the Blackbirds used a hot-shooting second half to win, 80-75. The Pioneers had four players score in double-figures, led by Evan Kelley's (Norwalk, Conn.) 15 points off the bench. Mostafa Abdel Latif (Alexandria, Egypt) and Phil Gaetano (Wallingford, Conn.) each scored 11 points. Abdel Latif had a team-high nine rebounds and Gaetano had nine assists. De'von Barnett (Waldorf, Md.) had 10 points and two steals. The Blackbirds quickly took back the lead to start the second half. Garrell Martin, Jason Brickman, and Troy Joseph scored LIU Brooklyn's first seven points to make the score 35-32 1:41 into the half. Steve Glowiak (New Britain, Conn.) got Sacred Heart within two with a three at the 14:51 mark, making the score 41-39 but the Pioneers went cold from there. A Landon Atterberry layup sparked a 9-0 Blackbirds run over the next 2:32 to put LIU Brooklyn ahead 50-39. LIU Brooklyn led by as much 14 in the second half before the Pioneers made a barrage of threes in the last four minutes to get as close as five. LIU Brooklyn shot 71.4% from the field in the second half to shoot 47.1% from the field for the game, while Sacred Heart shot 38%. The Pioneers outrebounded the Blackbirds 38-37 and committed just 12 turnovers to LIU Brooklyn's 18. Martin led all players with 26 points, while Brickman and E.J. Reed each scored 14 points. Brickman led all players with 12 assists, and Reed had a game-high 11 rebounds.
Scouting LIU Brooklyn... The Blackbirds come into today's contest losers of three straight, including their first two conference games by a combined ten points, to drop to 4-9 and 0-2 in the NEC. They have been extremely streaky on the year, losing the first six games before bouncing back to win four straight before the current skid. As a team, LIU ranks second in the conference in both rebounding average and fewest turnovers committed, averaging 37.6 and 12.2 respectively. However, they struggle shooting, ranking ninth in the conference with a 38.0 percent field goal percentage. Offensively, the Blackbirds spread their scoring, as only one player, Gerrell Martin, averages in double figures at 11.5 per game, including 1.9 three-pointers made each time out. However, they do have five players who average at least 8.5 points, which all ranks in the top 29 in the conference. Nura Zanna is the leading rebounding, coming into the matchup with an averaging 6.2, while Elvar Fridriksson and Martin Hermannsson are the leading assists man at 4.1 and 3.3, respectively, ranking fifth and sixth in the NEC. Fridriksson and Hermannsson are also second and third on the team in scoring, with averages of 9.6 and 9.0.
Common Opponent... Both teams have faced off against New Hampshire this season. SHU defeated the Wildcats, while LIU went1-1.
SHU Opponent LIU
W, 70-63 New Hampshire L, 72-56 / W, 73-72 (OT)
Career Numbers vs. LIU Brooklyn...
NAME (GP-GS) PPG RPG APG MPG
Gaetano (5-3) 5.4 2.4 8.6 30.8
Glowiak (5-3) 7.2 2.0 10.4 21.4
Kelley (4-2) 10.8 3.8 3.8 29.0
Barnett (1-1) 10 4 - 28
Falzon (2-0) 5 5.5 0.5 21.5
-Gateano is averaging six points, three rebounds, and ten assists in the last three meetings
-Glowiak is averagaing 11.3 points and three rebounds in the last three meetings.
-Kelley has scored 15 in the last two vs. the Blackbirds, and is also averaging 5.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 36.5 minutes of action.
Shooting Disparity...The matchup will feature the team with the best shooting percentage in the conference in SHU, at 45.6 percent, against the team with the second lowest field goal percentage in the NEC in LIU, at 38.0 percent.
Battle on the Boards... Both Sacred Heart and LIU Brooklyn rank in the top three in the NEC in rebounds per game. LIU ranks second averaging 37.6, while SHU is averaging 35.9.
Road Worries... The Pioneers have lost 12 of their last 14 on the road, including a 1-5 start this season. The only road win came on December
