FAIRFIELD, Conn. — After opening Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play on the road at Mount St. Mary's on Wednesday, the Sacred Heart University men's basketball team returns to the Pitt Center on Sunday, December 7, to host Iona at 2:00 p.m.

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OPENING TIP

• Sacred Heart and Iona meet for just the sixth time in series history. This is the lone matchup between the Pioneers and Gaels this season.
• SHU opens MAAC play 1–0 for the second straight year after an 87–80 win at Mount St. Mary's on Wednesday, marking its first road victory of the season. Iona is coming off an 89-68 conference-opening loss against Quinnipiac on Friday evening.
• Dashon Gittens (23) and Abdou Yadd (21) led four Pioneers in double figures at the Mount, with both securing career-high point totals.
• Gittens (16.6) and Anquan Hill (15.6) both rank in the MAAC's top 10 in scoring—Gittens sits third, Hill sixth.
• SHU ranks third in the conference in scoring offense (79.8 PPG) and leads the MAAC in three-pointers made per game (11.9).
• Four Pioneers are averaging double figures: Gittens (16.6), Hill (15.6), Ralph-Beyer (10.7), and Yann Farell (10.0).
• SHU was picked third in the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll and led the league with three preseason All-MAAC selections: Hill – First Team, Mekhi Conner – Second Team, Nyle Ralph-Beyer – Third Team
• Sacred Heart returns nine players from last year's roster.The team welcomes two transfers (Gittens, and Farell) and four first-year players.Sacred Heart enters its second season in the MAAC after a strong debut campaign that included a seventh-place finish and a conference tournament win over Fairfield to advance to the quarterfinals.
• The Pioneers feature three student-athletes from Africa: Fallou Gueye, Farell, and Abdou Yadd.
• Sacred Heart is celebrating its 60th season of men's basketball.
• Head coach Anthony Latina enters his 13th season leading the program.

SCOUTING IONA   

• Iona enters the game with a 6–3 record and an 0–1 mark in MAAC play after suffering a loss in its conference opener, 89-68 against Quinnipiac on Friday at home.
• The Gaels were picked sixth in the MAAC Preseason Poll.
• With a new head coach, Iona's roster features 15 newcomers and just two returners from last year's squad.
• Four Gaels are averaging double figures: CJ Anthony (15.9), Lamin Sabally (13.4), Kosy Akametu (13.2), and Toby Harris (10.9).
• Sabally (8.4) and Akametu (6.5) lead the team on the boards.

LAST TIME OUT

• Sacred Heart opened MAAC play with its first road win of the year, 87-80 over Mount St. Mary's on Wednesday.
• Gittens' 23 points marked a career high. He has scored in double figures in every game this season, including two 20+ point performances.
• Yadd posted a career-high 21 points on 7–15 shooting and 5–8 from deep.
• The Pioneers outrebounded Mount St. Mary's 38–29, including 15 offensive rebounds.
• Sacred Heart's bench outscored the Mount 30–22, led by Yadd's 21.
• Conner recorded five or more assists for the fourth straight game.

INSIDE THE RANKINGS

• Sacred Heart's offense ranks third in the MAAC at 79.8 points per game.
• The Pioneers lead the conference with 95 made three-pointers, averaging 11.9 per game, tied for eighth nationally. SHU also sits tied for 14th in the country in three-point attempts per game (32.2).
• Gittens is third in the MAAC in scoring at 16.6 ppg.
• Hill is sixth in scoring at 15.6 points per game and is 10th in the league in rebounding (5.9 rpg).
• Gittens owns the sixth-best field-goal percentage in the conference at 58.1% and ranks fourth in the league in steals at 2.4 per game
• Nyle Ralph-Beyer (.484) and Yann Farell (.447) both rank inside the MAAC's top 10 in three-point percentage and are 25th and 28th in the nation, respectively.
• Conner ranks second in the conference with 5.0 assists per game and holds the second-best assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.5.