Daemen Men & Women Heading West

Both the men's and women's basketball teams at Daemen College are heading to the National Tournament.

The men's team did it the easier way, winning the AMC conference last Saturday over Wilberforce. The women lost their conference final game at Point Park but were able to get an at large bid to make it two consecutive years in the tournament.

The brackets were announced last night as the men's tournament is in Point Lockout, Missouri and the girls in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The Wildcats finished the year with an overall record of 20-10 (10-2) and shared the regular season conference title with Walsh who was ineligible for post-season play. The Lady Wildcats finished 23-7 (12-2). As noted, they fell to Point Park in the conference finals but they too won a share of the regular season title. The Dave Skolen coached team had a strong season racking up yet another 20 win season which pushed them over top and into the field of 32.

The men were led by senior Dom Mazzochi who averaged 15.2 ppg and 5.8 rpg. Not far behind him was junior forward Jim Regan who averaged 12.8 ppg and an impressive 15.3 ppg in conference games. Junior guards Casey Sheehan and Mark Coppola were catalysts for the Wildcats as both were able to open up holes in defenses and create for their teammates. Coppola led the team in assists with over five per game. Freshman Gerald Beverly has a bright future ahead of him as he was key off the bench for the Wildcats. His size and strength will be a force for the next few years. Junior guard Devon Dawson, one year removed from an Achilles injury which sidelines him for the entirety of the 2010-2011 campaign came back strong and was a key contributor on coach Don Silveri's lethal bench.

Ellie Allen and Chelsea Andorka were big performers and stepped up in many key spots throughout the year for the Lady Wildcats. They averaged 14 and 12 points respectively. Both were named AMC player of the week numerous times. Alongside Allen and Andorka were key starters such as Courtney Donovan and Samantha Stanfield. Donovan, who showed she can play inside as well as step out and shoot from range had a great senior season. Stanfield, in her first year as a starter was a clutch shooter for the team all throughout the season.

The men will play their opening round game Thursday March 8th at 8:30 am CST against Bellevue (Neb.) who is ranked seventh in the latest coaches top 25 poll.

The women, a seven seed in the tournament will play the second seeded Morningside (Iowa) (25-8) at 7:30 pm CST on Wednesday