QU Men's Basketball Hosts Pac-12 Foe Oregon State on Sunday at 1 PM
12/19/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Quinnipiac University (4-5, 0-2 MAAC) vs.
Oregon State University (8-2, 0-0 Pac-12)
Sunday, December 21, 2014 • 1:00 PM
TD Bank Sports Center • Hamden, Conn.
All-Time Series vs. OSU (DI): 0-1 (0-1)
Last Meeting: December 29, 2013 • L, 76-68
QU Last Five: 2-3
OSU Last Five: 5-0
- Quinnipiac Game Notes as a PDF
- Oregon State Basketball Homepage
- Live Stream: QuinnipiacBobcats.com
- Live Audio: AM 1220 WQUN
(PxP: Bill Schweizer • Color: Bill Mecca) - Live Stats: QuinnipiacBobcats.com
- Tickets: QuinnipiacBobcats.com
THE OPENING TIP
Quinnipiac's latest win couldn't have come at a better time for the Bobcats. For the first time in program history, Quinnipiac gears up to host a Pac-12 team on Sunday when the Oregon State Beavers come to town. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. at the TD Bank Sports Center.
ALL-TIME AGAINST OREGON STATE
Quinnipiac and Oregon State play the middle game of a three-game contract on Sunday. Last year, Quinnipiac traveled out to Corvallis and dropped the first meeting by a final score of 76-68. The Bobcats carried a lead deep into the second half of the game, but a late run by Oregon State left the Pac-12 foe with a 76-68 win at Gill Coliseum. The game marked the first time the Bobcats faced a member of the Pac-12 Conference.
QUINNIPIAC DOWNS LEHIGH
Nothing really went wrong for the Quinnipiac men's basketball team on Thursday night. Ousmane Drame and Justin Harris dominated the post, and Zaid Hearst flirted with a triple-double as Quinnipiac coasted to an 80-65 victory over Lehigh University at the TD Bank Sports Center. The win snapped at three-game slide for the Bobcats which was their longest losing streak since the 2012-13 season. It also broke a three-game skid against Lehigh – climbing back to the .500 mark (4-4) in the all-time series. Drame led the way with 19 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks. He picked up his 31st career double-double and trails Ike Azotam's record of 44 by 13 with at least 21 games to play. Drame went 7-for-17 from the field and 5-for-6 from the charity stripe. Harris finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds to collect his first career double-double in the win. He went 4-for-7 from the field and 3-for-5 from the free-throw line. In perhaps his best all-around game at Quinnipiac, Hearst was the x-factor. He finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and eight assists – nearly becoming the first player with a triple-double since James Feldeine did it back in 2010. He went 6-for-11 from the floor with his eight assists setting a new career high. All of this came in just 30 minutes of action as well.
SCOUTING THE BEAVERS
Oregon State enters Sunday's game with an 8-2 record, currently riding a five game winning streak. A combination of strong defense and efficient offense have the Beavers off to their second 8-2 start in the last three seasons. OSU extended its winning streak on Thursday night, defeating DePaul University, 90-59, in Corvallis. Victor Robbins (27) and Olaf Schaftenaar (21) both scored career highs in the victory, while Gary Payton II followed up a triple-double with 15 points, seven rebounds, five assists and five steals. Payton, a junior college transfer out of Las Vegas and the son of nine-time NBA All-Star Gary Payton, leads the team in nearly every statistical category. He's averaging 13.6 points, 9.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.8 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. Robbins brings in 11.5 points per game with Langs Morris-Walker averaging 10.5 points per outing. Similar to the Bobcats, defense and rebounding have factored in OSU's early success. The Beavers are holding teams to 34.2 percent shooting and have a plus 7.4 margin on the glass.
REBOUNDING DOMINANCE
Quinnipiac ranks second in the nation in total rebounding (46.3), offensive rebounding (17.9), and rebounding margin (14.9). Last year, the Bobcats led the nation in rebounding margin (11.8), offensive rebounds per game (16.7), and rebounds per game (45.4). Quinnipiac is the only team in the nation to finish first in all three categories in one season (2013-14) since QU joined the Division I ranks (1998-99).
REBOUNDING MARGIN
With Tom Moore at the helm, Quinnipiac has out-rebounded its opponent in 199 of his 230 games (.865) – including 71 of its last 73 games without losing the battle on the glass. In 85 of the 230 games, QU has posted a plus-10 or better rebounding margin, including 27 with plus-20 or better and a rebounding-margin high of 31 against Maine on Nov. 25, 2013. The Bobcats hold a remarkable 71-14 (.835) mark when holding a plus-10 edge and a 21-6 (.778) record with plus-20.
ANOTHER REBOUNDING STAT…
Quinnipiac posted 53 rebounds against Lehigh (12/18); marking the 28th time that QU corralled 50 rebounds in a game since joining Division I. In nine years prior to Tom Moore's arrival, QU had just five 50-rebound games, with only two coming against teams classified at Division I at the time of competition. The Bobcats have eclipsed 60 rebounds twice. Quinnipiac had a season high of 59 against La Salle – the 15th most of any team this season.
CRASHING THE BOARDS
Quinnipiac has three of the league's top 10 rebounders in Ousmane Drame (10.8), Justin Harris (7.6) and Zaid Hearst (6.2). Drame leads the MAAC in total rebounding and defensive rebounding (7.6) and is tied for first with Harris in offensive rebounding (3.2). Drame ranks seventh in the nation in rebounds and eighth in defensive rebounds per game.
YA BETTER BOX OUT
Quinnipiac hauled in 27 offensive rebounds against Lehigh (12/18) – its most since posting the same figure at Niagara (2/22/14) last season. The Bobcats matched a season high with 24 second chance points.
CALM, COOL AND COLLECTED
Quinnipiac leads the MAAC and ranks sixth in the nation in free-throw shooting percentage (.774). The Bobcats sank 28-of-32 (.875) against Vermont (11/30), the most since making 31 against Canisius (2/20/14) last season. Quinnipiac is 17-0 in the last three seasons when making 25 or more free-throws.
FREE-THROWS MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Quinnipiac went 19-for-21 (90.5 %) from the free-throw line against Albany (11/22), the best team percentage since making 92.5 percent (25-27) at Vermont (12/15/13) last year. Over the last six seasons, Quinnipiac is 61-15 (.803) when making more free-throws than its opponent, which included an 18-4 mark last year.
TOUGH TO LOSE IF YOU DON'T MISS
Quinnipiac made a season-high 54.9 percent of its field goal attempts against Vermont (11/30). The Bobcats have made at least 50 percent of their shots in 33 games over the last six seasons, posting a 28-5 (.849) mark when accomplishing that feat. Quinnipiac was 10-0 last year when making 45.0 percent of its field goal attempts.
STACKING UP IN NEW ENGLAND
Head Coach Tom Moore's .574 overall winning percentage ranks fifth-best among active Division I Coaches in New England, only trailing UConn's Kevin Ollie (.718), Harvard's Tommy Amaker (.670), Vermont's John Becker (.643), and Providence's Ed Cooley (.580). (Winning percentage among coaches with at least one season at respective institution)
HOME SUCCESS FOR MOORE
Since head coach Tom Moore took over in 2007, the Bobcats are 69-37 (.651) overall and 47-19 (.712) in conference games in Hamden. Quinnipiac is 21-6 in its last 27 home games at the TD Bank Sports Center. In the last six seasons, Quinnipiac is 56-22 (.718) overall and 36-11 (.766) against conference opponents at the Bank - which serve as the second best winning percentages among MAAC teams during that stretch. Furthermore, Quinnipiac has won 15 of its last 18 games at home against conference opposition (dating back to 2012-13).
BLOCK PARTY
Quinnipiac had 11 blocks against Yale (11/14), marking the most in a single game since joining Division I. The Bobcats blocked 10 shots twice last year and once in 2012-13. Quinnipiac leads the MAAC and is tied for 16th nationally in blocks per game (6.0).
LENDING A HELPING HAND
Quinnipiac posted a season-high 22 rebounds against Lehigh (12/18) – its most since dishing out 22 against Monmouth on Feb. 7, 2013. Quinnipiac is averaging 13.4 assists per game which ranks third among teams in the MAAC. Individually, Kasim Chandler (4.2) ranks third in the MAAC in assists per game with Zaid Hearst (3.2) and Evan Conti (3.0) ranking seventh and ninth, respectively.
THAT'S 1,000 FOR DRAME
Ousmane Drame scored his 1,000th career point against Vermont (11/30) to become Quinnipiac's 38th player to reach the milestone. He was also just the 11th player to do it since Quinnipiac joined the Division I ranks. He has 1,052 career points and 870 career rebounds, which is on pace for 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. Drame would be the third Bobcat to record 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in the last five years.
ALL-TIME BLOCKS LEADER
With his three blocks against Vermont (11/30), Ousmane Drame (158) surpassed Glenn Phillip '92 (146) for the most blocks in program history. Earlier this year, he matched his QU Division I program record of seven blocks against Yale (11/14), which he had also done twice before. He leads the MAAC and is tied for ninth in the nation in blocked shots per game (3.2).
DRAME GOES FOR 30
Ousmane Drame posted a career-high 33 points to go along with 13 rebounds and three blocked shots against Vermont (11/30). Drame ranks seventh in the MAAC in scoring (15.2) and has double-digits in eight of the nine games this year. Drame has seven career 20 point games and one career 30 point game.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE
Ousmane Drame collected his 31st career double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds against Lehigh (12/18). He is chasing Ike Azotam's '14 record of 44 career double-doubles. Drame is averaging 15.2 points and 10.8 rebounds per game – the only MAAC player averaging a double-double. He leads the league and is tied for third in the nation in double-doubles (7).
CLIMBING THE LADDER
Zaid Hearst (1,225) climbed higher among Quinnipiac's scoring leaders, surpassing Troy Adams '89 (1,214) for 20th place on the all-time list. In the Division I era, Hearst ranks eighth, staring down James Feldeine '10 (1,320) for the seventh position. He trails Robert Vacca '73 (1,265) for 19th place on the all-time list.
30 POINT PERFORMANCE
Zaid Hearst scored 30 points for the second time in his career against Yale (11/14). This time, he had a career-high 34 points going 12-for-20 from the field and 4-for-9 from long range. It was the most points scored by a Quinnipiac player since Hearst scored 33 against Canisius (1/30) last season. Hearst has two career 30-point games and 14-career 20 points games.
SCORING THE BASKETBALL
Zaid Hearst is averaging 18.2 points per game and shooting at a 45.7 percent clip. He ranks third in the MAAC and 42nd nationally in scoring. Hearst has reached double figures in 62 of his 104 games at Quinnipiac.
BEAST MODE
Zaid Hearst is averaging 38.1 minutes per game which ranks seventh nationally for the category. Hearst also played his 104th career game at Quinnipiac, and could challenge the most games ever played within the program (James Johnson, 127).
AN ALL-AROUND PERFORMANCE
Zaid Hearst flirted with a triple-double against Lehigh (12/18). He finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and eight assists – nearly becoming the first player with a triple-double since James Feldeine did it back in 2010. He went 6-for-11 from the floor with his eight assists setting a new career high. All of this came in just 30 minutes of action as well.
HARRIS CORRALLS FIRST DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Justin Harris compiled his first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds against Lehigh (12/18). This season, Harris netted a career-high 12 points against Yale (11/14) and then snagged a career best 12 rebounds against La Salle (11/18). He is averaging 8.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game, ranking among the league leaders in rebounding and blocked shots.
BUILT FORD TOUGH
James Ford, Jr. netted a career high 12 points against Lehigh (12/18). He went 5-for-9 from the field and 2-for-5 from long range in 15 minutes of play. He bumped his season averages to 3.6 points and 1.8 rebounds per game.
THE CONNECTICUT KID
Chaise Daniels finished with a career high six points against Lehigh (12/18). The Connecticut product filled the stat sheet with four rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block.
DON'T SLEEP ON HUTTON
Ayron Hutton grabbed career bests in points (5), assists (5) and rebounds (4) against Lehigh (12/18). Hutton earned 18 minutes by nights end while playing stellar defense.
HOT HAND FOR CONTI
Evan Conti totaled a career-high 22 points to go along with seven rebounds and four assists against Vermont (11/30). In 38 career starts, he is averaging 9.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
BENCHMARK
Quinnipiac posted 23 points off the bench against Lehigh (12/18) – a season high for the Bobcats. That was the biggest figure for the category since getting 31 from their reserves in the win at Maine last year.
CHIGHA CHIPS IN
Alain Chigha finished with a career-high seven points to go along with three rebounds and one steal against Vermont (11/30). Chigha is averaging 1.8 points and 2.2 rebounds in 11.4 minutes per game this year.
LESS FOULS, MORE WINS
The Bobcats are 14-6 (.700) over the last three seasons when their opponent makes fewer than 12 free-throws in a game. On the contrary, when the opposition has recorded 25 or more free throws made over the last three seasons, Quinnipiac is 0-7.
DEFENSE WINS
Head coach Tom Moore has repeatedly stressed the importance of keeping opposition to below 40 percent from the floor, and with good reason. Over the past six years, Quinnipiac is 59-19 (.756) when keeping its opponent to 40 percent or below from the field. Quinnipiac has held five of its seven opponents to 40 percent or below this season.
ON DECK
Quinnipiac enjoys some time off for the holiday before returning to the TD Bank Sports Center on Monday, Dec. 29 against Maine. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
