AMHERST, Mass - For over a year, the Plattsburgh State men's basketball team has bided its time and waited for another shot at Amherst College - the team that ended the Cardinals' 2012-13 season in the second round of the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament en route to its second national championship.
On Friday night, the Cardinals (24-5) will get their second chance at the Lord Jeffs.
All the members of the Plattsburgh State men's basketball team of a season ago - as well as a trio of additions - will aim to take down the No. 7 ranked Lord Jeffs (25-3) in the third round of the 2014 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. in the LeFrak Gymnasium on the campus of Amherst College.
With just 16 teams remaining in the national tournament, Amherst was selected as one of the four sectional sites around the nation for the remaining teams to compete at. Prior to the Cardinals' clash with the Lord Jeffs, the first sectional bout will pit the No. 22-ranked Richard Stockton Ospreys (25-4) against the Morrisville State Mustangs (21-8) at 5:30 p.m. The winners of the two sectional semifinals will duke it out at 7 p.m. on Saturday with a trip to the final four on the line.
Tickets for both section semifinal bouts will go on sale directly outside LeFrak Gymnasium at 4 p.m. on Friday. Prices are $7 for adults and general admission and $4 for senior citizens, students and children. All kids under the age of two will be admitted free of charge.
Those who are unable to make the trip to LeFrak Gymnasium on the campus of Amherst College can follow all the sectional semifinal action via live stats and a live video feed - both of which are made possible by the efforts of the Amherst sports information department. Links to both services have been provided below.
Plattsburgh State game notes
Live stats
Live video
PLATTSBURGH STATE (24-5)
Even a loss in the SUNYAC Tournament Championship Finals wasn't enough to slow down the Cardinals, who made their sixth appearance in the NCAA Tournament in the Tom Curle coaching era and second in as many seasons. Plattsburgh State has already embarked on quite a ride in order to make it to the sectional round for the third time in program history.
During their 2014 NCAA Tournament debut, Plattsburgh State left the number-one ranked scoring defense in all of Division III basketball in tatters. The Cardianls routed first-round foe MIT 76-53 in Memorial Hall last Friday night behind a career-high 27 points from junior forward Ezra Hodgson. The Rindge, N.H., product was devastating from beyond the arc, splashing six of his nine attempts in the one-sided tilt.
The following evening, the Cardinals secured their trip to the third round of the tournament by picking up a 70-60 triumph over Eastern Connecticut State in Memorial Hall. Senior John Perez starred for the Cardinals in their second-round clash by amassing a game-high 21 points to go along with a career-best 15 rebounds. On the season, Perez ranks second on the team in scoring (12.9 points per game) and leads the Cardinals with a rebounding average of 9.3 per game that also ranks as the fourth-best in the 10-team SUNYAC.
As a matter of fact, Plattsburgh State hasn't had to put much reliance in one single player throughout the course of their entire season because of the lengthy list of proven scorers on the squad. Nine players have come up with team-highs in points during the Cardinals' 29 tilts so far and four members of the 13-man roster are averaging at least 10.9 points per game.
That being said, senior Chris Manning makes the decision on who gets the basketball when the Cardinals are in their offensive sets. The Baldwin, N.Y., product leads the SUNYAC in both assists (5.0) and steals (3.0) per game. The latter figure is the fifth-best in all of Division III basketball.
Manning, Perez and fellow senior Shavar Fields all secured spots on the All-SUNYAC Second Team while junior Shamoy McIntosh (12.9 ppg) was selected to represent the Cardinals on the All-SUNYAC Third Team. Saving his best basketball for the NCAA Tournament, Hodgson has scored at least 16 points in three of the previous four Plattsburgh State games.
The Cardinals are well-schooled on how to hit - and defend - the three-point shot. Their team long ball percentage of 39.6-percent and 8.4 triples per game lead the SUNYAC as does their three-point field goal percentage defense (27.4-percent).
NO. 7 AMHERST (25-3)
No strangers to postseason play, the Lord Jeffs are making their 16th appearance in the NCAA Tournament under the direction of 37th-year head coach Dave Hixon who has amassed nearly 720 triumphs during his time guiding the Lord Jeffs. Hixon has led his squad to a pair of national championships - the most recent of which came last season.
All but one of the Lord Jeffs' starting five average as least 12.5 points per game and two-time reigning NESCAC Player of the Year Aaron Toomey leads the charge. The senior out of North Carolina is pumping in 20.3 points per game - the second-highest figure in the conference - while leading the Lord Jeffs in assists (177) from the point guard position.
Combining with Toomey to create what is arguably the best backcourt in the Division III ranks is sharpshooter Connor Green. His points per game average of 18.2 is the fourth-highest in the NESCAC while shooting at a 35.0-percent clip from beyond the arc.
No team has succeeded in defeating the Lord Jeffs on their home floor this season, and Amherst's average margin of victory stands at 13.5 points per game. In their second-round NCAA Tournament matchup with York (N.Y.) College, the Lord Jeffs had to overcome some sloppy play early on to get past the CUNYAC-representative Cardinals 63-51. The 63 points represented Amherst's lowest point total since scoring 53 in the national semifinals against North Central last season.
Freshman David George has held up his end of the bargain as a staunch defender in the painted area. The Philadephia, Pa., product leads the Lord Jeffs with 69 blocked shots. A second-team All-NESCAC player, senior Tom Killian is averaging 14.8 points and a team-leading 6.3 rebounds per game.
