PREVIEW: Basketball vs. Southwestern Adventist University (12/01)
MULTIMEDIA COVERAGE
Livestats (women's link, men's link)
Video (Both Games HD)
SOCIAL MEDIA
Dallas Twitter: @UDallasSports
Women's Basketball Twitter: @dallaswbb
Men's Basketball Twitter: @UDallasMBB
Facebook: University of Dallas Athletics
Instagram: udallassports
FIRST TIP
Both the University of Dallas basketball teams return home at the Maher Center on Thursday. For the UD men's basketball team, this will be its home opener after starting 1-4 on the early campaign.
The Dallas women's basketball team is 2-0 at the friendly confines and have won its past four games. The most recent was a 63-50 victory over Westminster College in the Rhodes College Classic.
On the men's side, the Crusaders have dropped four in a row. Last Saturday, Dallas was topped 76-66 by Pacific Lutheran University, who hosted the PLU Thanksgiving Classic. The past three seasons, UD has opened at home in December after spending the first half of the month on the road. The Crusaders are unbeaten the first two years and this marks the second time during that stretch they host SW' Adventist in the homecoming.
Fans can follow UD Athletics Student Assistant, Kevin McGuirk, on the UDCrusader Broadcast starting at 5:50. Play-by-play will be provided at select home women's and men's basketball games this season.
UD NOTABLES
(Women's Basketball)
- Seana Stoia (Tulsa, Okla.) leads the Crusaders offensively with 77 points and 15.4 points-per-game (ppg). The reigning Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Player of the Week notched her first pair of double-doubles in the last two contests.
- Last Sunday, Stoia matched a career-high 27 points and shot 10-of-12 from the field. She was perfect (5-5) from three and helped lift her to second in the league for season three-point field goal percentage (47.1). Stoia also ranks third in same category for United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA).
- Michelle DeCoud (Monument, Colo.) is closely behind UD's scoring leader with 75 points (15.0 ppg) amassed. The junior forward also is atop the squad in rebounds (60) and tied first in SCAC for defensive rebounds (43). Her rebounding average (12.0) ranks second in the USCAA. She has logged a team-high, three double-doubles and cracked scoring double figures in all five games.
- DeCoud has punctuated the defense with 14 blocked shots (SCAC best) and recently rose into sixth all-time for the program with 54 over her career.
- Holly Tonry (Seattle, Wash.) paces the conference and team in assists with 24. Last season's assist leader for UD combined for 17 in the Rhodes Classic, including a season-best nine against Rust College on Saturday. She broke into the school's record top three with 264 career dimes following the recent performances.
- Dallas has held opponents to 55.0 ppg to ranks second only behind an unbeaten Trinity University in the SCAC. During the four-game streak, the opposition has been held to 50 points or less in three of them.
(Men's Basketball)
- Michael Sarrat (Colleyville, Texas) leads the scoring with 62 points and 12.4 ppg. Darrius Colvin (Waco, Texas) is the other player averaging above 10 points with an 11.4-clip. The tandem are tied for most made three-pointers (9).
- Colvin is the leader on the team in rebounding with 36. Tom Kaiser (Nashville, Tenn.) and Prince Giadolor (Rockwall, Texas) have each grabbed 26. The duo respectively are averaging 9.8 and 9.2 points a contest.
- Kaiser is shooting well at 70 percent (21-30) from the field, and is tops in the SCAC and second in USCAA.
- Giadolor is third in the league with 20 assists. Lorenzo Gonzalez (San Antonio, Texas) follows with 19 and tied within top five of SCAC. Gonzalez is second in the conference for steals with 10 and 2.0 per game.
- Dallas has gone 31-13 at the Maher Center since 2012-13. Tomorrow's opener begins a six-of-eight stretch in Irving.
A LOOK AT THE OPPONENT
Southwestern Adventist University is located in Keene, Texas. The Knights are non-NCAA affiliated and will be playing the Crusaders for the seventh straight seasons. Both Dallas basketball teams are perfect during that stretch with 6-0 records. All-time the men's basketball team is 13-1 and the women's team is 16-0.
The most recent matchups were on the road last season. The women's side resulted in a 56-39 victory, where the Crusaders outscored their opponent in the first three quarters. DeCoud led all players with 18 and scored 12 in the first 10 minutes. The Knights return Silvia Bernard and Navimayr Lopez who scored seven points apiece.
The men's team required a game-winning three by Colvin to cap a 41-24 second half en route to a 76-74 final. That trey gave Colvin 18 points, who was one of two players with a double-double. He also had 11 boards. Kaiser led UD in points (20) and rebounds (15) for the other one. Giadolor (14) and Sarrat (11) also eclipsed double figures in points. For the Knights, the top three scorers in Travis Gagua (25), Jacolby Hardin-Crawford (24), and Kevin Squarzon (13) are all back. The trio combined for all nine made trifectas with three apiece.
Both teams were successful in 2014-15 at the Maher Center with triumphs surpassing a 20-point gap. The women's team prevailed 92-43 by matching a season best in scoring. Lindsey Gendron(Houston, Texas) had 16 points thanks to a 4-for-7 shooting result downtown. The men's won 85-62. Sarrat had 17 points with five made three-pointers.
SW' ADVENTIST ROSTERS (WOMEN'S, MEN'S)
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Both basketball teams for Dallas are on the road December 7 up the highway at Dallas Christian College. Tip-off for the women's game is at 5:30 p.m. After that, the two teams start conference play at Colorado College on Dec. 16.