AMCC MEN'S BASKETBALL GAME OF THE WEEK: HILBERT AT LA ROCHE

AMCC Men's Basketball Game of the Week
Hilbert College @ La Roche College
Saturday, February 6 at 2:00 p.m. 

The AMCC Men's Basketball Game of the Week features the second place Hilbert Hawks (17-4, 11-3 AMCC) traveling to Pittsburgh, PA to take on the fourth place La Roche Redhawks (9-11, 9-4 AMCC). Both teams are fighting in the final weeks of the regular season for a top seeding heading into the playoffs. In the teams' first meeting in Hamburg, Hilbert claimed a 95-82 victory.

Hilbert enters Saturday’s game on a four-game winning streak, averaging 94.5 points a game during that stretch.  The Hawks are currently in 2^nd place with an 11-3 AMCC record and are focused on returning to their sixth consecutive post-season tourney as one of the top seeded teams. Hilbert’s deep bench creates several offensive weapons that opponents must defend each night.  Six different Hawks have led the team in scoring through the 21 games played to date.  Senior forward Jerame Owens leads the charge with 56 steals as well as 16.6 points (6^th in the league) and 10.0 rebounds per game (3^rd in league).  Sophomore guard Jalen Smith (14.1 ppg) strikes from long distance as his 51 3-pointers rank him 3^rd in the league.  Senior guard Sean Weisansal chips in 13.9 points and distributes 4.1 assists. Junior guard Kirkland Ottey quarterbacks the team and senior forward Ryan Bradt cleans-up in the paint when called upon.  Both players drop just over nine points per game as Ottey gets to the foul line and Bradt clears the boards for 4.7 rpg. Hilbert continues to lead the league in points (87.1), field goal percentage (49.7) and blocks (4.0) per game.  They are ranked second with 40.2 rebounds per contest.

The Redhawks enter the game of the week fresh off a thrilling 68-67 win at D'Youville College, which clinched a berth in the AMCC Tournament. La Roche has won two straight games and also five of their past six. La Roche runs a ten man rotation. Much of the offense goes through reigning AMCC Newcomer of the Year, sophomore forward Arnes Bajgora, who averages 15.4 points and 6 rebounds per game. Swingmen freshman Ray Quan Phifer and sophomore Dion Etheridge do it all with both ranking among the team leaders in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Senior guard Torin Smith and junior guard Evan Bonnaure provide the Redhawks with veteran leadership and a strong perimeter game while freshman guard Zach Gould leads the team in assists. Junior forward Andy Abreu has stepped up his play recently and freshman guard Darrell Barron has been a spark off the bench. The Redhawks sport one of the top ranked defenses in the AMCC, giving just 73.3 points per game against AMCC competition. They also lead the conference in offensive rebounds and rank second in rebounding margin. La Roche will look to defend their home court and the Hawk's nest when they welcome Hilbert to campus on Saturday.