NDC Gets Back To Winning Ways Saturday.

The Notre Dame College Falcons followed up easily the worst offensive performance they have had on Thursday night with one of their best of the year on Saturday afternoon. The Falcons went on to a 109-91 win over lowly Urbana to close the regular season. With the win the Falcons improve to 18-10 overall and 12-10 in the Mountain East Conference. The Blue Knights fell to 2-25 and 1-21 in the MEC.
  The Falcons had four players score 20 points or more on Saturday. Tyree Gaiter followed easily his worst offensive output of the season Thursday night, with a triple-double on Saturday. Gaiter poured home 32 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and also had 10 assists- Ja'Sean Lewis posted a second consecutive double-double (26 points and 14 rebounds-) Will Vorhees scored 25- while Kyauta Taylor bounced back from a poor shooting night on Thursday to score 22.  Taylor also added eight rebounds and five assists.  The Falcons shot 58  percent from the floor in the game. They shot at a 55 percent clip (11-20) from the 3-point line. They shot 26 of 44_from the free throw line (59 percent.)  NDC won the rebounding battle 49 to 41 . They had 24 assists and turned the ball over 16 times.
  The Blue Knights had five  players tally double figures on the day.  Carlos Jackson led the way with 26 points- Dimitri Abner scored 16- Jahmere Howze scored 14- while Justin Johnson and Colin Curran each scored 11.  Urbana shot 41 percent (31-75) as a team- they only shot 24 percent (8-33) from the 3-point line- while shooting at a 68 percent clip (21-31) from the free throw line.  The Blue Knights had 16 assists and 13 turnovers.
   The Falcons started the game on a 19-5 run and never looked back.  They led by double digits the entire opening half. At the half NDC would hold a 11 point advantage (48-37.)
  Coming out of the locker room the Falcons would stretch the lead out to 17 after a Lewis 3-pointer.  After that the game was never in doubt. NDC closed out the regular season in sixth place in the MEC. They will host #11 seed Virginia Wise at Murphy Gym Tuesday night. Tip time is set for 7 PM.
MEC Conference Tournament First Round 3/1:
#12 Urbana @ #5 Charleston
#11 UVA-Wise@ #6 Notre Dame College
#10 West Virginia State@ #7 West Virginia Wesleyan
#9 Glenville State @ #8 Shepherd

Defense Ignites Top Ranked Cardinals Win Over NDC.

On a night when a capacity crowd filled up Murphy Gymnasium the top ranked Cardinals of Wheeling Jesuit used defense to shut down the high powered Notre Dame College offense into it's worst output of the season. When all was said and done it ended up a 75-55 win for Wheeling Jesuit. The Cardinals improve to 27-1 overall and 20-1 in the MEC. The Cardinals, winner's of 22 straight set up a showdown at #2 West Liberty on Saturday. NDC with the loss falls to 17-10 overall and 11-10 in the MEC.
  NDC was led by 20 points and seven rebounds from Will Vorhees- Ja'Sean Lewis tallied a double-double (12 points and 14 rebounds-) while Tyree Gaiter added 10 points and seven assists.  NDC shot 32 percent as a team from the floor (20-63-) they shot just 18 percent (5-28) from the 3-point line- while they struggled at the foul line, shooting 59 percent (10-17.)  The Falcons had 14 assists and 15 turnovers.
  The Cardinals were led by Mentor High School product Justin Fritts who drained five 3-pointer's en route to his 23 points.  Eric Siefert posted a double-double (13 points and 15 rebounds-) Haywood Highsmith netted 11- and Kyle Ritz contributed 10.  The Cardinals shot 39 percent from the floor 29-74-) 31 percent from the 3-point line (9-29-) and- 67 percent at the free throw line (8-12.)  The Cardinals won the rebounding battle 52-43.  They had 19 assists and 11 turnovers.  The story of the game was on the defensive end though.  Wheeling Jesuit held Tyree Gaiter 3-17 shooting on the day, including 0-9 from the 3-point line- Kyauta Taylor went 3-14 from the floor and 1-7 from the 3-point line.   The Cardinals held NDC without a fast break point on the evening.
  The first eight plus minutes saw the teams trade buckets and mini runs.  The game would be knotted at 14 at the 11:53 mark of the opening half.  The Cardinals would score the game's nest four points, NDC would go on another mini run after getting down to get to within one (20-19) after a Vorhees old fashioned 3-point play at 9:55 of the opening half.  Wheeling would run off the next seven points to open up a eight point lead (27-19) after a Fritts layup at 8:17 of the half.  Over the next 55 seconds NDC would get a Jay Banyasz bucket and a Taylor jumper to get to within four (27-23.)  The Cardinals would run off the next five to stretch the lead to nine (32-23.)  The Cardinals would stretch the lead to 13 (37-24) on another Fritts 3-pointer, before NDC would close the half on a 6-1 run to make it 38-30 at the intermission.
  Both teams would come out cold in the second half. A Vorhees layup at the 19:23 mark would be the only points of the first three minutes of the second stanza.   Ritz would break the Cardinals drought at the 17:00 mark.  NDC would get to within three (42-39) 2:52 later.  The Cardinals would stretch the lead to 11 (52-41) after another Fritts 3-pointer at the 11:04 mark.
 NDC would get to within eight  at the 9:09 mark (54-46.)  The Cardinals would then take control as a 16-2 run capped by a Siefert 3-pointer would remove all doubt.  The Cardinals would cruise to the 20 point victory.
 NDC will wrap up the regular season at Urbana Saturday. Tip time is set for 4 PM.
Wheeling Jesuit 27-1 (20-1)
West Liberty 25-2 (19-2)
Fairmont State 18-3 (24-3)
Concord 13-8 (18-9)
Notre Dame College 11-10 (17-10)
Charleston 14-13 (11-10)
Shepherd 15-12 (10-11)
West Virginia Wesleyan 15-12 (10-11)
Glenville State 10-17 (7-14)
West Virginia State 6-20 (4-17)
UVa-Wise 4-23 (2-19)
Urbana 2-24 (1-20)

Falcons Tourney Hopes Take A Hit Saturday.

The Notre Dame Falcons slim chance of making the NCAA regionals took a hit Saturday with a 85-75 loss at Concord. The loss means the Mountain Lions swept the season series from NDC, which does not bode well for the Falcons tournament hopes.  With the loss NDC falls two games behind the Mountain Lions for fourth place in the conference. With Concord securing the season sweep it is virtually a three game lead now.  NDC was 10th in the first regional standing that came out Wednesday.
  Concord (18-8 overall and 13-7 in the MEC) tallied three players in double figures in the victory.  Aaron Miller led the way with 25 points- Rob Reed scored 19- while Jametrius Wade added 10.  The Mountain Lions shot 42 percent (26-62) from the field- they shot at a 36 percent clip (12-33) from the 3-point line.  They struggled at the free throw line, where they shot 58 percent (21-36.)  The Mountain Lions dominated the rebounding battle 57-38.  They had 13 assists and 20 turnovers.
  NDC (17-9 11-9 MEC) was paced by Tyree Gaiter once again. Gaiter scored 31 points- dished out seven assists- and- also added six steals.  Will Vorhees was the only other Falcon in double figures, scoring 21 of his own.
  NDC shot 39 percent (30-77) on the day- they really struggled from both the 3-point line (8-33 for 24 percent) and from the free throw line (7-14 for 50 percent.)  The Falcons had 16 assists and 11 turnovers.
  It was a back and forth game in the opening half. Neither team could build a lead against the other.  At the half it was a 44-43 advantage for the Mountain Lions.
  The second half saw nearly even basketball for the first three minutes. After a Vorhees basket NDC trailed by two (52-50) at the 16:57 mark.  The Mountain Lions then took control behind some timely 3-point shooting to go on a 17-4 run to open up a 69-54 lead at the 10:52 mark. The Falcons would not go quietly though.  Gaiter had an eight point run by himself, and then a Vorhees basket cut the deficit to six (69-63.)  That's as close as NDC would get.
  The Falcons will be back in action when they battle #2 Wheeling Jesuit Thursday night. Tip time is set for 730 at Murphy Gym.
MEC Standings:
Wheeling Jesuit 19-1 (26-1)
West Liberty 18-2 (24-2)
Fairmont State 17-3 (23-3)
Concord 13-7 (18-8)
Notre Dame College 11-9 (17-9)
Shepherd 10-10 (15-11)
Charleston 10-10 (13-13)
West Virginia Wesleyan 9-11 (14-12)
Glenville State 7-13 (10-16)
West Virginia State 4-16 (6-19)
UVA-Wise 1-19 (3-23)
Urbana 1-19  1-19 (2-23)
Atlantic Region Standings (top eight to qualify for DII regionals)  (Rankings as of 2.17)
1. Wheeling Jesuit
2. West Liberty
3. Fairmont State
4. West Chester
5. Kutztown
6. Indiana (PA)
7. Virginia State
8. East Stroudsburg
9. Concord
10. Notre Dame College

NDC Gets Back On Winning Track.

The Notre Dame Falcons got back on the winning track Thursday night at Virginia Wise. NDC was a 91-77 winner over the Cavaliers in Mountain East Conference play. With the win NDC snaps a two game losing skid and improves to 17-8 overall and 11-8 in the conference. The lowly Cavaliers fell to 3-22 and 1-18 in the MEC.
  NDC was led by a 30-point effort from Tyree Gaiter- Kyauta Taylor also had a solid night with 21 points, nine rebounds and four assists. The Falcons also got a pair of double-doubles on the evening. Will Vorhees scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, while Ja'Sean Lewis added 12 points to go along with 11 rebounds.
  The Falcons shot 43 percent (30-70) in the contest.  They shot 37 percent (10-27) from the 3-point line- it was a solid night at the foul line where NDC shot 70 percent (21-30.)  NDC crushed the Cavaliers in the rebounding battle 53-34.  They had 15 assists and 14 turnovers.
  The Cavaliers were led by 30 points and 14 rebounds from Matt Day- Dimitri Sousa added 20- while Gervelle Kidd chipped in 17.  Wise shot 39 percent as a team (25-65) from the field- from the 3-point line they shot 34 percent (12-35-) they were solid at the free throw line where they shot 88 percent (15-17.)  The Cavaliers had 18 assists and 16 turnovers.
  The game was tight at the outset. NDC would take a slim 16-14 lead after a Taylor 3-pointer at the 9:30 mark of the opening half. The lead would stretched to six (23-17) a couple minutes later after a Gaiter 3-pointer.  The lead would stay at six until a 6-0 Cavaliers burst would deadlock the game at 33 at halftime.
  NDC would get a quick seven points to open the second half, after a Taylor 3-pointer, Gaiter jumper and Lewis basket.  The Falcons would go up by eight (46-38) after a Gaiter four-point play at the 16:31 mark.  After a Lewis basket NDC would lead by double digits (50-40.)  The lead would stay at 10 until a Jay Banyasz layup would make it 12 (59-47) with 10:50 to go.  NDC would lead by double digits much of the rest of the way. The Cavaliers would get to within eight, but that is as close as they would get.
 NDC will be back in action Saturday when they travel to Concord.  Tip time against the Mountain Lions is set for 4 PM. The Mountain Lions were a 99-97 winner in the first meeting at Murphy Gym on January 10th.
MEC Standings:
Wheeling Jesuit 18-1 (25-1)
West Liberty 17-2 (23-2)
Fairmont State 16-3 (22-3)
Concord 12-7 (17-8)
NDC 11-8 (17-8)
Charleston 10-9 (13-12)
Shepherd 9-10 (14-11)
West Virginia Wesleyan 9-10 (14-11)
Glenville State 7-12  (10-15)
West Virginia State 4-15 (6-18)
UVA-Wise 1-18 (3-22)
Urbana 0-19 (1-23)
Atlantic Region Rankings (Updated 2/16) (Top eight qualify)
1. Wheeling Jesuit
2. West Liberty
3. Fairmont State
4. West Chester
5. Kutztown
6. Indiana (PA)
7. Virginia State
8. East Stroudsburg
9. Concord
10. Notre Dame College

#8 FSU Spoils Senior Day at NDC Saturday.

The Fairmount State Fighting Falcons came into Murphy Gym and spoiled senior day for the Notre Dame Falcons Saturday with a 100-84 win.  The Fighting Falcons improve to 21-3 overall and 15-3 in the MEC by securing the season sweep of NDC. The Falcons meanwhile fell to 16-8 overall and 10-8 in the MEC.
  Jamel Morris led all scorers with his 37 points for the Fighting Falcons, he drained 11 of his 21 3-point attempts on the day.  The only other FSU player in double figures was Caleb Davis who contributed 13- Troy Cantrell added nine in the victory. FSU shot 49 percent on the day (38-78.) They also made 15 of 40 3-pointer's (38 percent.)  FSU did not shoot well from the free throw line, where they shot 60 percent (9-15.)  They won the rebounding battle 43-39.  They had 18 assists and 13 turnovers. The 13 turnovers only cost them 13 points.
  NDC was led by 27 points from Tyree Gaiter- Will Vorhees contributed 17 points and eight rebounds- while Kyauta Taylor, Nathan Vellum, and Najeeb Johnson each posted 11 point days.
  The Falcons shot 48 percent (28-59) for the game- they shot at a 39 percent clip (7-18) from the 3-point line. From the free throw line NDC shot 64 percent (21-33.)  NDC had 18 assists and 19 turnovers. The 19 turnovers cost them 31 points.
  NDC jumped out to an 8-3 lead early but the lead was trimmed to two (12-10.)  After a Gaiter 3-pointer capped a 9-2 run NDC led 21-12 with just under 13 minutes to go in the opening half.  The Fighting Falcons would fight back and get to within two again (31-29) at the 4:16 mark of the half.  The Fighting Falcons would control the final 4:16 and take a 44-38 lead into the locker room.  NDC would score the first four points of the second half to get to within two (44-42) before the Fighting Falcons would run off the next 10 points to lead by 12 (54-42) at the 17:03 mark.  Despite a couple mini runs by NDC the Fighting Falcons would cruise to the victory from there.
  NDC will look to snap a brief two game losing skid when they travel to Virginia Wise on Thursday night. Tip time is set for 730 PM.  The Falcons defeated UVA-Wise 100-83 back on January 12th.  Tyree Gaiter scored 37 points, while Will Vorhees added 25 points and 10 rebounds in the first meeting.

Falcons Fall Flat Thursday.

The Notre Dame Falcons came out flat and could never recover Thursday night at Murphy Gym.  Shepherd defeated the Falcons 108-94.  NDC fell to 16-7 overall and 10-7 in the MEC after the rare home loss. With the victory the Rams improved to 12-11 overall and 7-10 in the MEC. The two schools split the season series, with each winning on the other's home floor.
  Skyler Roman poured in a game high 33 points for Shepherd. 26 of his 33 coming in the opening half.  Steffan Davis buried six 3-pointer's on his way to 26 points on the night.  Ryan McTavish also knocked down six 3-pointer's on his way to 22 points- Naim Muhhamed was also in double figures with 10.  The Rams shot 54 percent (34-63) from the field in the game. The Rams also shot a red-hot 53 percent (21-40) from the 3-point line. They shot at a 79 percent clip (19-24) from the free throw line.  The Rams had twice as many assists (24) as turnovers (12.)
    NDC was led by Tyree Gaiter who had a game high 35 points and eight assists in the defeat.  Will Vorhees added yet another double-double (18 points and 15 rebounds-) Kyauta Taylor scored 12- and- Ja'Sean Lewis also added a double-double (12 points and 13 rebounds.)  NDC shot 44 percent (38-87) on the evening. They struggled from both the 3-point line where they shot 24 percent (11-45) and from the free throw line, where they shot 54 percent (7-13.)  NDC edged Shepherd on the boards 44-40.  The Falcons had 21 assists and five turnovers in the loss.
  The game started out fairly even in the game's first four minutes as the Rams took a 11-8 lead in the early going.  The Rams would then run off the next 10 points to take a 13 point lead (21-8) after a Davis layup at the 14:21 mark.  After a Gaiter jumper briefly cut the lead to 11 (21-10) the Rams would go on a 12-0 run on the heels of four consecutive 3-pointer's by Roan to go up 23 (33-10.)at the 10:31 mark.  The lead would grow to 24 on a pair of occasions before a 11-0 NDC run would trim the lead to 13 (39-26) at the 5:44 mark of the first half. The Rams would ultimately take a 22 point lead (57-35) into the locker room.
    The second half would see NDC trail by as many as 29 (74-45) before they would get to within 12. Ultimately the hole would be to deep as NDC would fall 108-94.
  The Falcons will be back in action on Saturday when they take on Fairmont State.  Tip time is set for 4 PM at Murphy Gym.  Fairmont State won the first meeting 95-69 back on January 16th.

Falcons Surge Past Yellow Jackets In Second Half.

The Notre Dame Falcons overcame a seven point halftime deficit to win a fourth straight Mountain East Conference contest. Saturday was a 91-82 victory over West Virginia State at the WV Walker Convocation Center. With the victory NDC improved to 16-6 overall and 10-6 in the MEC. West Virginia State dropped to 6-15 overall and 4-12 in the MEC. The win completed a season sweep of the Yellow Jackets for NDC.
  The Falcons were by 23 points and nine assists from Tyree Gaiter. Gaiter scored 65 points in the two meetings with West Virginia State. This time around he did not shoot the ball as well, going just 5 of 17 from the floor- 3 of 7 from the 3-point line. The Cleveland Heights product added five rebounds and four steals. Kyauta Taylor drained 6 of 11 3-pointers en route to his 22 points on the day.  The Falcons were also aided by double-doubles from Will Vorhees (18 points and 16 rebounds) and Ja'Sean Lewis (17 points and 12 rebounds.)  Lewis also added five blocked shots.  NDC shot 41 percent from the field (30-73-) they were good from the 3-point line where they shot 42 percent (13-31.) The Falcons also had a solid day at the free throw line where they shot 78 percent (18-23.)  The Falcons had 22 assists and 10 turnovers.  They also added 10 blocked shots and nine steals.
  The Yellow Jackets were led by 22 points from Terrance Jenkins. He went 11-13 from the floor and also grabbed nine rebounds. Frank Webb was also in double figures with 21 points- while Markee Mazyck tallied a double-double (17 points and 13 rebounds.)  The Yellow Jackets shot 44 percent (33-75) from the floor- they struggled from the 3-point line where they shot 25 percent (5-20.)  The Yellow Jackets shot 69 percent (11-16) from the free throw line.  West Virginia State edged NDC on the boards 46-45.  They had 14 assists and 13 turnovers in the defeat.
  The game was a back and forth affair in the opening half. But ultimately the Yellow Jackets would take a seven point lead (42-35) into the intermission.
  A Ja'Sean Lewis dunk right out of the locker room would spark an NDC spurt.  The lead would remain at five after the second media timeout of the second half.  A Taylor 3-pointer would get NDC to within four (63-59) at the 10:55 mark of the contest.  The Falcons would get to within one on a pair of occasions just a minute later.  At the 7:29 mark Gaiter would drain a 3-pointer to bring the Falcons to within one again (70-69.)  After a Gaiter steal Taylor would bury a 3-pointer to give the Falcons their first lead since the opening half.  The game would continue to be a battle as it would be knotted at 74 at the 4:57 mark before Ryan Hickoff would knock down a 3-pointer to give NDC the lead back.  A lead that the Falcons would not relinquish. NDC would get clutch free throws to stretch the lead to seven (85-78) at the 3 minute mark.  The final margin would end up being nine. Gaiter would go 10 for 10 at the free throw line in the contest. Vorhees was four of five.
  NDC will be back in action Thursday when they battle Shepherd at Murphy Gym. The Falcons defeated the Rams 91-83 in the first meeting January 18th.

A Little Payback!

The Notre Dame Falcons improved to 15-6 overall and 9-6 in the MEC with a 85-68 win over the University of Charleston on Thursday night. With the loss Charleston fell to 11-10 overall and 8-7 in the MEC. With the victory NDC avenged a 73-66 loss on December 5th at Murphy Gym.
  Tyree Gaiter paced the Falcons with 23 points and seven assists in this one.  Gaiter is in the top five in the country averaging seven assists a game on the season.  Kyauta Taylor notched a double-double with 22 points to go along with 10 rebounds- while reigning MEC Player of the week Will Vorhees contributed 19 points and grabbed eight rebounds.  The Falcons shot 43 percent (31-72) as a team- they shot 52 percent (13-25) from the 3-point line- the free throw line was a struggle though as they shot 67 percent (10-15) on the evening.  The Falcons edged Charleston on the boards 39-38.  They had 17 assists and just seven turnovers in the win.
   The Golden Eagles were led by a double-double (14 points and 10 rebounds) from Aleksander Kesic- Justin Coleman also contributed a double-double (11 points and 10 rebounds-) while Tino Ditrapano netted 10.  The Golden Eagles shot 46 percent (27-59) as a team- shooting 40 percent (8-20) from the 3-point line- they shot a woeful 55 percent (6-11) from the free throw line.  The Golden Eagles had 12 assists and 18 turnovers.
  The Falcons opened up the contest by the scoring the game's  first nine points and never looked back.  After a Gaiter layup at the 18:00 mark of the opening half NDC had a 9-0 lead.  The Falcons would stretch that lead to 15 (17-2) after a Vorhees layup at the 14:21 mark of the half.  The Golden Eagles would then trim the lead to six (17-11) after a Justin Coleman basket at the 12:12 mark.  Charleston would get to within three (20-17) after a Jordan Smith layup at the halfway mark of the half.  NDC would score the next five but the Golden Eagles would again have an answer. They would once again get to within three (28-25) after a Coleman 3-pointer with 7:06 left until halftime.  NDC would use a 13-0 run to get their largest lead of the half (47-28) with 1:15 left in the half. The lead would be 16 (47-31) at halftime.
  The teams would trade 3-pointers to open the second half.  The Golden Eagles would get the lead back to 11 (50-39) after a Cameron Dozier layup with 16:21 to go.  The Falcons would take control the rest of the way, as they would lead by as many as 23 (77-54) at the 8:03 mark.  NDC would cruise to the victory from there.
  NDC will be back in action Saturday when they travel to West Virginia State.  The Falcons were a 104-87 winner over the Yellow Jackets at Murphy Gym on December 3rd.  Tyree Gaiter went off for 42 points in the first meeting.  Tip time Saturday is set for 4 PM.