Marauders face road test against uptempo Warriors

Millersville vs. Shepherd men's basketball at Pucillo Gym in Millersville, PA on Wednesday, January 5, 2022. Mark Palczewski/Millersville Athletics Photo.

Photo by: Mark Palczewski

Marauders face road test against uptempo Warriors

1/10/2022 11:50:00 AM | Men's Basketball

By: Ethan Hulsey, Director of Athletic Communications

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Millersville Men's Basketball

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ABOUT THE GAMES

Millersville men’s basketball plays a key PSAC East game Wednesday at East Stroudsburg and is looking for its first win in Koehler Fieldhouse since 2009. Millersville is 2-2 on the road this season while East Stroudsburg is 3-0 at home.

We've got to be consistent. We can play with anyone in this conference if we play up to our abilities. Right now, we aren't mentally and physically. We have not played well there in the past, so we need to take care of the ball, make them pay for pressing, and if we play good defense we will have a chance. It's a tough game on the road against a good team.

Casey Stitzel, Millersville head coach

SCOUTING THE MARAUDERS

There is a direct correlation to rebounding and victories for the Marauders. Millersville is 8-0 when grabbing 40 or more rebounds and 7-0 when out-rebounding its opponent. Millersville is third in the PSAC in rebounding (42.0 per game) and second in rebounding margin at 7.8 per game.
While Millersville ranks sixth in the PSAC in scoring defense, it ranks 11th in scoring offense, 11th in field goal percentage, 14th in 3-point shooting and 16th in free throw shooting. Millersville started the season by scoring at least 81 points in five of the first six games and sooting at least 47.8% in four of the first six. But since the 6-0 start, Millersville is averaging 72.1 points per game while shooting 42.7% from the field, and 29.1% from the three. Millersville is 1-3 when scoring fewer than 70 points.
Caden Najdawi coming off a 17-point, 10-rebound performance against Shippensburg, which was his third double-double of the season and the 22nd of his career. Millersville is 3-0 this season and 17-5 in his career when Najdawi records a double-double.
Justin Nwosu hit 5-of-7 shots for 13 points against Shippensburg, giving him at least 10 points in five consecutive games. During that stretch, he’s shot 55.6% from the field and 9-of-19 from three. In 2019-20, Nwosu went 12-straight games scoring in double figures.
Jaden Faulkner has six assists in back-to-back games and at least six assists in six games this season. He ranks fourth in the PSAC in assists per game with 4.9. Faulkner has averaged 5.0 assists in his 47 career games. Only one player in program history--2021 hall of fame inductee Frank Oslislo--has averaged more than 5.0 assists per game in a career. Osliso averaged 5.5 over 97 games. Faulkner is 77 assists from raning 10th all-time.

SCOUTING THE WARRIORS

East Stroudsburg comes into the game having won six of its last seven games, but the last two games were both postponed by the opponent. ESU has scored point totals of 89, 91 and 94 points in the three home games. The Warriors’ recent run included a 13-point win at No. 3-ranked Mercyhurst, which was the Lakers’ first loss of the season. As usual, East Stroudsburg is the top-ranked scoring offense in the PSAC, averaging 88.6 points per game, shooting 48% from the field and ranking third in the league in 3-point shooting offense. ESU is a pressing team that ranks third in the league in turnover margin, generating 18.1 per game, which ranks second in the PSAC. Three players rank in the league’s top 10 in steals per game.

THE LAST TIME OUT

Millersville: Shippensburg 75, Millersville 64 (Jan. 8, 2022) - After fixing the turnovers issues that cost them in the first half, the Millersville Marauders were undone by their defensive rebounding and outside shooting in the second. Unable to put all areas of the game together, Millersville fell at home to PSAC East-leading Shippensburg Saturday, 75-64. Shippensburg (9-3, 6-1 PSAC) won its seventh in a row behind 19 points from Kyon Hardy and 17 from Carlos Carter. Millersville (9-4, 3-4 PSAC) was led by Caden Najdawi's double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds.
East Stroudsburg: East Stroudsburg 113, Mansfield 90 (Jan. 5 2022) - East Stroudsburg took full control early on in the second half with a massive 35-15 scoring run to down Mansfield, 113-90. Carlos Pepin led ESU in points and off the glass, specifically shining in the second half. The redshirt junior posted a career and game-high 25 points, shooting an efficient 11-of-15 from the field and was 3-3 from beyond the arc. He grabbed nine rebounds and tallied three assists and two steals before fouling out.

SERIES HISTORY VS. WARRIORS

While Millersville holds a commanding 100-64 lead in the all-time series, East Stroudsburg has won 21 of the last 25 match-ups, including 13 in a row at home. Millersville’s last win at ESU came on Feb. 4, 2009 in double overtime. Scoring has been Millersville’s biggest issue when it comes to games at East Stroudsburg. During the 13-game skid, Millersville has averaged just 61.4 points per game and has not scored more than 69 points at East Stroudsburg since its 2009 win. Two of Millersville’s last three games at ESU have been decided by single-digits, however. Overall, four of the last five meetings have been decided by fewer than 10 points.
The Last Meeting vs. East Stroudsburg - East Stroudsburg 74, Millersville 66 (Feb. 8, 2020): Millersville cut a 27-point first-half deficit down to five with a minute to play but could get no closer to the homestanding East Stroudsburg Warriors in Saturday’s 74-66 loss. The Marauders’ comeback was cut short when they missed their final four 3-pointer attempts. Millersville shot 28 percent from the field and 1-for-9 from three with 10 turnovers in the first half. James Sullivan led the Marauders with 15 points and seven rebounds. Caden Najdawi added 14 points and seven rebounds while also sinking all four of his free throw attempts.