The Notre Dame College Falcons will welcome the Concord Mountain Lions to Murphy Gym on Saturday. Tip time is slated for 4:30 PM. You can catch all the action on MEC.TV and on the Livestats link at NotreDameFalcons.com
Coach Mark Richmond talked about the opportunity:
" We are looking for a complete effort on Saturday. 40 minutes. Not 20, not 39, but staying engaged, and executing our game plan for a full 40 minutes. That is what we strive for. Obviously this is a unique year so that is harder to get. We are looking forward to being back at home,"Richmond explained.
NDC (2-5) is coming off a 91-80 loss at Glenville State on Wednesday night. Jordan Roland paced the Falcons with 18 points- Mike Sampson had his second double-double of the year with 15 points, and 14 rebounds- while John Godinez scored 14. As a team the Falcons shot 51 percent from the floor- 33 percent (6-18) from the 3-point line- and- 77 percent (10-13) from the free throw line.
NDC comes into Saturday averaging 76.4 points per game, while defensively they are fifth in the MEC giving up 82.1 points per contest. They are third in the conference shooting 34 percent from the 3-point line, and fourth in the league shooting at a 46 percent clip from the field.
Jordan Roland paces four Falcons in double figures, as he is putting up 17.0 points per game, and leads the team in assists at 3.1 per contest. Jordan Burton is putting up 13.3 points per night- Tyland Crawford scores 12.8 per game- and- John Godinez rounds out the double digit scorers notching 10 points per night. Mike Sampson leads the team in rebounding at 7.8 per contest.
Richmond talked about the importance of a good start, and getting guys going early:
" Attacking the rim is the key with these guys. It is always important to get off to a good start, and tomorrow is no different. These guys feed off of each other. We need to get paint touches, and play inside-out. We need to make the right play, and take care of the ball."
Concord (4-3) is coming off a 69-60 win over Frostburg State on Saturday. The game they were scheduled to play against Wheeling on Monday was postponed.
Davion Moore led the Mountain Lions with 18 points in the victory over Frostburg, Mohamed Bundu added 13, and Malik Johnson scored 12. They shot 40 percent as a team from the field, 26 percent (6-23) from the 3-point line- and- 50 percent (17-34) from the free throw line. Concord crushed the Bobcats on the boards 45-26.
Richmond talked about the importance of rebounding:
Rebounding will be important in this game, just like it is every game. For us, a big thing will be converting some of those rebounds into points. I think we have done a good job on the boards but we need to do a better job of converting them into points.a Sometimes it isn't just as simple as going back up with the ball. Sometimes you have to kick it back out, or make whatever the right basketball play is."
As a team the Mountain Lions average 70.4 points per game- while they allow 72.1 points per night. Individually, Johnson leads the team scoring 15.7 points per game, while David Mullamba averages 9.3 points per game, and Liam Evans gets 9.0 per contest. Bundu leads the team on the glass grabbing 8.1 rebounds per contest.
Richmond talked defense, and both teams being similar in identity:
" Johnson is getting almost 16 points per game, and they have a bunch of guys who are getting eight or nine points a night. They are very balanced, and that's who they are. That is who we need to be as well. We will need to change defenses. We have gotten better at that "on the fly". Certain times though we will have to sit down in a stance, and get a stop"
The two teams met three times last season. Each team won on there home floor during the regular season, before the Mountain Lions came out on top in the MEC Tournament matchup.
Richmond gave some of his keys to the game:
" This game will come down to rebounding, and turnovers I feel like. We have had trouble closing games out, especially on the road. As we get more mature we will need to learn how to win both at home, and on the road. Whoever plays better collectively as a team is the team that will come out on top Saturday."
Other MEC Games Saturday:
Davis& Elkins @ Wheeling
Fairmont State @ West Virginia State
Glenville State @ Alderson Broaddus
West Virginia Wesleyan@ West Liberty (Sunday)
MEC North Standings:
West Liberty 6-3
Fairmont State 4-2
Alderson Broaddus 4-5
Frostburg State 3-5
NDC 2-5
Wheeling 1-4
MEC South:
Glenville State 6-1
Charleston 7-2
West Virginia State 6-2
Concord 4-3
Davis & Elkins 2-4
West Virginia Wesleyan 0-9
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