D3hoops.com to Broadcast Entire Centennial Conference Men's Basketball Championship Tournament

by Sports Information
2/28/04

LANCASTER, PA -- D3hoops.com, the world wide leader in covering Division III basketball, will broadcast all three games of the 2004 Centennial Conference Men's Basketball Championship Tournament live from Franklin & Marshall College's Mayser Center on Saturday and Sunday, February 28-29.

Starting at 1:30 p.m., D3hoops.com personality Pat Cummings will be on the call as #2 seed Ursinus will look to knock off #3 Johns Hopkins and advance to their second straight CC title game. The Bears are led by the hot-shooting of Dennis Stanton, the nation's leading scorer with 31.8 points per game. Historically, Stanton can take the crown of the CC's best all-time scorer as he needs 24 points to up his career total from 1,1818 and surpass former Bear Richie Barrett '01 (1,841) for the title.

The key to the game could be the halftime score as the Bears are 14-1 when leading at the intermission and 2-8 when trailing at the break.

For Hopkins, junior Eric Toback averages 15.7 points and 7.5 rebounds as the Blue Jays will be looking for their first title since 1999.

Thirty minutes following the conclusion of the Ursinus-Hopkins semifinal, the #1 seed Diplomats will face-off with perennial rival #4 seed Gettysburg College in a clash for the ages.

The #11 ranked team in the nation, Franklin & Marshall College sports a league best four All-Centennial Conference selections in point guard Duran Searles (Sr., Camden, NJ/Peddie School) and center Steve Juskin (Sr., East Hanover, NJ/Hanover Park) earned first team honors, while guard Jackiem Wright (Sr., Sicklerville, NJ/Moorestown Friends) and forward Bobby Lynch (Jr., Richboro, PA/Council Rock) earned second team honors as the Diplomats recorded the most players among the ten Conference schools.

A three time honoree following a second team nod in 2002 and first team honors last year, Juskin tallied 372 points, 156 rebounds, 88 assists and 93 blocked shots during the regular season to raise his career numbers to raise his career numbers to 1,390 points, 696 rebounds, 233 assists and a school and CC record 309 blocked shots.

The February 2 Centennial Conference Player of the Week and the ninth player in school history to record 1,000 points and 500 rebounds, he ranks sixth in points, fourth in rebounds and first in blocked shots in F&M history. In the Centennial Conference record book, he ranks first in block, 20th in assists and 10th in rebounding and scoring.

At point guard, Searles has been dynamic for the Diplomats ranking first in assists (94) and second in steals (45) while scoring an average of 14.0 points per game.

The February 23 Centennial Conference Player of the Week, the 6-1 guard averaged 33.0 points on 69.4% from the floor in victories over McDaniel (86-49 W) and Washington (96-78 W) last week.

Overall, the tally marked the third 30-point game of Searles career as the senior guard netted 33 points on November 18, 2000 to lead his team to a 95-87 victory over Elizabethtown at the Mayser Center in the Sponaugle Tournament Championship game.

Historically, Searles has been among the Centennial Conference's most prolific scorers as he has combined with Juskin as the duo rank fourth all-time in scoring with a combined 2,640 points.

In addition, he ranks among the Conference's all-time best in assists (sixth, 346), three point field goals (fourth, 190) and steals (fourth, 184) as Searles is now 14 steals away from resetting the CC career record of 197 held by Billy Hagan of Dickinson.

In F&M history, he surpassed Mark Worley '79 for 14th in scoring (1,246 points) with 13 points in a 67-63 victory at Johns Hopkins on February 24.

Further, he ranks among the College's all-time best in scoring (1,246, 14th), assists (346, sixth), steals (eighth, 184), three point field goals (second, 193) and three-point field goal percentage (40.2%, seventh).

In the latest Centennial Conference statistics for the 2004 season, he ranks among the CC leaders in scoring (14.1 ppg, 13th), field goal percentage (.532, seventh), assists (3.75 apg, fourth), steals (1.88 spg, third), three point field goal percentage (.407, sixth), three point field goals (2.08 pg, sixth) and assist/turnover ratio (1.70, third).

A third year transfer from Division I LaSalle University, Wright ranks fourth in scoring (301 points) and second in free-throw percentage (.787 %).

In only 84 career games in an F&M uniform, he ranks third in career three-point baskets (181) and sixth in three-point field goal percentage (40.6 %, seventh) as he has recorded 919 points and 156 rebounds while in a Franklin & Marshall uniform.

At forward, Lynch has been electric on the court for F&M leading the team in scoring (398 points), rebounds (173) and offensive rebounds (80), while ranking second in blocked shots (22).

The January 5 and 26 Centennial Conference Player of the Week, he now has 706 points and 321 rebounds as he is on pace to join the 1,000 point club and become the tenth player in school history to record 1,000 points and 500 rebounds, Lynch has combined with Juskin, Searles, Wright and the rest of the Diplomats to lead the team to a 22-3 record, 17-1 in Centennial Conference play.

On Sunday, Cummings and D3hoops.com will return to Mayser to broadcast the 3:00 p.m. title tilt between the semifinal winners.

Click on http://d3hoops.com/audio/ for a link to all of the action.
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