The Game
Stonehill College wraps up a two-game Northeast Conference weekend trip to the metro-New York area when it visits Fairleigh Dickinson for the second matchup with the NEC-leading Knights over the last six days, this time inside Stratis Arena at Rothman Center tonight. The Skyhawks are looking to build off Friday night’s 73-66 victory at LIU, while the Knights aim to bounce back from their first NEC loss of the year with Friday’s 92-85 setback to Sacred Heart.

Media Information
Tonight’s game is being broadcast live on NEC Front Row. Sitesh Shah (play-by-play) and Tom Green (analyst) have the call of the action for tonight for FDU. The broadcast can be accessed via stonehillskyhawks.com through its NEC Front Row portal (necfrontrow.com/schools/SC) or through Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV and Roku via the NEC On the Run App.

Last Time Out
Fresh of becoming the 43rd 1,000-point scorer in program history, fifth-year Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) matched his season-high with 24 points and powered Stonehill to a 73-66 victory over Long Island University in Northeast Conference action at Steinberg Wellness Center Friday night. Sims made 11-of-13 shots from the floor, including his lone three-point try, on his way to a sixth 20-point game of the season as he scored 13 of his season-high matching 24 points in the second half, connecting on 6-of-7 shots over the final 20-minutes alone. He filled out the boxscore with a game-high seven rebounds, adding three assists, two steals and a blocked shot. Fifth-year Isaiah Burnett (Annapolis, Md.) scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half as he and Sims helped Stonehill build a 12-point (45-33) halftime advantage. Burnett finished the night 3-for-6 from three-point distance and added five assists and two steals. Postgrad Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) rounded out the Skyhawks double-figure scorers with 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting, three rebounds and two assists. Sophomores Andre Washington and Marko Maletic each netted 17 points to pace LIU.

250 for Coach Kraus
Friday night’s win at LIU marked the 250th game in charge for head coach Chris Kraus ’06. In his tenth year at the helm of his alma mater, Kraus has posted a 138-112 (.552) career record and participated in his 450th game associated with the College (student-athlete, assistant coach and head coach) against Wagner on January 5. Kraus’ 250 games as a head coach at Stonehill ranks third all-time in program history behind Ray Pepin (312) and David McLaughlin (288).

Against the Knights
Tonight marks the sixth meeting all-time between Stonehill and Fairleigh Dickinson – the second within the last six days after the two programs went nearly 50-years between meetings. Stonehill holds a 3-2 edge in the all-time series that dates back to 1965, after FDU posted a 65-57 victory over the Skyhawks in Easton, Mass., on the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday last Monday. Stonehill head coach Chris Kraus ’06 faces FDU for just the second time in his career, but Knights head coach Tobin Anderson is 6-3 over his career against the Skyhawks, from his time at Saint Thomas Aquinas College, all of which are head to head coaching matchups with Kraus.

Last Time They Met
Fairleigh Dickinson posted a 65-57 victory over Stonehill just six days ago in an NEC matchup in Easton, Mass., on the Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. The loss spoiled a milestone night for Stonehill fifth-year Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) who became the 43rd player in program history to reach the 1,000-career point plateau after finishing the night with six points and five rebounds. Postgrads Demetre Roberts and Grant Singleton combined for 39 points to lead the Knights to their sixth-straight win. Roberts scored 18 of his game-high 21 points in the second half, aided by 10-of-12 shooting from the free-throw line, to go with three assists, two rebounds and a steal. Singleton added 18 points, including 14 in the first half, connecting on 4-of-7 three-pointers, with six rebounds, two assists and a steal. Fifth-year Isaiah Burnett (Annapolis, Md.) led Stonehill with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including 4-for-8 from three-point distance, with eight rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Dishing It Out
Stonehill dished out assists on 20 of its 28 field goals in Friday night’s win at LIU, marking its second 20-plus assist game of the season. The Skyhawks doled out a season-high 21 helpers (on 33 baskets) in their win over Eastern Nazarene on November 30.

Lucky Day
Stonehill has won its last six games played on January 20 dating back to the 2005 season after Friday night’s win at LIU. While two wins in that stretch (80-63 vs. New Haven & 77-60 at Adelphi) were more one-sided results, the streak started with three-straight one-possession wins against Franklin Pierce (72-71 in 2007), at Pace (59-56, 2008) and over American International (56-55, 2010). The Skyhawks last January 20 loss was at Merkert Gym against Le Moyne (82-61) in 2005. Three of Stonehil’s last seven January 20 opponents have been from New York (LIU, Le Moyne, Pace, Adelphi), with New Haven just up I-95 from NYC.

Movin’ On Up!
After becoming Stonehill’s 43rd 1,000-point scorer against FDU on Monday, fifth-year forward Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) moved into 39th place on the program’s career scoring list with his season-high 24 points at LIU on Friday. His 1,024 points in 93 career games moved him past Rollie Hollins, ’74 (1,021) for 39th all-time in Stonehill history. He enters tonight’s game 19 points behind Adrian Machado ’96 (1,043) for 38th all-time.

Prime Performer
Stonehill postgrad Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) was named an NEC Prime Performer for the second time this season on Wednesday. He led the Skyhawks with 14.0 points on 60.0-percent shooting from the floor and a 50-percent success rate from three-point territory (6-for-12), while adding 6.0 rebounds over two games. Zegarowski, who also recevied Prime Performer recognition on December 5, scored a team-high 17 points and grabbed a season-best ten boards against Merrimack for his first double-double in a Stonehill uniform on Saturday. He chipped in 11 points, two rebounds, two assists and a steal against FDU on Monday. Fifth-years  Isaiah Burnett (Annapolis, Md.) Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) share the team lead with five NEC Prime Performer selections this season and the duo have both collected NEC Player of the Week accolades once. Zegarowski is the only other Skyhawk to earn the honors in the program’s inaugural NEC season.

NEC Prime Performers:
Nov. 14: Andrew Sims & Isaiah Burnett
Nov. 21: Isaiah Burnett
Nov. 28: Andrew Sims
Dec. 5: Andrew Sims & Max Zegarowski
Dec. 12: Isaiah Burnett
Dec. 19: Andrew Sims
Jan. 2: Andrew Sims & Isaiah Burnett
Jan. 9: Isaiah Burnett
Jan. 18: Max Zegarowski

Milestone Max
Postgrad Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) is closing in on giving Stonehill two 1,000-point scorers on its roster, having scored 943 points in 81 career games, including his time at Lynn and Franklin Pierce. Zegarowski scored eight points in five games at Lynn University in 2018-19, before playing 55 games over three seasons at former NE10 divisional foe Franklin Pierce University from 2019-22, where he scored 677 points, including 431 points in 2021-22 to help the Ravens to an NCAA Tournament bid. He has totaled 258 points in 21 games at Stonehill this season.

Did You Know?
Of the top 15 scorers in the NEC this season, ten are newcomers to the league. Three of those play for Stonehill in fifth-year Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) who ranks fifth with 15.5 points per game, while fellow fifth-year Isaiah Burnett (Annapolis, Md.) and postgrad Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) rank 11th and 12th with 12.4 and 12.3 points per game, respectively.

Stop… Thief!
Stonehill fifth-year Isaiah Burnett (Annapolis, Md.) has collected at least one steal in all 21 games this season and in 27-straight games dating back to the 2021-22 season. He shares the NEC lead in steals with 2.7 per game, which also ranks sixth nationally, while his NEC-high 56 steals this season is the second-highest total in Division I basketball this season – behind only New Mexico’s Jaelen House. He has collected multiple steals in 17 games this season, including a career-high matching five thefts at Boston College (12/13), at Binghamton (12/3) and against Wagner (1/5). Burnett is averaging 2.2 steals per game in NEC play so far, ranking second in the Conference, after leading the NE10 with 2.3 steals per game last year, collecting his 100th career steal at Bradley on December 19. (Note that due to NCAA Division I reclassification, Stonehill does not officially appear among NCAA statistical leaders for four years)

24
Stonehill fifth-year Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) scored a season-high 24 points for the third time this season at LIU on Friday night. He was particularly efficient in Brooklyn, finishing 11-of-13 from the floor, including 6-for-7 in scoring 13 second half points to power the Skyhawks past the Sharks. Sims also scored 24 points against Quinnipiac (11/10) and Illinois-Chicago (11/21) and has scored 20-plus points in a team-high six games this season.

Home Cooking!
Postgrad Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) has found the Merkert rims friendly in his first year as a Skyhawk, averaging 15.4 points on 50% shooting, including 22-for-47 (46.8%) from three, over Stonehill’s first seven home games.

Top 15 for I.B.
Stonehill fifth-year Isaiah Burnett (Annapolis, Md.) ranks in the top-15 among NEC leaders in seven categories, including his Conference-best 2.7 steals per game. He ranks sixth in free-throw percentage (.786), 10th field goal percentage (.449), assists (2.5) and defensive rebounds (3.8), 11th in scoring (12.4 ppg) and 15th in rebounding (4.6 rpg).

In Transition
Stonehill announced it had accepted an invitation to join the Northeast Conference and commence a four-year transition to full NCAA Division I membership on April 5. The Skyhawks started their four-year transition on July 1 and will earn full NCAA Division I membership in 2026-27. At the June NEC meetings, the Conference presidents announced a shift in the waiting period for automatic qualifier sports from competing for NEC postseason championships from four to two years, making Stonehill eligible to compete in the NEC postseason starting in 2024-25.

Proud History
Stonehill won the Northeast-10 Presidents’ Cup six times, finishing in the top three in the final standings 15 of the last 17 years. Stonehill was one of just ten institutions nationwide to receive the NCAA Division II Presidents’ Award for Academic Achievement, recognizing athletic departments with an Academic Success rating of 90-percent or better, each of the first ten years of the program’s existence. The College ranks No. 98 in the category of National Liberal Arts Schools by U.S. News & World Report and No. 94 for the Best Value category.

Hoop History
Stonehill men’s basketball earned 15 NCAA Division II Tournament bids over its history, the last was halted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Stonehill were charter members of the Northeast-10 Conference, winning the first two tournament championships in 1981 and ’82, finishing its time in the Conference with four postseason titles and six regular season championships.

Getting Social
Fans and media members of Stonehill athletics have multiple social media outlets to get updates on all 23 varsity programs. The department’s Facebook page is www.facebook.com/stonehillskyhawks, and you can also follow @GoStonehill on Twitter and @stonehillskyhawks via Instagram! You can also search for Stonehill men’s basketball on Facebook, follow the team’s Twitter account via @StonehillBball as well as head coach Chris Kraus @CoachChrisKraus, and its new Instagram feed @stonehillbball. 

Up Next
Stonehill closes out its three game road trip with its final non-conference contest of its inaugural NCAA Division I season at the University of Hartford on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Stonehill returns to Merkert Gym on Saturday, January 28, to host Sacred Heart University at 2 p.m.