Bulldogs clash with Delaware at MSG Saturday night

FULL GAME NOTES
Listen: WOON 1240 AM
Live Stats: bryantbulldogs.com
Follow along on Twitter: @BryantGameday

THE PARTICULARS
Bryant heads to the Big Apple for a showdown with Delaware in the fourth and final game of the BlackRock Gotham Classic. The Bulldogs and Blue Hens will tip at 9:30 p.m. in the second leg of a Gotham Classic doubleheader (No. 3 Ohio State vs. Notre Dame at 7:30 p.m.).

THE SERIES
This will mark the first-ever meeting between Bryant and the University of Delaware and is the fourth matchup for each school in the BlackRock Gotham Classic. Both schools enter Saturday's action in search of its first win of the tournament (0-3).

SCOUTING THE BLUE HENS
Delaware enters Saturday's action with a 5-6 overall record, looking to snap a three-game skid dating back to Dec. 7. The Blue Hens are led by senior guard Devon Saddler, who, through three games this season, is averaging over 23 points per contest. Classmate Davon Usher ranks second on the team, putting up 18.1 points and 6.4 boards per game, while junior guard Jarvis Threatt averages 17.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 6.0 assists per outing. Kyle Anderson and Carl Baptiste round out the double-digit scorers for Delaware with 15.0 ppg and 11.9 ppg, respectively. As a team, the Blue Hens average nearly 82 points per contest, allowing opponents just under 79 a game while shooting at over 45 percent from the field. Picked to finish fourth in the CAA, Delaware has just three non-league games remaining on its 2013-14 slate after wrapping up the Gotham Classic vs. Bryant on Saturday.

BRYANT vs. THE CAA
Saturday's contest against the University of Delaware will mark Bryant's first-ever meeting with a team from the Colonial Athletic Association.

TROUBLE IN GOTHAM CITY
Bryant has gone winless through the first three games of the BlackRock Gotham Classic, dropping contests to North Dakota State, Notre Dame and No. 3 Ohio State and forcing Bryant into its longest losing streak of the 2013-14 season. Bryant snapped its three-game skid last Saturday vs. Navy and will look to pick a W in the Gotham Classic finale Saturday against Delaware at Madison Square Garden.

CAREER DAY FOR MAYNARD
Last Saturday's game against Navy marked a career afternoon for senior point guard Corey Maynard, who finished the contest with a career-tying 22 points, six rebounds and five assists in 35 minutes. The senior finished a career-best 12-of-14 from the charity stripe, scoring 19 of his 22 points after the intermission.

OH DANNY BOY
Freshman forward Dan Garvin certainly made the most of his first-career start on Dec. 14 against Navy, putting up 12 points with a game-high and career-best 14 rebounds for his second double-double of the year. Garvin shot 4-of-7 from the field, including converting his only 3-point attempt of the day in nearly 40 minutes of play, also a career high.

SHARING THE LOVE
Bryant's win over Navy on Dec. 14 marked the first time that five Bulldogs have scored in double figures since the 2012-13 season finale vs. the University of Richmond in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) back on March 20, 2013. Led by 23 points from Dyami Starks, Bryant saw all five starters — Corey Maynard (22), Alex Francis (19), Joe O'Shea (12) and Dan Garvin (12) — hit the double-digit mark. The Black and Gold almost saw three of its own hit the 20-point plateau as well, with Francis coming up just one point shy.

GETTING BUCKETS
Bryant put up a season high 90 points vs. Navy on last Saturday, its highest scoring output since the Bulldogs scored 103 in a shootout against Quinnipiac on Jan. 10, 2013. The Black and Gold also set season marks for free throws made (27-for-38) and rebounds (44 — two shy of Division I program record).

GIMME A BREAK
Last Saturday's game against Navy was Bryant's fifth game in 11 days. The Bulldogs went 2-3 during the stretch, with tough losses at Notre Dame and No. 3 Ohio State. The Bulldogs earned some much need rest with a week off leading up to Saturday's BlackRock Gotham Classic finale vs. Delaware.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T
For the first time this season, the Bulldogs made their way into the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, receiving five votes. Last season, Bryant spent seven weeks in the rankings, climbing as high as No. 17 on Jan. 21.

A STARK DIFFERENCE
Bulldog leading scorer Dyami Starks averages 21.6 points per outing this season and ranks 18th in the nation and tops in the league circuit in the latest NCAA and NEC rankings (Dec. 15). Starks already has six 20-point games and a trio of 30-point performances to his name in 2013-14 and sits in the conference's top-10 in free throw percentage (.887, third, 40th nationally), 3-pointers per game (3.18, second, 26th nationally), steals (1.27, eighth) and minutes played (36.36, first, 26th nationally).

DUNK COUNT
The dunk count is on once again in 2013-14, but this time around, there is another who might challenge the reign of senior Alex Francis. Rookie forward Dan Garvin has also gotten some hangtime already this season, with the pair combining for 17 slams in the first 12 regular-season contests.

FRANCHISE FRANCIS: IN THE BRYANT RANKINGS
With the season's first half just winding down, senior forward Alex Francis has already broken into the top five in the program's list of greatest scorers. He enters Saturday's contest with 1,681 career points — good for fifth all-time — but will need a few more games to displace No. 4 on the list, Paul Berlo (1,715 points). He is also currently ranked fifth among the program's all-time career rebounding leaders, needing just three more to take sole possession of No. 4 on that list. Francis ranks in the program's top-10 in scoring average, field goals, field goal percentage, free throws made and rebounding average as well.

FRANCHISE FRANCIS: IN THE NEC RANKINGS
Bryant senior forward Alex Francis has already cracked the top-50 on the Northeast Conference's career scoring list this season, and he enters Saturday's matchup ranked 31st all-time with 1,681 career points — a number that is also good for tops among active players in the conference. Francis has already broken into the league's top-20 all-time for rebounding and is currently 19th with 803. He is one of 13 just players in NEC history to reach 1,500 points and 750 boards in his career, and the New York City product has a chance to become the first player in conference history to finish with 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.

Francis currently ranks in the NEC top-10 in scoring (15.9, sixth), rebounding (6.3, fourth), field goal percentage (.564, first), blocks (1.08, 10th) and minutes played (35.08, third).

FRANCHISE FRANCIS: IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
In the latest NCAA rankings, Bryant senior forward Alex Francis currently sits among the top active NCAA Division I players in numerous categories. As of December 15, the senior is ranked third in career field goals (currently 641), fifth in career double-doubles (27), seventh in total rebounds (803), eighth in total points (1,681), 12th in career scoring average (16.3 ppg), 14th in free throws made (386) and 26th in rebounding average (7.8). He is one of just five active players to have 1,500 points and 750 rebounds to his name. Francis also ranks 69st in field goal percentage this season, shooting at a .564 clip so far in 2013-14.

A CONCENTRATED EFFORT
The Bulldogs have certainly added depth in 2013-14, but the Bryant bench has yet to prove it on the scoreboard. Against Division I opponents this season, just four Bulldog starters — juniors Dyami Starks and Joe O'Shea and seniors Alex Francis and Corey Maynard — are responsible for 84 percent of Bryant's total scoring (653 of 779 points). If you go outside the starting lineup, Bryant's bench has contributed just 115 points so far this season (14.7 percent). Leading the way with 238 points, Starks alone accounts for more than 30 percent of the team's total offense.

HISTORY IN THE MAKING
In what has already been a season filled with milestones, senior forward Alex Francis has one more historic height to reach. With 1,681 points and 803 rebounds, Francis has the potential to become the first player in NEC history to score 2,000 points and pull down 1,000 rebounds in a career. An All-NEC First Teamer last season and unanimous Preseason All-NEC pick, he will need to average 16.7 points per game and 10.4 rebounds per outing to hit those marks before the conclusion of the regular season.

A former NEC Rookie of the Year and potential Player of the Year candidate this season, Francis has boasted back-to-back 500-point campaigns, but will need to post a career season on the glass (272) to be the first to hit historic mark. Currently, Francis is the NEC's active scoring leader and ranks second in career rebounds among all active players on the league circuit.

1,000 REASONS...
After leading the Bulldogs in nearly every offensive statistic and setting the program's Division I mark for points in a season last year, junior sharpshooter Dyami Starks could become the third player in a two-year span to join the 1,000-point club. He enters Wednesday's contest with 874 career points, 88 of those coming during his freshman campaign at Columbia (2010-11). Starks will need to average just 6.6 points per game — well below both his Bryant and career scoring averages — to eclipse the milestone by the end of the 2013-14 regular season.

BRYANT HOOPS ON WOON RADIO
For the sixth-consecutive season, all Bryant University basketball home games and select road contests can be heard LIVE on WOON 1240 AM and online at bryantbulldogs.com. Veteran sportscaster Jon Wallach of 98.5 FM The Sports Hub Boston returns to call the action as the voice of the Bulldogs, alongside color analyst Tristan Hobbes.

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will have six days off before next hitting the hardwood on Saturday, Dec. 28 at Binghamton (2 p.m.).