WILMINGTON, Ohio - The Wilmington College men's basketball team opens the second half of Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play by hosting the University of Mount Union on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off from Hermann Court is slated for 3 p.m.
The Teams: Wilmington and Mount Union. The Fightin' Quakers are 6-10 overall and 4-5 in OAC play after an 85-65 blowout win at Muskingum University on Wednesday. The Purple Raiders are 13-3 overall, 8-1 in conference play and also coming off of a convincing win – 107-70 over No. 6 Marietta College.
The Coaches: K.C. Hunt is in his 13th season as head coach of Wilmington's men's basketball program. Hunt, who has coached two All-Americans and seven of the school's 1,000-point scorers, led the Quakers to OAC Tournament titles in 2010 and 2014. He garnered Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year honors for guiding Wilmington to OAC Tournament title and a win in the NCAA Division III Tournament in 2010. Mike Fuline is in his ninth season as Mount Union's head coach. The Purple Raiders have won two OAC regular season and one tournament title during his tenure.
The Players: Four individuals – Jeffery Mansfield, DaeShawn Jackson, Abdul Kanu and Colin Myers – all score in double figures for Wilmington including Mansfield's 17.5 points per game. All four, who combine to score nearly 74 percent of the Quakers' points, all grab over four rebounds per contest. Kanu, who scores 10.6 points per game, is coming off of a season-high 22 points at Muskingum. Payton Smith dishes out a team-best 4.3 assists per game. A trio of Purple Raiders – Collen Gurley, Nathan Bower-Malone, and D'Vontay Friga – all score over 13 points a game. Bower-Malone is coming off of a 36-point performance in the win over Marietta. Logan Hill and Braeden Poole both grab 5.1 rebounds per game.
Tale of the Tape: Points per game – Wilmington 74.3, Mount Union 83.9; opponents' points per game – Wilmington 77.0, Mount Union 69.9; field goal percentage – Wilmington 44.3, Mount Union 49.9; three-point percentage – Wilmington 33.0, Mount Union 41.0; free throw percentage – Wilmington 65.9, Mount Union 77.7; rebounds per game – Wilmington 30.9, Mount Union 35.6; assist-to-turnover ratio – Wilmington 1.08, Mount Union 1.16.
Alumni Day: Members of Wilmington's 2010 OAC Tournament title squad will be in attendance and will be recognized before the game.
Coaches vs. Cancer: Members of both coaching staffs will be wearing tennis shoes as part of Coaches vs. Cancer Week.
Recent History: Wilmington is 17-24 against Mount Union over the last three decades. The Purple Raiders defeated the Quakers 84-74 in Alliance on Dec. 14, 2019. More information on the series history can be viewed by visiting the link above.
Social Media: Wilmington athletics is represented on Facebook (Wilmington College Athletics), Twitter (@DubCQuakers) and Instagram (@DubCQuakers). Follow all the happenings of Wilmington College on social media by using the hashtag "#WeAreDubC".
Coverage: Live statistics and live video of the game will be available - visit the links above.
Up Next: Wilmington hosts Ohio Northern University for a 7 p.m. contest on Wednesday.
