WILMINGTON, Ohio - The Wilmington College men's basketball team closes out the 2022 calendar year at the Captain Shootout hosted by Christopher Newport University this week.
The Schedule: Wilmington will face Averett University (Virginia) at 3 p.m. on Thursday the host Christopher Newport at 5 p.m. on Friday.
The Teams: Wilmington, Averett and Christopher Newport (CNU). The Quakers enter the weekend with a 3-6 overall record and looking to snap a five-game losing skid having most recerntly fallen to No. 5 The University of Mount Union on Dec. 17. The Cougars are 6-5 and most recently lost to the University of Mary Washington 65-46 on Dec. 14. The Captains stand at 11-2, but have dropped their last two contests.
The Coaches: Micah Mills enters his eighth season with the Wilmington men's basketball program with the 2022-23 campaign being his first as head coach. He helped WC to a 17-8 record during the 2018-19 season and came within a game of the program's first OAC regular season championships. Mills, a graduate of Ohio Valley University, spent three seasons as an assistant coach at fellow OAC member Otterbein University before coming to Wilmington. Dave Diono has led Averett to over 100 victories since being hired prior to the 2014-15 season while John Kritkorian has been CNU's coach since the 2010-11 season. He's led the Captains to two Final Four appearances and the last five NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournaments.
The Players: Wilmington is led by a pair of frontcourt players as Abdul Kanu and Obed Achirem both score in double figures. Kanu leads the way at 14.6 points per contest while Obed Achirem nearly averages a double-double at 12.3 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. A trio of Quakers - Bryce Bird, Collin Barker and Lucas Doty - aid the aforementioned duo in scoring at approximately seven points per game each. Averett features three Cougars - Raja Milton, Jason Sellars II and Jordan Lewis - that score in double figures. Milton leads the team in scoring (14.0 PPG) while Sellars II grabs 8.5 boards per game. Jahn Hines is CNU's top offensive threat as he averages 17.3 points per game while Trey Barber, who also scores in double figures, grabs nearly eight rebbounds a contest.
Top 25: CNU is ranked No. 7 in the most recent D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll.
Recent History: The will be the first meeting between Averett and Wilmington in program history. The Quakers lost to CNU 82-64 at this same tournament five years ago. More information on the series history with the Captains can be viewed by visiting the link above.
Coverage: Live statistics and live video of both games will be available – visit the links 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".
Up Next: Wilmington will open the New Year with a trip to Capital University on Jan. 4, 2023.
