Men's Basketball Gameday: Bears at Valley Forge Christian

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – St. Joseph's (8-7) travels to Pennsylvania for a 8 p.m. matchup against Valley Forge Christian College (9-5) on Thursday, January 23rd, looking to win their second game in a row.

Game Information

St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) (8-7, 2-0 HVIAC) vs.
Valley Forge Christian College (9-5)

Thursday, January 23rd • 8 p.m.
Phoenixville, Pa.

Live stats & Live Video (Courtesy of Valley Forge Athletics)
Twitter | Instagram (@SJCBears, #SJCMBB)

Storylines

• The Bears look to even up the all-time series at 1-1 after the Patriots took the schools' first ever meeting last year.
• St. Joseph's looks to right the ship away from the friendly confines of Brooklyn Technical High School, having recorded a 1-5 mark in true road contests.
• Valley Forge comes into the matchup playing their best basketball of the season, winning three in a row to capture the Piedmont International Classic.
• Junior David Louison became the eighth Bear to reach the 1000-point milestone under Coach Joseph Cocozello, scoring a season- and game-high-tying 30 points against borough rivals Brooklyn College on January 13th.
• Sophomore Michael Megafu continues to be a double-double threat for the Bears, recording double-doubles in each of the last seven games to bring his season total to 10.
• In the latest USCAA Coaches' Poll released Friday, the Bears jumped up two spots to No. 12. The Bears look to continue to rise up the rankings in search of back-to-back appearances in the USCAA National Championships.

Series History

Valley Forge holds a 1-0 lead in the all-time series, winning the schools' first-ever meeting a year ago.

Last Meeting

Despite four Bears scoring in double figures and a 13 point halftime lead, St. Joseph's dropped a 68-63 decision to Valley Forge in the opening round of the Gallaudet University Holiday Tournament on November 23, 2012.

The Bears headed into the lockers up 35-22 and built the lead to a game-high 15 points on an Ian Duff jumper, but the Patriots responded with a 16-2 run to cut the deficit to one, 39-38.

The two teams would exchange the lead several times until a Louison jumper brought the game's fifth tie at 63-all with just over a minute to play.

But the Bears would be unable to get any shots off in the final minute, committing two costly turnovers and Valley Forge connecting on a triple and a fastbreak layup to steal the victory.

St. Joseph's was led by Louison who recorded a near double-double with a team-high 12 points and game-high nine rebounds.

The Bear Facts

Last Time Out: Highlighted by a pair of 30-point double-doubles and the 1000th career point for Louison, St. Joseph's defeated Brooklyn College, 88-75, on January 13th at Brooklyn Technical High School.

The borough foes went back-and-forth early until a 10-2 run over three-and-a-half minutes broke an 11-all tie and gave the Bears the lead for good.

St. Joseph's begins a pivotal four-game stretch away from Brooklyn Technical High School which could either make- or-break their season as they look to make the USCAA National Tournament for the second consecutive year. The Bears have struggled in true games going 1-5 following last year's impressive mark of 9-4.

Louison, the AD3I and HVIAC Player of the Week, continues to get better with each additional game in a St. Joseph's uniform, witnessed by 24.6 points per game over his last five games, including two 30-point games. The junior now has seven double-doubles on the season and his 31 career double-doubles places him No. 7 among Division III active career leaders. Louison continues to pace the Bears on the offensive end of the floor with a career-high 17.5 points per game and has a career-best 49.8 percent field goal percentage.

Adding toughness to the frontcourt for St. Joseph's is Megafu who continues to record double-doubles on a nightly basis, recording seven in a row and ten on the year (No. 5 in Division III). The sophomore averages a career-high 16.3 points per game at a 55.3 percent shooting clip and brings down a team-high 10.3 boards per game.

Leading the Bears in the backcourt is junior Vernon Maddox and Matt O'Neill who average 9.7 and 9.4 points per game, respectively. Maddox is the primary facilitator of the offense, dishing out a career-high 4.5 assists per game while O'Neill thrives on the defensive end of the floor coming up with 2.5 steals per game.

The Patriot Act

Last Time Out: Valley Forge swept the Piedmont International Classic with a, 84-49, win against Welch College on January 11th. The Patriots were led by Lance Harris who recorded 13 points and was named Tournament MVP.

Valley Forge comes into tonight's action on a three-game winning streak after beginning the New Year with two consecutive losses. The Patriots have some difficulty defensively as opponents shoot 45.3 percent from the field on the year and hold a +4.3 rebounding margin.

Leading Valley Forge is Lance Harris who is a multi-purpose player for the Patriots, leading the team in several offensive categories. The senior averages a team-high 18.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.

Also scoring in double figures is Jean LeBlanc who pours in 12.9 points per game and is a threat from downtown connecting on 36.6 percent (26-of-71) of his attempts.

A recent addition to the Valley Forge lineup is Kevin Mack who is dropping in 13.4 points per game in five games since coming back to the team.

Did You Know?

Both Megafu and Louison rank highly among the NCAA Division III active career leaders, Megafu ranking No. 4 in career rebounding average (10.8 rpg) followed closely by Louison at No. 5 (10.5 rpg). Megafu's 25 double-doubles place him 15th and the highest ranked sophomore by a margin of six.

Team Comparison

Bears	Nickname	Patriots
8-7 (2-0)	Record	9-5
HVIAC	Conference	NCCAA
Roster | Schedule | Statistics	Team Info	Roster | Schedule | Statistics
David Louison (17.5)	Top Pts.	Lance Harris (18.9)
Michael Megafu (10.3)	Top Reb.	Lance Harris (6.0)
Vernon Maddox (4.5)	Top Ast.	Lance Harris (3.9)
70.3 (+5.2)	Scoring	71.0 (-0.8)
40.6%	FG %	42.7%
61.6%	FT %	70.6%
25.4%	3FG %	33.2%
40.1 (-2.8)	Rebounds	34.3 (-4.3)
13.7	Assists	12.0
13.9 (+5.0)	Turnovers	17.4 (+2.9)
8.8	Steals	9.9
3.9	Blocks	1.1