Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College men's basketball team will look to snap their two-game Empire 8 Conference skid when they host Utica College and Houghton College this weekend. EC takes on Utica on Friday, January 9th at 8:00 p.m. in Elmira's "Gold Rush" game, then host Houghton the following day, January 10th, at 4:00 p.m.
Bench ScoringOut of EC's 51 total points against the Saxons, 31 came from players who came off the bench. That is the most bench points scored all season, and the most an Elmira team has posted since January 25, 2013. On that date, the Soaring Eagles recorded 32 bench points in an 88-62 win over Hartwick College.
Series History vs. UticaEC and Utica have played 56 times in their series history, with the Pioneers having a slight advantage. Utica has a 32-24 record in the series and had won six straight matchups before EC's season sweep in 2013-14.
Scouting UticaThe Pioneers enter Friday's contest on a three-game losing streak, dropping their overall record to 4-8 and their Empire 8 record to 0-3. Utica has two players averaging double-digit points, with Conor Maisch leading the way at 18.8 points per game. Behind Maisch is Robert Tutein, who is averaging 10.2 points per game. Defensively, Chris Jeffers is averaging a team-best 7.5 rebounds per game and 1.4 steals per game.
Series History vs. HoughtonEC and Houghton have played 37 times in their series history, including twice in each of the last two seasons. Elmira owns a distinct advantage in the series history, winning 32 of the 37 matchups, and own a five-game winning streak entering Saturday's matchup.
Averaging a Double-DoubleJohnathan Stowe recorded 11 points and 16 rebounds in Houghton's win over Nazareth, his fourth double-double of the season. On the season, Stowe is averaging a double-double, entering this weekend of play with per game averages of 13.0 points and 11.0 rebounds. Stowe is one of just two players in the Empire 8 to average a double-double.
