Albertus Magnus College
Men's Basketball GNAC Tournament Preview

#2S Albertus Magnus (17-9)
vs.
#1N Emmanual (Mass.) (18-8) 
Friday, Feb. 24th • 7:00 p.m. • Jean Yawkey Center - Boston, Mass. 

POSTSEASON CONTINUES

The Albertus Magnus College men's basketball team has earned the No. 2 of the South Division in the upcoming Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament.

Following the Falcons' quarterfinal win over the fourth-seeded Chargers of Colby-Sawyer College of the North Division, the blue-and-white will face off against No. 1 seeded Emmanual (Mass.) College from the North Division in the semifinals on Friday, February 24th. Tip-off is set for 7:00 PM inside the Jean Yawkey Athletic Center in Boston, Mass.       

POSTSEASON NOTES

• This year marks Albertus' 22nd all-time appearance in the GNAC Tournament.
• The Falcons own a 38-13 overall record in the league tournament.
• AMC has won eight consecutive home GNAC Tournament games. 
• Albertus has won eight GNAC Tournament Titles, with head coach Mitch Oliver leading them to seven championships.
• Albertus is aiming for its 11th straight championship game appearance, just seven shy of Gonzaga University and Whitworth University championship appearances total of 18. 

2022-2023 RECAP

• Albertus opened the season with a challenging non-conference schedule, which included contests against Amherst College, Mitchell College, 14th-ranked Keene State, and in-state, Division I neighbor Quinnipiac University.    
• The Falcons kicked off the month of December with their conference opener against Emmanual (Mass.) College and suffered a hard-fought 83-79 loss. 
• AMC then reeled off back-to-back victories over Dean College and Norwich University before losing to non-conference challenger Kean College. 
• After the Cougars' loss, Albertus rallied for four victories over Nichols College, Regis (Mass.) College, Anna Maria College, and Colby-Sawyer. 
• A home setback against No.1-ranked USJ-CT preceded a six-game winning streak, wherein the Falcons bulldozed their way through Lasell University, Elms College, Saint Joseph's College of Maine, Dean College, and Johnson & Wales University. 
• During their six-game winning streak, the Falcons took down NESCAC challenger Connecticut College in a thrilling 73-70 overtime victory. 
• Albertus finished the regular season with a 4-2 stretch, defeating JWU, Elms, and Lasell for a second time while also taking down conference-opponent Rivier University.  

LAST TIME OUT

• The Falcons soared through the conference quarterfinal round with a 128-74 victory over the Chargers.
• The 128 points scored was a new program record for points in a single game, eclipsing the previous high of 125 set in 2019 against Lesley College. 
• Justice Washington (Hamden, Conn.) and Antonio Bonilla (Tenafly, N.J.) led the charge for the Falcons, scoring 21 and 20 points, respectively. 
• Bonilla's six made three-pointers led all players and marked the third time this season that Bonilla has hit six+ threes in a single game. 
• Malcolm Duncanson (West Haven, Conn.) also put together a stellar performance for the blue-and-white, scoring 13 points, one off his season-high 14 points, set against Regis (Mass.).      

GNAC TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

QUARTERFINALS (at high seeds) - Tuesday, February 21 
GAME 1: #4S JWU 63 at #1N Emmanuel 74
GAME 2: #3N Colby-Sawyer 74 at #2S Albertus Magnus 128
GAME 3: #3S Regis 63 at #2N Saint Joseph's Maine 79
GAME 4: #4N Anna Maria 62 at #1S St. Joseph CT 101

SEMIFINALS - Thursday, February 23 
GAME 5: #2S Albertus at #1N Emmanual (Mass.) 
GAME 6: #2N Saint Joseph's Maine at #1S St. Joseph CT 

CHAMPIONSHIP - Saturday, February 25 
GAME 7: at the highest remaining seed

SCOUTING ALBERTUS MAGNUS
Points Per Game: 84.4 PPG (1st in GNAC)
Rebounds Per Game: 46.8 RPG (1st in GNAC)
Assists Per Game: 13.5 APG (8th in GNAC)
Scoring Defense: 75.3 PPG (9th in GNAC) 

ALBERTUS MAGNUS PLAYER & TEAM HIGHLIGHTS

• AMC is led by Bonilla, returners Terry Dawkins (The Bronx, N.Y.), Kevin Crawford (Bridgeport, Conn.), and Washington, and freshman point guard Tazhon Daniels (New Haven, Conn.).  
• Bonilla is second on the team with 285 points and leads the Falcon's squad with 61 made three-pointers.
• Bonilla also cemented himself in the program-record books with a 36-point performance against Saint Joseph's College of Maine, including ten made three-pointers.  
• Dawkins has been an absolute menace in the paint for the Falcons, placing third in the conference with a career-high 427 points and fifth with 199 rebounds. 
• Albertus leads the country in rebound margin (+13.6), is third nationally in rebounds per game at 46.88, and is fifth in offensive rebounds per game (16.81). 
• Dawkins also scored his 1,000th career point in the 102-83 victory over Lasell College earlier in the year. 
• Elsewhere, teammate Washington has been equally dominant in the paint, leading the GNAC with 240 rebounds and 61 blocks, to go along with a career-best 242 points.
• The Falcons also lead the conference in blocks per game with 4.7.  
• Crawford is fifth on the team with 160 points scored and sets a career-high with 87 rebounds and 65 assists.
• On the sidelines, head coach Mitch Oliver earned his 300th career victory with a triumph over Dean College on January 22nd.          

SCOUTING EMMANUAL (Mass.) 
Points Per Game: 78.2 PPG (4th in GNAC) 
Rebounds Per Game: 37.2 RPG (6th in GNAC)
Assists Per Game: 15.2 APG (2nd in GNAC)
Scoring Defense: 72.7 PPG (4th in GNAC) 

THIS YEAR VS. EMMANUAL (Mass.)

• (12/03/2022): Emmanuel (Mass.) 83 | Albertus Magnus 79 BOX SCORE
• Dawkins led the Falcons with 21 points, while teammates Washington and Daniels with 13 and 10 points, respectively.