Men's Basketball Begins NEC Rivalry Week Thursday At Sacred Heart On CTSN, FCS

Bobcats Begin Home-and-Home Series With Sacred Heart Thursday
The Quinnipiac University men's basketball team begins a home-and-home weekend series with Sacred Heart, Thursday night in Fairfield. The game can be seen live on the Connecticut Sports Network, Fox College Sports, ESPN Full Court and DirecTV Channel 617. Mount St. Mary's snapped the Bobcats' eight-game winning streak Saturday. The Pioneers have lost two straight, falling to the Mount on Thursday, before a taking tough 74-73 defeat Saturday at Wagner. Though the Pioneers own a 36-19 edge in the all-time series, the teams have split the last 20 meetings.

Scouting the Sacred Heart Pioneers
The Pioneers (12-9, 5-5 NEC) are led by the NEC's leading scorer in Corey Hassan (21.4 ppg.). Hassan and seven-foot center Liam Potter have each grabbed 7.8 rebounds per game. Ryan Litke averages 14.5 points per game, while Chauncey Hardy has chipped in 13.1 per contest for the Pioneers, who've scored a league-high 74.2 points per game. Jerrell Thompson has dished out a team-high 4.6 assists per game.

Last Time Against Sacred Heart
James Feldeine led five Bobcats in double-figures with a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds as the Bobcats defeated the Pioneers, 66-64, at the Pitt Center. Jeremy Baker scored 11 points in his return from injury, while Joey Henley and Corey Hassan each had double-doubles for Sacred Heart.

Last Time Out Against Mount St. Mary's
Justin Rutty compiled his NEC-leading eighth double-double of the season with 18 points and 15 rebounds, but the Bobcats were defeated at Mount St. Mary's, 61-56. Shawn Atupem scored 16 points for the Mount, while Deontay Twyman had 13 for QU.

On The Air
Thursday's game can be seen live on the Connecticut Sports Network (CTSN), Fox College Sports and ESPN Full Court. The game can also be heard live on AM 1220 WQUN. Bill Schweizer will have the play-by-play call, while Bill Mecca and Bob Tipson will provide color commentary. Sacred Heart will provide a live video feed through its website, www.sacredheartpioneers.com. Live stats will also be available through www.sacredheartpioneers.com. To access live audio, video and stats, click on the appropriate links on the men's basketball schedule on www.quinnipiacbobcats.com.

Feldeine Reaches 1,000 Career Points, Climbs Charts
With 17 points Jan. 7 against Mount St. Mary's, James Feldeine became the 33rd player in Quinnipiac history and the seventh in the program's Division I history to reach 1,000 career points. Making the feat more impressive is that Feldeine scored just seven points in his freshman season of 2006-07. He currently ranks 22nd in program history at 1,141 points, having passed Robert Lynch '76 (1,136) and Jared Grasso '02 (1,134), Jan. 28, at Wagner. Having passed Grasso, Feldeine now ranks fifth in QU Division I history.

Rutty Grabs Quinnipiac Division I Rebound Record
With 11 rebounds against Wagner on Jan. 9, Justin Rutty took over the Quinnipiac Division I Rebound lead from Bill Romano '02 (580). Rutty currently has 658 career rebounds while in just his junior season. Rutty previously passed C.J. Vick '05 (577), Kason Mims '04 (548) and Jeremy Bishop '03 (547).

QU In the RPI
According to www.kenpom.com, the Bobcats are the top NEC team in the RPI (ratings percentage index). QU is ranked No. 172, with the next-closest team being Robert Morris at No. 217.

C-T State of Mind
Quinnipiac is 11-0 in games played in Connecticut, including an 8-0 mark at the TD Bank Sports Center. The 8-0 start at home ties for the best in program history. Ironically, Quinnipiac has started three of the last four decades with at least seven straight home victories. Quinnipiac started the 90's 8-0 at home in 1990-91 and the 80's 7-0 in 1980-81.

Rutty Approaching 1,000 Career Points
Justin Rutty currently stands at 955 points, just 45 shy of becoming the 34th player in Quinnipiac history and the eighth in program Division I history to score 1,000 career points. He's currently on pace to challenge for 1,000 career rebounds. Should Rutty play in 30 games this year and next, his career 8.3 rebounds per game average would leave him at 982 boards, while his two-year average of 10.1 boards per game would put him at 1,052 rebounds. Just two prior Quinnipiac players have reached both 1,000 points and rebounds.

Rutty Earns Second CT6 Player of the Week
With averages of 16.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, Justin Rutty earned his second Connecticut 6 Player of the Week Award on Feb. 1. Rutty posted a pair of double-doubles as the Bobcats split a pair of road contests at Wagner and Mount St. Mary's. Rutty had 15 points and 10 rebounds in victory over Wagner, before scoring 18 points and grabbing 15 rebounds in defeat at Mount St. Mary's. The pair of double-doubles give Rutty 21 for his career, while the Mount St. Mary's performance was his sixth career 15-15 game.

Rutty Compiles 3 Straight Double-Doubles
Justin Rutty has compiled double-doubles in each of his last three games, padding the Quinnipiac Division I career double-doubles record with 21. Rutty passed Jeremy Bishop '02, who had 18 double-doubles for QU, with a 26-point, 14-rebound performance against CCSU on Jan. 24. He then added to his total with 15 points and 10 rebounds at Wagner, Jan. 28, and 18 points and 15 rebounds at Mount St. Mary's on Jan. 30.

On the Rebound
Quinnipiac has outrebounded each of its opponents this year, and owns a +9.7 rebounding margin, good for third in the nation. The NEC all-time best in rebound margin for a season was set by FDU in 1997-98, when the Knights finished at +9.1.

Bobcats, Rutty On NCAA Rebound Charts
Led by Justin Rutty's 10.4 rebounds per game (15th-NCAA), the Bobcats rank 12th in the nation in rebounds per game (41.2 rpg.).

Quinnipiac, Rutty Grab Top Rankings
The Bobcats are ranked sixth in the nation in offensive rebounds per game (15.6). Individually, Justin Rutty ranks sixth nationally at 4.4 offensive boards per game, a year after finishing second in the nation behind only Pittsburgh's DeJuan Blair (5.6 oreb/game) with 4.6 offensive caroms per game.

If At First You Don't Succeed...
42.7 percent of the Bobcats' rebounds have come on the offensive end, fifth-most in the NCAA.

Sitting on Top of the NEC Stats
Quinnipiac ranks first in the NEC in nine of 19 statistical categories and second in two others. The Bobcats are first in scoring defense (63.6), scoring margin (+7.6), field-goal percentage defense (.407), rebounding offense (41.2), rebounding defense (31.6), rebound margin (+9.7), assist-to-turnover ratio (0.92), offensive rebounding (15.57) and defensive rebounding (25.67). QU ranks second in scoring offense (71.1) and field-goal percentage (.443).

Johnson's Elite Company
James Johnson's consecutive starts streak reached 52 games to begin his career, Jan. 30, at Mount St. Mary's. Johnson became just the eighth freshman in QU Division I history to start his collegiate debut, and started all 31 of Quinnipiac's games in 2008-09, joining just 19 other freshmen in the nation to start every game their team played. With the start in each of this season's contests, Johnson has stretched the streak to his first 52 games as a Bobcat. Each player to start his first game and complete four years with the Bobcats has scored over 1,000 points. Rob Monroe, Bill Romano and Jared Grasso started their first games and rank first, second and fifth, respectively, on the Bobcats D-I scoring list. Johnson joined teammates Justin Rutty and Evann Baker as current players who started their debuts.

Historic Start
At 14-6 overall and 8-1 in the Northeast Conference, the Bobcats completed were off to their best start in program Division I history, both overall and in the NEC. The 14-6 mark was also the Bobcats' best since the 1979-80 season under legendary coach Burt Kahn, when Quinnipiac went 15-5 through 20 games. Prior to this season, Quinnipiac had never gone better than 11-6 overall at the Division I level or 5-1 in the NEC.

Taking Care of the Ball
The Bobcats went six straight games in which they dished out more assists than they committed turnovers, prior the Jan. 30 Mount St. Mary's game. Included in the stretch was a run of five of six games with nine turnovers or fewer. In total, Quinnipiac dished out 87 assists while turnover the ball over 51 times, good for a 1.71 assist-to-turnover ratio. In less than three seasons, Tom Moore's QU teams have had 11 single-digit turnover games. In the prior nine seasons at D-I, QU had seven.

Any Day of the Week
With the Bobcats' victory against CCSU on Sunday, Jan. 24, Quinnipiac has now won at least one game on each day of the week this season.

Thrivin' Twyman
Deontay Twyman stepped up his game in the Bobcats' eight-game winning streak. He averaged 9.1 points per game in the stretch after scoring at a 4.3 points per game clip in 12 prior games. Twyman has also dished out 14 assists in the last six games while turning it over just twice in the span.

Baker Cooking
Jeremy Baker averaged 10.1 points per game during the Bobcats' eight-game winning streak. He got to the free-throw line with some regularity during the stretch, connecting at 80.0 percent (32-40), including a span of 20 consecutive made free throws.

Century 14
James Feldeine ran three of his career statistical records past hundred markers, Jan. 21, against Bryant. He surpassed 1,100 points, 400 rebounds and 100 steals for his career in the game.

Bench Best
Led by Deontay Twyman's 16 points, the QU bench scored a season-high 32 points Jan. 21. The mark topped QU's best bench output of 25 points, compiled two games earlier at CCSU.

'Cats Scratch Out Season-High 14 Steals
The Bobcats made a season-high 14 steals, Jan. 21, against Bryant. Five Bobcats had two steals each, while four more had one apiece. The double-digit steals effort was the third of the year for QU, which had 11, Dec. 23, against Columbia, and 10 more, Nov. 24, at Maine.

Feldeine Honored Twice
James Feldeine was named the Connecticut 6 and Northeast Conference Player of the Week, Jan. 18, after leading the Bobcats to three wins the week prior. Feldeine averaged 18.3 points while shooting 60.0 percent (21-35) from the floor, including 61.5 percent (8-13) from long range in wins against Brown, CCSU and Bryant.

Seeking Perfection
21 of the Bobcats' season-high 28 made free throws at Bryant came from five players who were perfect on the day from the stripe. Jeremy Baker led the group with a 7-for-7 performance, while James Johnson (4-4), James Feldeine (4-4), Deontay Twyman (4-4) and Ryan Bogdan (2-2) were also perfect from the line.

The Q Can Play D, Too
The Bobcats held Central Connecticut to 29.2 percent (14-48) from the floor, Jan. 14 in New Britain. It was the Bobcats' first sub-30 percent field-goal percentage defensive performance since Jan. 15, 2009, when QU held St. Francis (N.Y.) to a program Division I best 25.4 percent.

En Fuego From Three
Quinnipiac shot a season-high 63.6 percent (7-11) from long range, Jan. 14, at CCSU, easily besting their previous best on the season, a 44.4 percent (4-9) showing, Jan. 9, against Wagner.

Bedeviling Performance
Quinnipiac easily scored its largest margin of victory against Central Connecticut, Jan. 14, defeating the Blue Devils by 31 points. The previous mark was set during the 1961-62 season, when Quinnipiac defeated CCSU by 16 points.

30-Plus
Quinnipiac outscored an opponent by 30-plus points for the first time in the Tom Moore era, Jan. 14, at CCSU. The 76-45 victory was the first 30-point win for QU since Nov. 22, 2006, when the Bobcats beat Division II Concordia (N.Y.), 106-57, at the Burt Kahn Court.

Dutch Boys
The Bobcats outscored Brown in the paint, 58-16, Jan. 11 at the TD Bank Sports Center.

Free 'n' Easy
QU recorded its second-best performance from the free-throw line, connecting at an 80.8 percent (21-26) clip, Jan. 7, against Mount St. Mary's. Included in the mark was a 4-for-5 performance from Justin Rutty, a career 42.8 percent free-throw shooter. Rutty's two free throws with QU leading by two with five seconds left made it a two-possession game. The two free throws proved necessary as the Mount's Jeremy Goode hit a three at the buzzer as QU won by one. The Bobcats then made 20 more free throws against Wagner, Jan. 9.

Johnson & Johnson - 14 & 14
Dave and James Johnson had more than their last name in common, Jan. 2, at Monmouth. The duo each scored 14 points, a career-high for Dave.

Shooting Lights Out
The Bobcats shot a season-high 57.7 percent (30-52) against Dartmouth, Dec. 30, besting their previous best of 55.4 percent, Dec. 8, at Rhode Island.

Rebounding Dominance
The Bobcats outrebounded an opponent by 20 or more rebounds for the second time this season, Dec. 30, against Dartmouth. Quinnipiac took a 42-22 advantage on the boards against the Big Green after taking a 23-rebound advantage against Yale, Nov. 21, in New Haven.

Lion Tamers
The Bobcats held Columbia to just 26.1 percent shooting in the second half, Dec. 23. Quinnipiac ran away with the victory, outscoring the Lions, 15-1, during a span of 5:53 in the decisive stanza.

Action Jackson
Jamee Jackson had seven points and eight rebounds, including a career-high seven offensive rebounds, Dec. 23, against Columbia.

Feldeine Seeing 20-20-20-20-20
James Feldeine scored at least 20 points in five straight games against Navy, Massachusetts, Fairleigh Dickinson, Rhode Island and Vermont. He averaged 23.0 points in the span.

3 Straight With 20-Plus For 2
The Bobcats had two players score at least 20 points in each of three straight games, Dec. 5, 8, and 13. James Feldeine and Justin Rutty accomplished the feat against Fairleigh Dickinson and Rhode Island. Meanwhile, Jeremy Baker scored 22 points and Feldeine added 21 at Vermont. Rutty scored 23 and 30 points against FDU and Rhode Island, respectively, while Feldeine had 22 and 28.

Rutty, Feldeine Scoring Explosion
Justin Rutty (30 points) and James Feldeine (28 points) both ranked in the top five in the nation in single-game scoring, Dec. 8, at Rhode Island. Rutty ranked second, while Feldeine ranked fifth.

Rutty Atop ESPN Nightly Rankings
Justin Rutty ranked as the most productive player in the nation, Dec. 8, as decided by the ESPN Rating. The ESPN Rating weighs points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, turnovers, field goals, three-point field goals and free throws. Rutty scored 30 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and made four steals.

Dynamic Duo
Justin Rutty and James Feldeine combined for 58 points, Dec. 8, at Rhode Island. The 58 points between two players are the third-most by Bobcats teammates in QU Division I history. Rob Monroe (41) and Karl Anderson (20) combined for 61 points against Division II Longwood, Jan. 2, 2005, while Monroe (32) and Craig Benson (27) scored 59 combined points, Dec. 4, 2004, at Robert Morris.

Give a Dime, Take a Dime
The Bobcats tied their season-high with 17 assists, Dec. 5, against Fairleigh Dickinson.

Small Man, Big Game
Dave Johnson had a breakout performance against Fairleigh Dickinson on Dec. 5, establishing new career highs in points (10), assists (6) and steals (3).

Bobcats Sign Two For 2010-11
Quinnipiac Head Coach Tom Moore has announced the signings of Ike Azotam (Boston, Mass.) and Dominique Langston (Bridgeport, Conn.) to National Letters of Intent. Azotam is a 6-foot-7 forward currently enrolled at Marianapolis Prep in Thompson, Conn., for a post-graduate year. Langston, a 6-foot-3 guard also opted for a post-grad year, and is attending St. Thomas Moore in Oakdale, Conn.

Bobcats In NEC Openers
With a win Dec. 5 against Fairleigh Dickinson, Quinnipiac improved to 7-5 in Northeast Conference openers, including a 3-0 mark under Head Coach Tom Moore.

Grabbing A New High Again
The Bobcats shattered their previous record of 24 offensive rebounds in a single game at the Division I level with 28 offensive caroms at UMass on Dec. 2. Quinnipiac's previous high of 24 was accomplished just three games earlier at Yale on Nov. 21. Justin Rutty was monumental in both efforts, grabbing 10 offensive boards at Yale and nine at UMass.

10 Great Minutes
The Bobcats held Navy without a field goal for a stretch of 10:29 in the second half, Nov. 30. The Midshipmen managed eight points, all on free throws, in the span.

Fordham Elevates Grasso To Head Coach
Jared Grasso '02 has been elevated to Interim Head Coach at Fordham University after more than three years as an assistant coach at the school. Grasso, who played for four years at QU (1998-02) and served as an assistant coach during the 2005-06 season, is sixth on the Quinnipiac Division I career scoring list with 1,134 points. In addition to his scoring record, he's second in three-point field goals (216), third in assists (404) and three-point field goal percentage (39.4%) and fourth in free throws made (233).

Getting Defensive
The Bobcats held Maine to just 30.6 percent (19-62) shooting on Nov. 24, including just 25.9 percent (7-27) in the second half. The Black Bears converted just two of 16 three-point attempts (12.5 percent).

Bo Knows Offense
James Johnson scored 16 points, including 4-for-6 shooting from long range, at Maine. The output was just one point off his previous career high of 17 points, scored twice last season.

Feldeine Gets Fifth
James Feldeine compiled his fifth career double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds at Lehigh, Nov. 18.

Rutty Named NEC, CT 6 Player of the Week
For his average of 21.0 points and 11.0 rebounds in the Bobcats' 1-1 week, Justin Rutty was named both the Choice Hotels NEC Player of the Week and the Connecticut 6 Player of the Week. Rutty scored 19 points and added eight rebounds in a loss at Lehigh, before exploding for 23 points and 14 rebounds, 10 on the offensive glass, at Yale.

Downright Offensive
Justin Rutty scored 23 points and grabbed 10 of his 14 rebounds on the offensive glass in the Bobcats' Nov. 21 victory over local rival Yale.

Rebounding First
Led by Justin Rutty's 10 offensive rebounds, the Bobcats grabbed 24 offensive rebounds at Yale.

Clutch Free-Throw Shooting
With Yale closing quickly on QU's lead down the stretch on Nov. 21 in New Haven, James Johnson and James Feldeine stepped to the charity stripe and combined to go 10-for-10 in the final minute and a half of play.

QU Picked Second In CT6 Poll
Quinnipiac was picked second in the Preseason Connecticut 6 Coaches' Poll. Fairfield claimed the top spot, while Sacred Heart immediately followed the Bobcats in third. Central Connecticut, Yale and Hartford rounded out the poll.

Rutty Picked To Preseason CT6 Team
Justin Rutty was selected as Quinnipiac's representative on the Preseason Connecticut 6 Team. Joining Rutty were CCSU's Shemik Thompson, Fairfield's Anthony Johnson, Hartford's Joe Zeglinski, Sacred Heart's Corey Hassan and Yale's Alex Zampier.

Bobcats 3rd In NEC Coaches' Poll
The Northeast Conference's coaches selected the Bobcats to finish tied for third in the league this season. Mount St. Mary's claimed the top spot, followed by Long Island. Robert Morris was selected to tie QU for third, while Central Connecticut ranked fifth. Sacred Heart, St. Francis (N.Y.), Fairleigh Dickinson, Monmouth, Wagner, Bryant and Saint Francis (Pa.) rounded out the poll.

Saying "No" To Joe
The Quinnipiac defense once again clamped down on Hartford's Joe Zeglinski, one of the most potent scorers in the America East Conference. After scoring 12 points in the first half of this year's meeting, aided by a 30-foot desperation heave off glass that fell at the halftime buzzer, the Bobcats didn't allow Zeglinski another point in the second half. The Bobcats held the 2007-08 First-Team All-America East selection to just two points on 1-for-10 shooting on Nov. 14, 2008. Zeglinski's career scoring average was 14.6 points entering the contest. He had reached double-figures in 34 of his prior 37 games. The output tied Zeglinski's career low, set during his freshman season, Feb. 3, 2007, at Boston University.

Moore of the Same
Head Coach Tom Moore has won the season opener in each of his three years at QU, all coming against Hartford. Prior to Moore's arrival to Hamden, no Quinnipiac team had won its first game of the season during the school's Division I era. Teams that have had Moore serving on the coaching staff have won 10 consecutive season openers. The last time one of Moore's teams didn't win its first game was Nov. 11, 1999, when defending National Champion and top-ranked UConn was upset by Iowa in the Coaches vs. Cancer IKON Classic. None of Quinnipiac's other five coaches all-time won their first three season openers, and only Burt Kahn won three straight at any point. Kahn won three straight three times, including six straight from 1967-68 through 1972-73.

On Deck
The Bobcats complete their home-and-home series against Sacred Heart when the Pioneers visit the TD Bank Sports Center Saturday afternoon. Opening tip is scheduled for 3 p.m. in Hamden.