Men's Basketball Opens NEC Tournament Thursday Against Monmouth

Bobcats Open NEC Tournament Against Eighth-Seeded Monmouth
The Quinnipiac University men's basketball team faces Monmouth for the second time in eight days when they welcome the Hawks to the TD Bank Sports Center Thursday for the quarterfinals of the NEC Tournament. The Bobcats won the last meeting with the Hawks in convincing fashion, 82-63. The win gave the Bobcats a split in the season series, as the Hawks took a 72-60 victory, Jan. 2 in West Long Branch, N.J. The Hawks own a 13-10 edge in the all-time series, and the two teams have never met in the NEC Tournament.

Scouting the Monmouth Hawks
The Hawks (12-18, 8-10 NEC) are led by All-NEC forward Travis Taylor, who holds the team lead in scoring average (18.1 ppg.) and rebounding (7.7 rpg.). Will Campbell (11.5 ppg.) and Whitney Coleman (10.0 ppg) have also averaged in double figures, while freshman Ed Waite (8.9) and Rutgers transfer Justin Sofman (7.7) have also made strong contributions. James Hett has distributed 4.6 assists per game (3rd-NEC).

Last Time Against Monmouth
James Feldeine compiled a triple-double of 19 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds and Justin Rutty added 25 points and 12 rebounds as QU defeated Monmouth, 82-63, Feb. 25 in Hamden. Travis Taylor had 25 points for MU.

Last Time Out Against Fairleigh Dickinson
Jeremy Baker had 20 points and Justin Rutty added a double-double of 14 points and 13 rebounds as the Bobcats defeated Fairleigh Dickinson, 74-65, Saturday night at Stratis Arena. With the win, the Bobcats clinched their first-ever NEC Regular Season Championship, and home court throughout the league tournament.

On The Air
Thursday's game can 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. The game can also be seen on Bobcat Channel, the web streaming arm of www.quinnipiacbobcats.com. Live stats will also be available through www.quinnipiacbobcats.com. To access live audio, video and stats, click on the appropriate links on the men's basketball schedule on www.quinnipiacbobcats.com.

Rutty Named NEC Player of the Year
Justin Rutty was named NEC Player of the Year in a vote of the league's coaches, the conference office announced March 2 during its annual pre-tournament media teleconference. Rutty averaged 15.0 points and led the league with 10.8 rebounds per game in the regular season. Rutty is the first player to be named NEC Player of the Year since QU joined the league in 1998-99.

Moore Awards
After leading Quinnipiac to a program Division I record 21 victories, Tom Moore was named the Jim Phelan NEC Coach of the Year. Included in the 21 wins is a 12-0 home record. Moore is the first Quinnipiac coach to win the award.

First Team, First Team
In addition to being named NEC Player of the Year, Justin Rutty was named to the All-NEC First Team. Joining him on the team is teammate James Feldeine, who averaged a team-high 17.3 points.

QU In The NEC Tournament
The Bobcats are 5-6 all-time in the NEC Tournament. They've reached the NEC Finals once (2002) and the semifinals three times (2003, 2007, 2009).

An NEC Championship Gets The Bobcats...
An automatic berth in the National Invitation Tournament, should they falter in the NEC Tournament. The Bobcats also earned home court throughout the league tournament by virtue of the head-to-head tie-breaker with co-champion Robert Morris.

...And A Weekly Award For Good Measure
Justin Rutty averaged a double-double of 19.5 points and 12.5 rebounds in being named NEC Co-Player of the Week for the second time this season. Rutty's contributions led the Bobcats to a 2-0 win as the Bobcats clinched the NEC Regular Season Championship.

Bobcats In Bracketology
ESPN.com's Joe Lunardi has included the Bobcats in his "Bracketology" this week as one of the 65 teams projected to make the NCAA Tournament. Lunardi had the Bobcats playing top-seeded Duke in Jacksonville, Fla., in his first issue of the week, before shifting QU to the midwest region, where it would face another top seed, Kansas, in Oklahoma City.

Keeping Good Company
Quinnipiac is one of just four teams in the NCAA ranked in the top 10 nationally in both rebound margin and rebounds per game. The Bobcats rank second in rebound margin and sixth in rebounds per game. Quinnipiac joins No. 2 Kansas (10th - rebound margin, 8th - rebounds per game), No. 3 Kentucky (1st - rebound margin, 4th - rebounds per game) and Radford (9th - rebound margin, 1st - rebounds per game) in the exclusive club. Quinnipiac also ranks ninth in offensive rebounds (15.03).

Moore Wins
With 21 wins, including 15 NEC victories, the Bobcats have set new program Division I wins records, both overall and in the league. The marks edge the 1999-2000 QU team (18-10, 12-6 NEC) for the most wins.

Feldeine Climbs QU Scoring Charts
James Feldeine became the 33rd player in QU history and the seventh in program Division I history to reach 1,000 career points, Jan. 7 against Mount St. Mary's. Making the feat more impressive is that Feldeine scored just seven points in his freshman year. He currently ranks 15th in program history and fourth in QU Division I history at 1,275 points, having passed Robert Vacca '73 (1,265), with 19 points, Feb. 25 against Monmouth.

Rutty Scores 1,000th Career Point
Justin Rutty became the 34th player in Quinnipiac history and the eighth in program Division I history to score 1,000 career points, Feb. 11 against St. Francis (N.Y.). He's also on pace to challenge for 1,000 career rebounds. Should Rutty play in 30 games this year and next, his career 8.6 rebounds per game average would leave him at 1,020 boards, while his two-year average of 10.3 boards per game would put him at 1,071 rebounds. Just two prior Quinnipiac players have reached both 1,000 points and rebounds. Rutty climbed one spot on the QU career scoring list to 27th, Feb. 27 against FDU, passing Franklin Johnson '77 (1,077) while upping his career total to 1,088.

C-T State of Mind
Quinnipiac is 16-0 in games played in Connecticut, including an 12-0 mark at home. The 12-0 start at home is 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. The Bobcats are one of just 13 teams in Division I currently undefeated at home.

Eighty Up
The Bobcats are 9-0 when scoring at least 80 points this season.

QU In the RPI
The Bobcats are the top-ranked NEC team in the NCAA RPI (ratings percentage index). QU is ranked No. 143, leading the NEC's closest competitors, Robert Morris at No. 161 and Mount St. Mary's at 174.

If It's Free, It's For Me
The Bobcats have enjoyed marked improvement from the free-throw line. After seeing its season free-throw percentage dip to 65.1 percent following its Jan. 11 game against Brown, QU has shot 75.7 percent (281-371) over the last 14 games to raise its free-throw percentage to 70.9 percent.

Rutty Grabs Quinnipiac DI 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 752 career rebounds while in just his junior season, and moved into 19th all-time in the NEC with 13 rebounds, Feb. 27, at Fairleigh Dickinson.

Double-Double Dominance
Justin Rutty compiled his Quinnipiac Division I record 24th, 25th, 26th and 27th career double-doubles in the last four games. Rutty began the streak with 14 points and 16 rebounds at Saint Francis, before scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds at Robert Morris. He then scored 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds against Monmouth and added 14 points and 13 rebounds at Fairleigh Dickinson. Rutty now has 14 double-doubles this season, good for 18th in the nation.

Feldeine, Feldeine, Feldeine
With 19 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, Feb. 25 against Monmouth, James Feldeine compiled the first Quinnipiac triple-double since Kason Mims went for 18 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, March 1, 2004, against Long Island.

Twenty For The First Time In Thirty
With their 20th victory of the season, Feb. 25 against Monmouth, the Bobcats reached 20 wins for the first time since the 1979-80 team won a program record 22 victories.

Bobcats Helping Bobcats
With a season-high 25 assists, Feb. 25 against Monmouth, the Bobcats reached 25 assists for the first time since Dec. 19, 2007, when they piled up 27 assists against Dartmouth.

Rutty Sets New Offensive Rebound Mark
With 11 offensive rebounds, Feb. 18 at Saint Francis (Pa.), Justin Rutty broke his own Quinnipiac Division I single-game record. Rutty previously set the record of 10 offensive boards, Nov. 21 at Yale.

Rutty's Keeping Good Company
At 15.0 points and 10.8 rebounds per game, Justin Rutty is one of just 22 players nationally averaging a double-double.

Rutty Finding Free-Throw Stroke
Justin Rutty, a career 48.2 percent free-throw shooter, has shot 79.2 percent (38-48) from the charity stripe in the last 10 games. Included in the mark are two separate strings of at least 11 consecutive successful attempts. Rutty went 6-for-6 at Sacred Heart, the first 100 percent game of more than three attempts in his career. He followed with a 4-for-4 effort against the Pioneers, Feb. 6, and an 8-for-8 performance, Feb. 18 at Saint Francis (Pa.).

Bobcats, Rutty On NCAA Rebound Charts
Led by Justin Rutty's 10.8 rebounds per game (13th-NCAA), the Bobcats rank sixth in the nation in rebounds per game (41.1 rpg.).

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

On the Rebound
Quinnipiac has been outrebounded just once in 29 games this season, and owns a +9.6 rebounding margin, good for second 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.

Quinnipiac, Rutty Grab Top Rankings
The Bobcats are ranked ninth in the nation in offensive rebounds per game (15.0). Individually, Justin Rutty ranks second nationally at 4.9 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.

Sitting on Top of the NEC Stats
Quinnipiac ranks in the top three in the NEC in 12 of 19 statistical categories. The Bobcats are first in scoring offense (73.7), scoring margin (+7.9), field-goal percentage (.450), assist-to-turnover ratio (0.97), rebounding offense (41.1), rebounding defense (31.5), rebound margin (+9.6), offensive rebounding (15.03) and defensive rebounding (26.03). QU ranks second assists (13.34) and third in free-throw percentage (.709), field-goal percentage defense (.412).

Five In Double Figures
Five Bobcats scored in double figures, Feb. 20 at RMU. James Johnson (28) led the group, while Justin Rutty (17), James Feldeine (15), Jonathan Cruz (10) and Deontay Twyman (10) also scored in double-figures for the Bobcats, marking the first time five QU players have scored in double figures since Feb. 4, 2009, at Sacred Heart.

Johnson's Elite Company
James Johnson's consecutive starts streak reached 60 games to begin his career, Feb. 27, at Fairleigh Dickinson. 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. Having started every game this season, Johnson's streak has reached 60 games. Each player to start his first game and complete four years at QU has scored over 1,000 points. Rob Monroe, Bill Romano and Jared Grasso started their first games and rank first, second and sixth, on the Bobcats scoring list. The 60-game streak currently ranks second in program history to begin a career and fourth among all QU D-I starts streaks.

Represents Queens, Raised Out In Brooklyn
James Johnson showed his New York City toughness in scoring a career-high 28 points to defeat first-place Robert Morris on the road, Feb. 20. He went 6-11 from the floor, including all three of his three-point attempts. He connected on 13-of-16 free throws, including 11-for-12 in the final 2:25 of regulation. He added six rebounds and six assists and was named the Connecticut 6 Player of the Week.

Career Weekend For J.J.
James Johnson tied his then-career-high with 17 points against St. Francis (N.Y.), Feb. 11, before scoring a new career-high with 23 points on a career-high nine field goals, Feb. 13, against Long Island. For his 20.0 points per game effort, Johnson was named NEC Co-Player of the Week. Johnson has since set a new career high of 28 points, Feb. 20, at Robert Morris.

Cruz Control
Jonathan Cruz compiled his first two career double-doubles in a span of three games. He posted his first career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, Feb. 4, at Sacred Heart, before scoring a career-high 16 points to go along with 10 rebounds, Feb. 11, against St. Francis (N.Y.).

Charity March
The Bobcats marched to the free-throw line 52 times, Feb. 6 against Sacred Heart, and converted a Northeast Conference record 45 free throws, good for 86.5 percent. The previous high came on Feb. 9, 1991, when FDU made 44 free throws against Saint Francis (Pa.).

15 Times 4 For The Second Time
Four Bobcats - James Feldeine (22), Jeremy Baker (18), Justin Rutty (16) and James Johnson (15) - scored at least 15 points in the same game for just the second time in Coach Tom Moore's tenure at Quinnipiac, Feb. 6 against Sacred Heart. The first time came in Moore's first game in Hamden, when Bryan Geffen (19), Feldeine (19), DeMario Anderson (16) and Evann Baker (16) each scored at least 15 points in a double-overtime victory over Hartford on Nov. 11, 2007.

Ninety's Nice
In defeating Sacred Heart, 90-87 on Feb. 6, the Bobcats scored 90 points for the third time under Tom Moore. The first two efforts came within two games of each other in Moore's first season in Hamden, when the Bobcats scored 92 points in double overtime at Lehigh, Nov. 28, 2007, before scoring 90 points in regulation against St. Francis (N.Y.), Dec. 6, 2007.

Hassling Hassan
The Bobcats held Sacred Heart's Corey Hassan, the NEC's leading scorer (21.4 ppg.) and the nation's leader in three-point field goals made per game (3.7) entering their two-game NEC Rivalry Week series with the Pioneers, to just 24 points and four three-pointers on the weekend. Included in the mark was an eight-point performance without a long ball, Feb. 4, at the Pitt Center. James Johnson drew the primary defensive assignment, holding Hassan to fewer than 10 points for the first time this season.

Feldeine Earns 4th NEC Player of the Week
James Feldeine was named NEC Co-Player of the Week after averaging 24.5 points and 5.5 boards in the Bobcats' NEC Rivalry Week sweep of Sacred Heart. The award was the second of the season and fourth of Feldeine's career.

Rutty Compiles 5 Straight Double-Doubles
Justin Rutty compiled double-doubles in each of five straight games, Jan. 24-Feb. 6, padding the Quinnipiac Division I career double-doubles record with 23. He's since upped his total to 27. 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, 18 points and 15 rebounds at Mount St. Mary's on Jan. 30, and 22 points and 10 rebounds in just 25 minutes, Feb. 4 at Sacred Heart. His last double-double of 16 points and 13 rebounds came Feb. 6 against Sacred Heart.

Feldeine's Just Fine
After suffering through a 1-for-14 shooting effort, Jan. 30 at Mount St. Mary's, James Feldeine bounced back with a 27-point performance on 11-for-14 shooting, Feb. 4, at Sacred Heart.

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

Hot Shots
The Bobcats shot a season-high 60.0 percent (33-55) from the floor, Feb. 4, at Sacred Heart. It was the Bobcats' first effort of 60 percent or more since Dec. 19, 2007, when the Bobcats shot 64.7 percent (33-51) against Dartmouth.

Double Trouble
With Justin Rutty and Jonathan Cruz's double-doubles, Feb. 4 at Sacred Heart, two Bobcats compiled double-doubles in the same game for the first time since James Johnson and Rutty did it against Monmouth, Dec. 6, 2008. The Bobcats repeated the feat when Rutty and Feldeine both had double-doubles, Feb. 18 at Saint Francis (Pa.), and Feb. 25 against Monmouth. Feldeine added a third double-digit output to his stat line against Monmouth for a triple-double.

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.

Historic Start
At 14-6 overall and 8-1 in the Northeast Conference, the Bobcats completed 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

Shooting Lights Out
The Bobcats shot a then-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.

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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.

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 hope to continue play in the Northeast Conference Tournament in Sunday's semifinal round. Should the Bobcats advance, they'd play the lowest remaining seed. Opening tip from the TD Bank Sports Center would be 2 p.m., with the game being broadcast live on MSG and FCS.