WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – William & Mary men's basketball continues its Colonial Athletic Association opening week when it welcomes Northeastern for a New Year's Eve matinee. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. from Kaplan Arena and the game will be televised on Cox YurView Virginia.
The contest will also be streamed on
FloHoops. Tribe fans can catch the men's basketball action over the Tribe Sports Network with Jay Colley and Bobby Dwyer on the call. Locally in Williamsburg, fans can listen in on The Tide 92.3 FM with Andrew Phillips and Jeremy Martin calling the action.
Catch up with the Tribe through social media. Fans can keep up with W&M men's basketball by following the program on social media as well. Be sure to check out the Tribe on
Twitter (@WMTribeMBB),
Facebook (WMTribeMBB), and
Instagram (WMTribeMBB).
- W&M and Northeastern did not meet during the regular season last year, but did square off in the CAA Quarterfinals. The Tribe led the Huskies, 28-25, at the half, before NU rallied for the 63-47 win. Three of the last six meetings between the teams have been decided by only one or two points, including two Tribe wins in 2020 that came down to the final possession. W&M holds a 10-3 advantage in Williamsburg, while NU has a slim 16-14 lead in the overall series.
- In winning its CAA opening win over Hofstra, the Tribe turned in a standout defensive performance. W&M limited the Pride to season lows in field goal % (30.2), 3-point % (17.6), points (62) and points per possession (0.85). Hofstra entered the game shooting 47.5% from the field, best in the CAA and top 50 nationally, 36% from 3-point range and averaging 80.1 points, which was 38th in the country.
- Defensively, the Tribe has limited three of its last six opponents to a point or less per possession. W&M held two of the country's top scoring and most efficient offenses to some of their worst performances. At Davidson on Dec. 4, W&M limited the Wildcats, who rank No. 23 nationally in offensive efficiency (1.11), to just a point per possession. Last time out, the Tribe held Hofstra to a season low 0.85 points per possessions. The Tribe also had a season-best defensive efficiency of 0.84 against Hampton on Dec. 9.
- The Tribe's trio of freshmen -
Langdon Hatton,
Tyler Rice and
Julian Lewis - ranks among the top CAA rookies (players without previous college experience) in scoring, rebounding and assists. Lewis is among the league's top six freshmen in all three categories at No. 6 in scoring (5.6) and second in rebounding (4.0) and assists (2.1). Rice leads all rookies in assists (3.8) and is fourth among league rookies in scoring (6.6), while Hatton is fifth in scoring (6.6) and third in rebounding (3.6).
- Sophomore
Connor Kochera, who is reigning CAA Rookie of the Year, ranks among the top 22 in the CAA in both scoring and rebounding. He is 22nd in the league at 11.5 points per game and 17th with 5.3 rebounds per contest. He scored a season-high 19 points vs. Fairfield and recorded his second career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds against Old Dominion. A preseason All-CAA Second Team pick, Kochera is 10th in the CAA in steals (1.5) and ninth in minutes played (32.2).
- For the second-straight season, W&M ranks as one of the youngest teams in the country according to KenPom.com. After being the 34th youngest team in 2020-21, the Tribe is the 11th youngest team this season, averaging just 0.97 years of experience. W&M has started four freshmen and sophomores in each contest in 2021-22, including all five starters on seven occasions. The two classes have accounted for 78.1% of the team's minutes (2186-of-2800) and 79.2% of its scoring (682-of-861).
- Sophomore
Ben Wight has been the Tribe's most improved player in 2021-22. He ranks 28th in the CAA in scoring (10.9), while coming in ninth in the league in rebounding (5.8). Earlier this season, Wight scored 18 points at Wake Forest and tallied a career-high 20 points vs. Mary Baldwin on Nov. 27. He also posted his first career double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds at Navy. Wight ranks third in the CAA in field goal % (60.0) and 14th in blocked shots (0.6).
- Freshman
Tyler Rice has proven to be one of the top assist men in the CAA. The point guard ranks fifth in the CAA at 3.8 assists per game. His assist average is the second-best for a W&M freshman in program history. According to KenPom.com, his assist rate of 31.5 is 67th nationally. In the opener at Wake Forest, Rice dished out nine assists which were the most for a Tribe freshman in a debut in program history. He scored in double figures on four occasions, including a career-high 16 points at Navy and against Old Dominion.
- Wight is one of the top rebounders in the CAA. He ranks fourth in the league in offensive rebounding at 2.9 per game and ninth in rebounding overall at 5.8. Nationally, he is 56th in offensive rebounds per game and 69th in offensive rebounding rate (13.2), according to KenPom.com. He pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds, including nine on the offensive end, at Navy.
- Four former W&M players are either playing or coaching in the NBA. Nathan Knight '20 signed his second two-way NBA contract and is with the Minnesota Timberwolves. He saw action in 33 regular-season games, averaging 3.8 points and 2.2 rebounds per game for the Eastern Conference Finalist Atlanta Hawks in 2020-21. Jim Moran '01 is an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons. Sean Sheldon '16 is the San Antonio Spurs head video coordinator, and Daniel Dixon '17 is the Charlotte Hornets' assistant video coordinator.
