Dartmouth Set for Pair of Home Games This Weekend

GAME 2
Dartmouth (0-1, 0-0 Ivy) vs. Bryant (1-0, 0-0 America East)
Date: Friday, November 11, 2022 – 7 p.m.
Location: Hanover, N.H. – Leede Arena
All-Time Series: Tied, 5-5
Last Time: 11/28/21 – W, 63-61 (OT)
Watch (ESPN+) | Live Stats

GAME 3
Dartmouth (0-1, 0-0 Ivy) vs. MCLA (0-1, 0-0 MASCAC)
Date: Saturday, November 12, 2022 – 7 p.m.
Location: Hanover, N.H. – Leede Arena
All-Time Series: First Meeting
Last Time: –
Watch (ESPN+) | Live Stats

Setting the Scene
Coming off a hard-fought season-opening defeat at Fordham, the Dartmouth men's basketball team is set for its first two home games of the season when the Big Green welcome Bryant on Friday and MCLA on Saturday. Both games are set to begin at 7 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN+. Dartmouth opened its season in the Bronx on a 10-0 run and after a Rams' second-half run, the Big Green surged to within six in the final five minutes, but couldn't get any closer.

Junior Dusan Neskovic scored 16 of his career-high 23 points in the first half while senior Dame Adelekun scored 15 of his career-high 21 points in the second. Neskovic's previous career high was seven points while Adelekun's was 19. Neskovic hit his first five 3-pointers and finished 5-of-6 from deep, the first Big Green player with 5+ treys since Brendan Barry had six last Feb. 19 against Columbia. Sophomore Ryan Cornish added 14 points, including back-to-back 3-pointers in the span of 1:25 to trim a 16-point deficit down to 10 with 8:09 left in the second half.

Monday marked the first of two Atlantic 10 opponents on the schedule this season (along with Dec. 20 at UMass). It was also the first time since Dec. 16, 2021 when multiple Big Green players eclipsed 20 points. In that game at Stanford, Taurus Samuels scored 22 and Barry added 20. The 44 combined points between Neskovic and Adelekun were the most by two Dartmouth teammates in a game since James Foye (25) and Chris Knight (23) combined for 48 on Dec. 3, 2019 at Georgia State.

Friday's matchup will be against reigning NEC Champion Bryant, who the Big Green beat on the road last season. The Bulldogs are now in their first season in the America East. Saturday, Dartmouth will welcome MCLA to town in the first of four instances playing on a second consecutive night this season.

With a win on Friday...
- Dartmouth would win its home opener for a fifth straight season and for the ninth time in the last 10 tries.
- The Big Green beat Bryant for a second straight year and improve to 6-5 all-time against the Bulldogs.

With a win on Saturday...
- Dartmouth would improve to 1-0 all-time against MCLA.

Chance to Win!
The Big Green will return to the court on Friday when they host Bryant in their home opener. Opening tipoff inside Leede Arena is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN+. Students get free pizza while there will be a prize wheel for all fans. Fans can also enter to win a shot to shoot for $50K during a "Shoot, Turn, Shoot" promotion.

Last Time Out
BRONX, N.Y. (11/7/22) — Junior Dusan Neskovic and senior Dame Adelekun each eclipsed 20 points, each posting career highs in the process, but it wasn't enough as the Dartmouth men's basketball team dropped its season opener at Fordham on Monday evening. Neskovic scored 16 of his 23 points in the first half while Adelekun posted 15 of his 21 in the second half. In the end, the Big Green couldn't overcome 57 percent shooting by the Rams.

Scouting Bryant
In its first season in America East, Bryant came in at No. 2 in the preseason poll, earning two first-place votes as well. The Bulldogs are coming off a 22-10 season which saw them earn the No. 1 seed in the NEC and beat No. 2 Wagner in the Championship Game by a 70-43 final. Bryant finished 14-1 at home last season, with the only loss coming to Dartmouth in overtime.

The Bulldogs lost the nation's leading scorer from last season in Peter Kiss (who averaged 25.2 points per game) and three of their top four scorers overall. Charles Pride leads the way among returners, posting 17.7 points per game as a junior. Bryant also has an influx of transfers, led by former Saint Peter's star Doug Edert, who helped the Peacocks on a magical run to the Final Four.

In its opener, Bryant picked up a 147-39 win over Thomas (Maine). Seven Bulldogs scored in double figures, led by 23 points from Pride and 22 from La Salle transfer Sherif Gross-Bullock.

All-Time Against The Rams
The all-time series between Dartmouth and Bryant is tied at five with ironically, the visiting team winning 3-of-5 in the other's gym. Most recently, the Big Green won 63-61 in overtime last Nov. 18 at Bryant while the Bulldogs won, 64-60, the previous meeting (Dec. 21, 2019) at Dartmouth. Each of the last three meetings have been decided by four points or less. Dartmouth won the first-ever meeting between the sides, 66-62 on Nov. 19, 2011.

Scouting MCLA
MCLA is a Division III program in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference. The Trailblazers finished last season 10-13 and are 0-1 early in the 2022-23 campaign, dropping a slim 77-76 final against Norwich on Tuesday. MCLA also plays at home against Plattsburgh on Friday.

In the Norwich game, a pair of Trailblazers scored 23 points in Dylan Morris-Gray and Noah Yearsley. MCLA trailed by 11 with less than eight minutes remaining and Yearsley made a layup with 30 seconds remaining to take a lead, but a Norwich dunk with two seconds on the clock gave the Cadets the win.

All-Time Against the Trailblazers
Saturday marks the first-ever meeting between MCLA and Dartmouth.

Welcome to Dartmouth!
Head coach David McLaughlin announced in August the addition of three student-athletes in the Class of 2026 — Brandon Mitchell-Day, Jackson Munro and Jayden Williams.

Mitchell-Day, a 6-8, 205-pound forward from Creve Coeur, Missouri, was the conference player of the year for Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day (MICDS) this past winter, scoring over 1,000 points in his prep career. Twice he was named all-state and all-district, and he played AAU ball for Gateway Basketball on the Under Armour Rise Circuit.

A 6-8, 220-pound forward from Wilmette, Illinois, Munro is a product of New Trier High School, which he helped advance to the Illinois State Sectional finals by averaging around 16 points and nine rebounds a game. The Chicago Sun-Times First Team All-State selection was also a two-time All-Central Suburban League performer and named the New Trier/Thanksgiving Tournament MVP. On the AAU circuit, he made a name for himself playing with Fundamental U.

Williams, a product of Windermere Prep in Florida, was All-Florida First Team this past year along with all-district and All-Region 3 honors to his name. The 6-6, 185-pound wing averaged about 18 points and 7.5 rebounds per contest, helping the Lakers post a 20-8 record during the season. He also played AAU ball as a member of 1Family.

Captains Revealed
Last May, Dartmouth men's basketball head coach David McLaughlin revealed the three captains that will lead his squad during the 2022-23 season — rising seniors Dame Adelekun, Jackson Blaufeld and Cam Krystkowiak.

Adelekun, a 6-8, 220-pound power forward from Gastonia, North Carolina, emerged as a force in the frontcourt when Ivy League play began at the beginning of the calendar year. Injuries had limited him to just 15 games in his career while averaging just over one point. But in conference games last winter, he produced 10.6 points and 8.2 rebounds per game over the 14 contests while shooting 63.6 percent from the floor and blocking a team-high 10 shots. Those numbers led to him earning the team's Rudy LaRusso '59 Award as the most improved player as well. A 6-4, 195-pound shooting guard from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Blaufeld may have seen limited action during his career with just 17 games under his belt, but he is one of the most positive and vocal teammates the Big Green have ever seen. His work ethic in practice is unmatched, whether he is putting in extra time to improve his own game or helping his teammates get better with his intense energy and dogged determination when matching up against them. Krystkowiak, the son of former NBA player Larry Krystkowiak, is working on making a name for himself as the third captain for the Big Green next season. The 6-9, 210-pound power forward from San Diego, California, finally got a chance to play this past winter after missing his entire freshman season due to an injury. With the skills to play in the post and on the perimeter, he showed what he could do right out of the gate with nine points in the season opener at Boston College and five more with four rebounds in the win at Georgetown, including his first 3-pointer. But it was his 20-point performance in a six-point loss at California that put all of his talent on display.

Year-End Awards
The Dartmouth men's basketball team and head coach David McLaughlin announced its end-of-year team awards last May during a team banquet with guard Brendan Barry named as the A.D. "Dolly" Stark Award winner as the Big Green's most valuable player for the second time in his career. Barry, a 6-2, 180-pound graduate student from Rumson-Fair Haven, New Jersey, was selected for the All-Ivy League Second Team this past winter, ranking seventh in the conference in scoring at 14.6 points per game while leading the Ancient Eight in 3-point field goals made (85), 3-pointers per game (3.4) and 3-point accuracy (41.1 percent), not to mention minutes on the court (35.7 per game). The sharpshooter scored in double figures in 20 of the 25 games, topping 20 on five occasions with a high of 26 in an overtime contest at Florida Gulf Coast. But Barry wasn't just a scorer, leading the team with 47 assists and 40 steals, the latter of which ranked third in the conference. He also finished his career with 244 career 3-pointers, breaking the program record — in his final game that had stood for 33 years. Barry won this award in 2018-19 as well during his junior season. The Rudy LaRusso '59 Award, given to the team's most improved player, went to junior Dame Adelekun. A 6-8, 220-pound forward out of Gastonia, North Carolina, had been limited by injuries through the end of 2021, playing in just 15 games in his career while barely averaging one point per game. But when Ivy League play began as the calendar flipped to 2022, so did his production as Adelekun produced 10.6 points and 8.2 rebounds in the 14 conference contests. Not only did he lead the team on the glass, but also in field goal percentage (.636), free throws made (37) and blocked shots (10), and he scored a season-high 19 points in a 71-59 victory over Cornell.

Two players shared the John Di Iorio '56 Award for hustle, drive and determination — senior Taurus Samuels of Oceanside, California, and freshman Romeo Myrthil of Solna, Sweden. Both guards demonstrated an all-out hustling style of play that inspired their teammates that characterized the Big Green's style of play through the campaign. Samuels started all 23 games in which he played, averaging 9.4 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game while posting more than twice as many helpers (40) as turnovers (19). He was a key player in the early-season win at Georgetown where he scored a season-high 23 points, and he also tallied 22 more in a near-upset at Stanford. Myrthil saw his playing time increase as the season wore on, seeing action in 13 of the 14 league games, and averaged 2.4 points in his 18 games while shooting 50 percent (17-of-34) from the floor and 41.2 percent (7-of-17) from the perimeter. Finally, the Alvin F. "Doggie" Julian Award for spirit and enthusiasm was bestowed upon senior Wes Slajchert. A native of Oak Park, California, Slajchert played in all 25 games with nine starts, averaging 12.7 minutes and doing every little thing asked of him to contribute to the team, whether it be take care of the basketball, hit the boards and play lock-down defense. He finished the season producing 1.4 points and 1.1 rebounds per game with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 17-10, and saw action in all 84 games Dartmouth played since he arrived on campus as a freshman in 2018-19, scoring 177 points and dishing out 78 assists.

Follow Along
Friday and Saturday's games will be streamed on ESPN+.

What's Ahead?
After this weekend, the Big Green hit the road for a Tuesday night showdown at Quinnipiac. Opening tipoff is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

Schedules