The College of Staten Island men’s basketball team will be tipping off on its home floor for the first time this season this afternoon, when they host visiting Stevens Institute of Technology at the Sports & Recreation Center, at 1pm.  CSI is 3-2 coming in, and have been idle for a week having last played NCAA Division I Wagner College a week ago.  Stevens enters at 4-3, on a two game skid after a four game win streak.

CSI vs. STEVENS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AT-A-GLANCE
Matchup: CSI (3-2 overall, 1-0 CUNYAC) vs. Stevens Institute of Technology (4-3 Overall, 0-0 Empire 8)
Where: Sports & Recreation Center – 2800 Victory Boulevard, Staten Island, NY
Tip-Off: 1:00pm
Live Video: http://www.csidolphins.com/CSISportsNet
All-Time Series: Stevens leads 6-3
Last Meeting: March 8, 2014 – CSI won 75-73
Players To Watch (CSI): Senior Will Fonseca, the CUNYAC Preseason Player of the Year was recently named the conference’s player of the week, and is enjoying a fine start to the season, boasting 18.8 points and a team-best 8.0 rebounds per game.  The last time these two teams faced off, Fonseca shot just 2-11 from the field so he will be looking to bounce back from that performance.  First-year junior Khaleeq Baum is enjoying a fast start for CSI, averaging eight points and 3.4 rebounds per contest in just 18 minutes per contest.  Backcourt ace Edin Bracic leads CSI with 11 three-pointers and is averaging just under 40% from downtown.
Players To Watch (SIT): Stevens is one of the highest point-scoring teams in the nation and Patrick Barron leads the way with 23 points per game, and is a deep threat, ranked fifth in the NCAA Division III in three-pointers per game.  Evan Klimchak is right behind him at 22.5 per game while averaging 5.3 assists per game.  Alex Lorez is a key man in the middle. The senior is averaging 13.4 points and team-high 9.1 rebounds per contest to start the season for the Ducks.
News and Notes: CSI has won the last two meetings in the series which dates back to 2002.  In March of 2014 the teams met in the quarterfinal round of the ECAC Metro NY/NJ Tournament, a two-point win for CSI on their home floor.  It marked the first time CSI defeated Stevens in Staten Island.  Stevens leads the nation in assists per game with 21.8 this season, a product of their high-powered offense which is ranked 14th in the nation.  Stevens, however, has been guilty of allowing a lot of points as well, ranked near the bottom of the NCAA ranks with 90.6 points allowed per game.  Stevens has allowed a heavy-handed 95.0 points per contest in their three losses.  CSI’s magic number seems to be 70.  The team has won its last 13 games when scoring 70+ in a game and have dropped their last six when they fail to clear the hurdle.  The Dolphins have won their last five home openers, dating back to the 2010-11 basketball season.  They are 29-9 all-time in home openers (.763).  CSI has won its last five games when Will Fonseca records a double-double.  The Dolphins are 15-1 since last season in games when they out-rebound their opponents.  Stevens enjoys similar success having gone 10-5 since last season when winning the rebound battle.