Men’s Basketball Opens At Home This Weekend

HUNTINGDON, Pa. – Entering his twelfth season as Juniata's head men's basketball coach, Greg Curley faces one his most challenging tasks as he prepares his squad for a daunting 2012-13 schedule.  Curly, who is only the third men's basketball coach to reach the 12 year mark, is Juniata's winningest coach with 136 victories.  The Eagles open their season at home this Friday, Nov. 16 at 7:30 p.m. against Kean University in the annual Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament.

The 2012 Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament runs this Friday, Nov. 16 through Saturday, Nov. 17 in the Kennedy Sports+Recreation Center.  Mt. Aloysius and Penn State Altoona open the tournament at 5:30 p.m. on Friday with the Eagles closing the night against Kean at 7:30 p.m.  The losers from Friday will play at 2 p.m. on Saturday in the consolation game, while the winners compete for the championship at 4 p.m.

Curley will be counting heavily on just two returning seniors to lead the way, 5-7 point guard Alex Raymond (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Altoona) and 6-6 forward Nate Higgins (St. Mary's, Pa./Elk County Catholic).

The pair return for their fourth year, while a nagging shoulder injury has sidelined guard Mike Walker (Homer City, Pa./Homer City).  He will serve as a student assistant coach for his final season.

The cupboard is not all bare though, as Curley returns a strong class of juniors led by forward Brian Scholly (State College, Pa./State College), guard Jeremy Hays (McMechen, W. Va./John Marshall) and guard Kevin Stapleton (Indiana, Pa./Indiana). Guards Pat Cassidy (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg Area) and Lucas Mellott (Warfordsburg, Pa./ Southern Fulton) saw significant playing time last year along with Kevin Snyder (Indiana, Pa./Indiana) and Dimitri Ross (Petersburg, Va./Appomattox Regional Governer's).

Curley will also be looking to mix in a talented but untested group of five freshmen.

"I think we are still finding out what kind of team we will be," Curley noted as he took a break from practice. "Our overall balance and our willingness to work hard should be our strengths as we get started but I am concerned that we don't have an identity yet."

Those concerns will be tested early as the Eagles embark on their toughest non-conference schedule in some time before entering conference play in January.

After hosting Washington & Jefferson (Nov. 20) and Dickinson (Nov. 24), Juniata will face tough challenges as they travel to Carnegie Mellon (Nov. 27) before hosting the annual Doc Greene Memorial Tournament Dec. 7-8 that includes Farmingdale State, Valley Forge Christian and Eastern.  They then travel to St. Vincent (Dec. 16) and play in the St. John Fisher Holiday Tournament (Dec. 29-30).

The Eagles will then begin the grind of Landmark Conference play when they host Scranton University (Jan. 5) and Catholic University (Jan. 9) to start the new year.

"Our goal is to win the Landmark Conference Championship," said Curley.  "We came close last year but I think our seniors understand just how difficult that is now. I think the conference is probably the deepest and most competitive since I have been here and overall this is the most difficult schedule we have ever faced."

Entering his final season Raymond is already among the career leaders in three point shooting.  The 2011-12 second-team all-conference selection is currently tenth all-time with 116 treys and is sixth in career assists with a total of 279 at Juniata. With 906 career points heading into this season, Raymond will be looking to hit the 1,000 point mark before graduating.  He averages just over 300 points per year. 

Last year Hayes broke the school record for steals, registering 70 takeaways, and ranks fifth all-time with a total of 127.

The Eagles posted a 19-10 record during the 2011-12 season while going 9-5 in Landmark Conference play.  They advanced to the conference championship game where they fell to Scranton University 78-70 (Feb. 25). Juniata then closed the season by reaching the semifinals of the ECAC South Region Tournament where they fell to eventual South title winner Alvernia 65-62 (March 3).

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