Men's Basketball Faces Rutgers Tuesday on Big Ten Network
Central travels to Rutgers on Tuesday night.
December 7, 2015
The Central Connecticut men's basketball team will travel to Rutgers on Tuesday night for a game to be televised on the Big Ten Network. The 6:00 p.m. tip will mark the third straight road game for the Blue Devils who are coming off an 86-54 loss at Fordham on Saturday. Rutgers is coming off an 84-55 loss to Seton Hall in the Garden State Hardwood Classic on Saturday.
Tuesday evening's game will be televisedon BTN, with Josh Lewin handling the play-by-play and Bob Wenzel providing the analysis.
Central and Rutgers will be meeting for the first time, although CCSU will be facing a Big Ten school for the seventh consecutive season.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
CCSU (0-7) at Rutgers (3-5) | 6:00 PM | TV: BTN (Big Ten Network) | Live Stats | Listen (News Radio 1410/ESPN Radio 1300)
Newcomers Contributing
• Central has relied on the contributions of its group of newcomers this season. The group of seven newcomers to the CCSU lineup have played 52% of the team's total minutes and accounted for 48% of the team's scoring (32.1 points per game)
• Austin Nehls is 2nd on the team in scoring (11.0 ppg), while classmate Malik Toppin has averaged 5.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.0 block per game over the last three games.
Blue Devils on TV
• Central will be playing its second TV game of the season with Tuesday's game at Rutgers on the Big Ten Network.
• In addition to all of its home games being on NEC Front Row, CCSU will appear on TV a total of five more times this season.
• CCSU will have games on ESPN3 (at Boston College, Wagner), ESPNU (at Connecticut), and the Big Ten Network (at Rutgers) along with games on the Northeast Conference television package vs. LIU Brooklyn and at St. Francis Brooklyn.
Peel Leads NEC Returnees
• Not only is forward Brandon Peel the only senior for CCSU, but he is among the returning senior stats leaders of the Northeast Conference.
• Peel entered the season as the NEC active scoring leader and one of eight players with 500 career points. He currently has 695 career points.
• Peel also entered the season as the league's active leader in rebounds. With three double-doubles thus far he has pushed his total to 675 boards in his career.
• Lastly, Peel entered the year as the league's blocked shots leader and now has 140 blocks.
Cumberlander's Consistency
• Junior Khalen Cumberlander is Central's leading scorer at 14.4 points per game and 9th in the Northeast Conference.
• Cumberlander finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists against Hartford in a near triple-double. The double-double was the first of Cumberlander's career and he notched career-highs in both rebounds (12) and assists (8).
• Cumberlander has scored in double-figures in six of seven games and in 10 of the last 11 games dating back to last season.
Home of the Blue Devils Turns 50
• Dec. 4, 2015 marked the 50th anniversary of the first game at CCSU's current home court in Harrison J. Kaiser Hall.
• Central defeated Coast Guard, 109-57, on Dec. 4, 1965, in front of a crowd of 3,600 fanst. Bob Plosky scored the first points and teammate Gene Reilly led the Blue Devils with 21 points.
• Head coach Bill Detrick led CCSU to a 23-3 record in 1965-66. William H. Detrick Gymnasium was named in his honor in 1991.
History - 1,074 Wins
• This season marks the 79th season of Central basketball.
• CCSU's first year of competition was the 1934-35 season under coach Harrison J. Kaiser, whom the athletic building is named after.
• Central carries an overall record of 1,074-874 for a .551 winning percentage.
Dickenman in Overtime
• Central fell to Hartford, 92-83, in double-overtime in the opener.
• CCSU has played 32 overtime game under head coach Howie Dickenman and have a 22-10 record in 20 seasons.
• CCSU had won five straight OT games dating to Jan. 26, 2012 (56-58, Monmouth).
Sharing The Scoring
• Central has had at least three players score in double-figures in four games thus far this season.
• Khalen Cumberlander (14.4 ppg), Brandon Peel (11.0) and Austin Nehls (11.0) are all averaging double-figures scoring.
• With five players scoring in double figures against Hartford, it marked the first time since Nov. 26, 2013 against Rider that Central had five players score in double-figures.
Double-Doubles
• Senior Brandon Peel posted his third double-double of the season with 12 points, 13 rebounds vs. Binghamton.
• In his last 12 games, Peel has six double-doubles. He had eight last season and now has 15 in his career.
• Junior Khalen Cumberlander posted the first of his career with 19 points and 12 rebounds against Hartford.
Among Early NEC Stat Leaders
• Brandon Peel ranks third in the NEC in rebounding (8.4) and is 4th with 1.5 blocked shots per game.
• Khalen Cumberlander is 9th in the league in scoring (14.4), 7th in assists (3.6), and 8th in steals (1.43).
• Austin Nehls is 10th in 3-pt FG pct (38.3) and 3rd with 2.6 three pointers per game.
• Mustafa Jones ranks 5th in field goal percentage (.537).
Starting Five
• Through seven games, CCSU has experimented with five different starting lineups.
• Nine different players have started at least one game for the Blue Devils, including five players in their first year at CCSU.
• Central has started consecutive lineups in back-to-back games just twice this season.
Peel Among CCSU Career Leaders
• Peel has moved into 10th on the CCSU career rebounding list with 676 career rebounds.
• With 13 boards vs. Binghamton senior Brandon Peel has grabbed double-digit rebounds in 25 career games.
• Peel grabbed a career-high 18 rebounds against Robert Morris on Jan. 10, 2015. He had 11 rebounds at the break.
• Peel is fifth on the blocked shots list with 140.
• Joe Efese (150) is next up for Peel on the career list.
Nehls Knocking Down Treys
• Austin Nehls hit five three's against Binghamton, the first CCSU player with five in a game since Matt Mobley at RMU on 2/14/15.
• Nehls is shooting 38.3% from the arc, which is 10th in the Northeast Conference and has 18 three-pointers (2.6/game) to rank 3rd in the league.
Dickenman Milestone
• Head Coach Howie Dickenman, now in his 20th season at his alma mater, reached two milestones in a win over UMBC last year.
• Dickenman became the second coach in school history to record his 275th victory, while at the same time he recorded his 150th career home victory with the win over the Retrievers.
• Dickenman trails only his former head coach Bill Detrick in career wins. Detrick won 468 games in 29 seasons.
Up Next:
• After a 9-day break, Central hosts UMass Lowell on Dec. 18.
• The teams first played during the 1955-56 season, with CCSU winning 69-67. The Blue Devils lead the series, 8-2, and have won the last four meetings, including an 81-64 win on Feb. 23, 1985.