Take Two: Men's Basketball Hosts RIC In Little East Semifinals Monday Evening

After a three-day wait created by an unforeseen travel issue, the UMass Dartmouth men's basketball team begins its quest for the 2021 Little East Conference tournament title on Monday evening, as the Corsairs have clinched the top seed in this year's league championships and will welcome fourth-seeded Rhode Island College to the Tripp Athletic Center for semifinal round action that tips-off at 6:00 pm EST.
 
Head Coach Brian Baptiste's squad recorded a 6-2 slate during an abbreviated regular season schedule this winter, with all of those contests coming in Little East play against Castleton, Plymouth State, Rhode Island College, Keene State and Eastern Connecticut.  UMass Dartmouth edged out Keene State by a half game to grab the top seed, as the Corsairs will take aim at claiming the 12^th conference tournament crown in program history and their first since 2009.
 
Baptiste, who has won 668 games in his illustrious 38-year career that ranks second all-time among current NCAA Division III coaches, boasts one of the region's most talented backcourts that has been led by junior Marcus Azor (Brockton, Mass./Brockton), who averages 14.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists per contest.  Senior captain Jake Ashworth (Fairhaven, Mass./Bourne) follows at 14.1 ppg and 5.3 rpg and has been deadly once again from behind the arc with 22 three-pointers in eight outings, while junior Adam Seablom (Lakeville, Mass./Apponequet) is also averaging in double figures at 10.1 ppg to go with 5.3 carons per contest.
 
Junior Dhalyn Sanders-Dyer (Worcester, Mass./Holy Name) is averaging nine points off the bench for UMass Dartmouth, which has received 7.9 ppg from freshman Isaac Percy (Pittsfield, Mass./Taconic) along with an identical 7.5 points and rebounds per game from sophomore Jackson Zancan (Cumberland, R.I./Cumberland).  Junior Sean Leahy (Hanson, Mass./Whitman-Hanson) has chipped in with nearly five points and 3.5 rebounds per outing for the Corsairs, who average just under 80 points per game and have connected for 67 three-pointers (8.3 per game) as a team.
 
Rhode Island College amassed a 1-5 mark under Head Coach Tom Glynn this season, as sophomore Shion Darby leads the Little East in scoring at 20.8 ppg while adding 5.5 rebounds and five assists per outing.  Freshman Dante Law follows at 19.2 ppg and 5.2 rpg for the Anchormen, who have received 12.5 points and 6.8 boards from freshman Jordan Riley along with 8.8 caroms per contest from Ousmane Kourouma.
 
UMass Dartmouth swept both regular season matchups from Rhode Island College, as the Corsairs collected an 85-72 victory at the Tripp Athletic Center on February 6^th and followed that up five days later with a 77-70 triumph at The Murray Center in Providence, R.I.
 
The winner of Monday's UMass Dartmouth-Rhode Island College matchup advances to face second-seeded Keene State for the Little East tournament crown on Thursday evening at the home of the highest remaining seed at 6:00 pm EST.  The Owls punched their ticket to the championship game by holding off third-seeded Eastern Connecticut by an 80-79 final on Friday evening at Spaulding Gymnasium in Keene, N.H.
 
Unfortunately, COVID-19 restrictions prohibit spectators from attending Monday night's semifinals, but you can follow all of the action at corsairathletics.com and view the broadcast at littleeast.tv.  For more information on this year's Little East Men's Basketball Championships, visit littleeast.com.
 
UMass Dartmouth Roster
 
UMass Dartmouth Statistics

Rhode Island College Roster
 
Rhode Island College Statistics
 
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Little East Championship Central