WORCESTER, MA – After winning its first Liberty League title in program history, the Vassar men's basketball team is heading to Worcester, MA, to face No. 13 WPI in the first round of the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament on Friday evening. WPI serves as the region host, and the Brewers face off against the Engineers at 6:20 p.m. at Harrington Auditorium.
The Brewers are led by Liberty League Player of the Year Zach Johnson (San Francisco, CA), who averaged 14.8 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 2.9 assists in 26 games. Johnson paces the league in offensive rebounds (105, 4.0 per game) and ranks second in rebounds per game. He is also among the top ten in field goal percentage (6th) and points per game (9th).
Junior Avni Mustafaj (Yonkers, NY) is Vassar's second-leading scorer with 14.5 points a game. Mustafaj also averaged 5.6 rebounds and shot .426 from three-point range. Junior Jack Rothenberg (Yardley, PA), the Liberty League Tournament Most Valuable Player, averaged 9.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 2.7 assists. Ethan Ellis (Silver Spring, MD) tacks on 9.0 points a game and has been one of the Brewers' strongest defenders this season.
The Engineers are making their 12th NCAA appearance led by three All-NEWMAC players in John Lowther, John Adams, and Colin McNamara. Lowther, the NEWMAC Tournament Most Outstanding Player, has appeared in 24 games this season and currently leads the Crimson and Gray in scoring (15.2 ppg) while shooting at 50.2 percent. Adams ranks second in the conference in rebounding (10.3) and third in field goal percentage (53.6%). Adams has totaled 16 double-doubles thus far, ranking him second in the conference and 15th overall in NCAA Division III. McNamara ranks third and fourth in the NEWMAC in assists and steals, respectively, while leading the Engineers in both categories totaling 98 dishes and 40 steals this season.
The winner of this game will face off against the winner of the St. Joseph's (CT) and Penn State Harrisburg game on Saturday at 6:20 p.m. in Worcester.
Ticket prices are $15 per day for adults and $10 for students and seniors. All external guests must show proof of vaccination or proof of a negative COVID test prior to attending an event: either a negative PCR test within 72 hours or a negative rapid antigen test within 24 hours. The full WPI spectator policy can be found here.
