The Youngstown State men’s basketball team looks to get back to its winning ways when it visits Saint Peter’s (N.J.) on Saturday, Nov. 21, at 2 p.m. in Jersey City, N.J.
• This is the fourth meeting between Youngstown State and Saint Peter’s in a series that dates back to 1992. The Peacocks own a 2-1 advantage in the all-time series. The Guins won last season’s game, 68-64, at the Beeghly Center. The Peacocks won the first two meetings in the 1992-93 season, winning 81-68 at the Yanitelli Center and 79-67 at the Beeghly Center.
• Youngstown State Head Coach Jerry Slocum is one of 16 active coaches with more than 600 career victories. He currently ranks seventh among active Division I coaches with 622 career wins.
• The Penguins are coming off a hard-fought 70-61 loss to Kent State on Wednesday at the Beegly Center. Senior Sirlester Martin and junior Vytas Sulskis each scored 15 points and senior DeAndre Mays added 14 points in the loss to the Golden Flashes. Each player recorded season highs in scoring against Kent State.
• Martin and freshman Eddie D’Haiti each posted a team-best seven rebounds and sophomore Ashen Ward added a season-high five assists against Kent State.
• Freshman Eddie D’Haiti recorded the first double-double of his career with 12 points and 10 rebounds against Hiram on Nov. 15.
• Junior Vance Cooksey is currently ranked second in the Horizon League with a .667 field-goal percentage after three games. Cooksey has made 10-of-15 field-goal attempts this season.
• Junior Vytas Sulskis has scored 616 career points and needs 384 more to become the 32nd player in school history to score 1,000 career points.
 

A Win Will
• Improve YSU to 2-2 overall.
• Mark YSU’s second consecutive win over Saint Peter’s.
• Mark Youngstown State’s first road victory of the season.
• Mark Head Coach Jerry Slocum’s 623nd career victory and his 43rd at Youngstown State.
• YSU’s 977th victory in the program’s history.

Scouting Saint Peter’s
Saint Peter’s is currently 1-1 on the 2009-10 campaign and is coming off a 58-34 win over Monmouth on Nov. 17 at the Yanitelli Center. The Peacocks also dropped a 53-51 decision to Seton Hall on Nov. 13. Wesley Jenkins leads the Peacocks in scoring with 13 points per game while Nick Leon is averaging 10 points per contest.

Last Time Out
Three Penguins scored in double figures but the Penguins committed 19 turnovers in a 70-61 loss to Kent State on Wednesday evening. Senior Sirlester Martin and junior Vytas Sulskis each scoredl 15 points while senior DeAndre Mays added 14 points. Martin and freshman Eddie D’Haiti each grabbed seven rebounds while sophomore Ashen Ward dished out a team-best five assists.

Slocum In Select Company
Youngstown State Head Coach Jerry Slocum is in some pretty elite company. Slocum, who has 622 career wins, is one of eight active Division I head coaches with more than 600 career victories and ranks seventh among that group.

D’Haiti Nets Double-Double
Youngstown State freshman Eddie D’Haiti recorded the first double-double of his career with 12 points and 10 rebounds against Hiram on Nov. 15. D’Haiti also dished out six assists and tallied a blocked shot and a steal. The last freshman to record a double-double was Dan Boudler with 10 points and 15 rebounds against Lock Haven on Nov. 16, 2007.

Sulskis Closing In on 1,000
Junior Vytas Sulskis is inching his way toward becoming the 32nd player in school history to score 1,000 career points. Sulskis, who has scored 616 points, needs 384 more to reach 1,000. He scored 12 against Xavier (11/13), 10 against Hiram (11/15) and 15 against Kent State.

Guins Near Rebound Record
YSU’s 62 rebounds against Hiram on Nov. 15 tied for the second-highest single-game total in school history. The single-game record is 64 against Tennessee Tech on Jan. 26, 1987. The last time YSU grabbed 62 boards in a game was against Lock Haven on Nov. 16, 2007. The Guins also grabbed 62 rebounds against Point Park on Nov. 28, 1990.

Cooksey Is Cookin’
Junior Vance Cooksey has been tearing things up from the field after the first three games of the season. The 6-foot guard scored a season-high 18 points against Hiram on 7-of-8 shooting from the floor and has connected on 10-of-15 field-goal attempts this season.

Blocker Crashes Glass
Senior Dallas Blocker notched a career-high 11 rebounds in the Guin’ 81-41 win over Hiram on Sunday. His previous career best was an eight rebound performance against UIC on Jan. 8, 2009.

Guins Tops in Rebounding Margin
Currently, Youngstown State is the Horizon League’s top team in rebounding margin. The Penguins are averaging a league-best 42.3 rebounds per game while their opponents are averaging 34 boards per game for a +8.3 margin.

Sulskis Climbin’ 3-Point Chart
With a 3-pointer against Hiram on Sunday, junior Vytas Sulskis moved into sole possession of 10th place on the YSU all-time 3-pointers made list with 90. Sulskis made 39 3-pointers last season and 46 during his freshman campaign. He needs 17 more to move into ninth place and surpass Elmer Brown (106, 1998-99) with 107.

Two Top 10-Plus Rebounds For First Time in Three Season
Dallas Blocker and Eddie D’Haiti became the first duo to record at least 10 rebounds each in a single-game in almost three years when they accomplished the feat against Hiram on Nov. 15. Blocker collected a career-high 11 while D’Haiti grabbed 10 boards. The last pair to accomplish that feat was Jack Liles (13) and Quin Humphrey (12) against Green Bay on Feb. 8, 2007.

Mays Named to All-Newcomer Team
Senior DeAndre Mays became the third Youngstown State player in four years to be named to the Horizon League All-Newcomer Team last year. Mays, a native of Dallas, Texas, is averaged 10.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. His 3.5 assists per game ranked tied for fifth in the Horizon League while 10.7 points per game ranked 20th. He also averaged 11.4 points per game against Horizon League opponents. The other two Penguins named to the Horizon League All-Newcomer Team under Head Coach Jerry Slocum were Vytas Sulskis (2007-08) and Keston Roberts (2005-06).

Martin Cleaned the Glass
Last season, senior Sirlester Martin was a dominant force on the boards. The 6-foot-7 forward led the Penguins and ranked second in the league with 7.3 rebounds per game. He posted four double-doubles and recorded 10-or-more rebounds six times.

Blocker’s Back
Youngstown State senior Dallas Blocker is back in the lineup after battling cancer at the end of last season and this past summer. Blocker, who averaged 4.4 points and 3.1 rebounds per game, was diagnosed with cancer on Feb. 12 and missed the Penguins’ last seven games. After two surgeries and chemotherapy, Blocker was given a clean bill of health on Sept. 11.

Sulskis Closed Out Strong
Junior Vytas Sulskis finished the 2008-09 campaign on a high note. Over the last 10 games of the season, Sulskis averaged 12.7 points per game and scoring in double figures in eight of those contests.

Mays Came To Play
Over the final seven games of last season, senior DeAndre Mays was impressive. Mays averaged 11 points, 3.4 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game game. Against Green Bay on Feb. 12, Mays lit up the Phoenix for a game-high 21 points on 5-of-11 shooting from the field. He also made 10-of-14 shots from the free-throw line. The Dallas, Texas, native poured in 15 points in the 70-68 win over Milwaukee on Feb. 14. He scored 13 points against Saint Peter’s on Feb. 21.

Guins Ink Kendrick Perry During Early Signing Period
Youngstown State signed Kendrick Perry, a 6-foot point guard, to a National Letter-of-Intent during the early signing period. Perry, who hails from Orlando, Fla., was a preseason first-team all-conference and all-district selection. Over the summer, he led his AAU team to a third-place finish at the national tournament.