The Quinnipiac men’s basketball team is set for its home opener against in-state rival Yale on Friday at 5:30 p.m. at the TD Bank Sports Center in Hamden as part of the annual Connecticut 6 Classic. This is Quinnipiac’s first time hosting the event.
The Bobcats are slated to take on the Bulldogs after Yale ended Quinnipiac’s season last year. Yale defeated Quinnipiac 69-68 at the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.
Moore added that Quinnipiac’s three seniors, Ousmane Drame, Evan Conti and Zaid Hearst, will play a large role in the Bobcats success heading into the 2014-15 season.
“Our seniors, everything that we do or be will be depended on their leadership, their toughness, their growth and how well they lead our new guys,” Moore said. “They have been through a lot of big games for us and they have helped us win a lot of big games over the years.”
Moore has high expectations for his incoming freshman class, as well. He spoke highly of freshman point guard George Dimitri Floras, who he believes will have the biggest impact of all the newcomers.
“Dimitri might make the biggest impact early on because he will have the ball in his hands for stretches in games,” Moore said. “He is a combo guard but is playing more of the one right now so he will handle it quite a bit.”
Freshman forwards Chaise Daniels and Samuel Dingba will also see significant floor time early on, according to Moore. The two should be players Connecticut residents are familiar with. The Hillhouse and Putnam Science Academy standout, Daniels, and the Salisbury School forward, Dingba, have made an early impact.
“The two inside kids, Chaise Daniels and Samuel Dingba, will both play a lot,” Moore said. “They have shown already that they can play at this level. They have some growing pains and some things they have to learn but Chaise has great size and knows what he is. Samuel has great size and has as great a motor as any kid we have had coming in.”
The Bobcats have the second game of the triple-header in the tournament. Central Connecticut State takes on Fairfield at 3 p.m., Quinnipiac takes on Yale at 5:30 p.m. and Sacred Heart University takes on University of Hartford at 8 p.m.
