07-08 Men's Basketball

Introduction

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11.03.07

Men’s Basketball Team Wins Season Opener

LAKE WALES, Fla- The Royals defeated the Florida Christian College Suns on Saturday, November 03, 2007 with an impressive 55 point win, 101-46. From the first score of the game until the final whistle, the Royals never trailed the Suns.

Leading scorers for the Royals were Preston Adams with 19, Brandon Hamilton with 15, and 3 players scoring 13: Dennis Bender, Adam Branch, and Alex Castillo.

“Although we did score 101 points and have 6 players with double-digit scores, I feel we could shoot the ball better as a team,” said Coach Sean Hanrahan.

Every eligible Royal not only played in tonights win, but every player that saw the court contributed points.

“It’s good to get everybody in, especially getting minutes for some of the young guys,” Hanrahan said.

The Royals are back on the court Wednesday, November 3, 2007 in Lake Wales against Johnson & Wales University with a 7:00 gametime.

11.01.07

Warner Southern men’s basketball ranked 19th in VSN’s National Top 25 for NAIA Division II

GRAND ISLAND, Neb.- The Warner University men’s basketball team was nationally ranked 19th in the Victory Sports Network’s NAIA Division II Preseason Top 25 Poll. VSN voted Northwestern College (Iowa) as the preseason favorite to win the NAIA D-II championship and last season’s champion MidAmerican Nazarene University (Kan.) as number two.

The Royals were the only team in the Florida Sun Conference to land in the VSN preseason poll; the team finished with a 19-11 overall record and a 8-4 record in FSC play under first year coach Sean Hanrahan. Warner Southern returns nine players including four starters that finished second in conference play and was ranked as high as 16th in the country. 

Among the returnees are All FSC players Brandon Hamilton (Jr., Sarasota, Fla.) and Errol Porteous (Sr., Brooklyn, N.Y.) who was the seventh leading offensive rebounder in the country last season. Also returning is FSC Freshman of the Year Alex Castillo (So., Winter Park, Fla.). One of the Royals best recruits will be junior college All-American Odessa College (Texas) transfer Sean Jackson (Jr., Sanford, Fla.).

The Victory Sports Network was founded to become a promoter of NAIA collegiate athletics. Its mission is to give fans, coaches, and players of small college basketball a place to find out the latest information on NAIA basketball. VSN columnist Eddie Bobbitt compiled the poll.

The Warner Southern men’s basketball team opens its 2007-08 season at home facing Florida Christian College on Saturday, November 3 at 7 p.m.

05.07.07
Men's Basketball
Royal Recruits

Pictured below, Kenny Ebanyat, Adam Branch, Coach Sean Hanrahan.

Head Coach Sean Hanrahan has signed new recruits for the 2007-2008 season. Warner University and the Runnin' Royals would like to welcome Van Ferguson and Adam Branch.

Before transferring to PHS, Ferguson attended Frostproof High School; during his junior year, he averaged 15.2 ppg and 5.9 rpg. Ferguson was the 3A District 10 Player of the Year, named to the Big Blue Classice All-Tournament team and Frostproof Team MVP.

1st Team All-State 3A, Adam Branch

While at Paintsville High, the 6-3 guard, averaged 16.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, and 4.2 apg in his senior year. He led the team with 21 blocks, named to the Tiger Hoops Classic All-Tournament team, Gatorade East Kentucky All-Star and Boys All-Mountain 2nd Team.

In 2006, Branch made the All-County (Putnam) team and was named the All-County Player of the Year and the 1st team All-Area. He was also a Putnam County top 50 scholar and a member of the National Honor Society.

 

In his senior year, Branch averaged 22 ppg, 11.2 rpg, and shot 63% fromt he field and 74% from the free throw line. His team won the district championship and made it to the Sweet 16 in the state tournament. During his tenure in high school, Branch broke four school records, most free throw attempts and makes (321-200), field goal % in a season (64%) and rebounds in a career (653).

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09.18.06
Men's Basketball
Join the Royals' Court Club

If you are interested in being a part of the Royals' Court Club Boosters, click on the link to download a brochure.

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2007 Runnin' Royals Basketball

 

Back row (left to right): Claudio Pinheiro, Mike Tolliver, Brandon Hamilton, Chris Brach, Dwayne Abraham, Kenny Ebanyat (assistant coach), Sean Hanrahan (head coach), Brad Yates (student assistant), Errol Porteous, Danny Miller, Alex Castillo, Marco De La Cruz, Dennis Bender.

Front row (left to right): Brandon Taylor, Brett Collins, Larry Cherry, Tommy Kleinschnitz, Maurice Johnson, Preston Adams, John Daniel, Logan Brewer, Justin Cockrell.

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02.14.07
Men's Basketball
JOHNSON’S LAST SECOND THREE PUTS ROYALS IN CONTENTION FOR FIRST PLACE FINISH

JACKSONVILLE, FL - The Warner University men’s basketball team faced tough competition tonight at Edward Waters College. A 50-47 victory tonight put the Royals in a good spot to take first place in the Florida Sun Conference.

WSC hit a run of bad luck with losses against Northwood University (58-88) on the road and Florida Memorial University (64-66) at home. This victory put the Royals at 8-3 in the conference and 18-9 overall.

“Both teams struggled from the field,” said head coach Sean Hanrahan, “but, we defended well.”

In the last few seconds of the game, the Royals in-bounded the ball at 47-47; Maurice Johnson was handed the ball and hit a deep three-point shot to win the game.

The Royals last regular season game is on Saturday, Feb. 17 against conference rival Webber International University at 7 p.m. in the Turner Athletic Center.

02.07.07
Men's Basketball
Johnson's Layup in Last Seconds Gives WSC 68-66 Victory Over SCAD

SAVANNAH, GA - Maurice Johnson’s steal and layup with 2.2 seconds remaining allowed No. 17 Warner University to escape the Ron Love Athletic Center Wednesday (Feb. 7) evening with a 68-66 Florida Sun Conference men’s basketball victory over the Savannah College of Art and Design.

The Royals, which have won six of the seven meetings with SCAD, remained in first place in the Florida Sun with a 7-1 league mark and are 17-7 overall. SCAD dropped its fourth consecutive game and fell to 10-17 and 2-7. Six of the seven conference losses for the Bees have been by four or fewer points. SCAD closes out the home portion of its schedule with a 4 p.m. conference tilt against Embry-Riddle (Fla.) University Saturday (Feb. 10) at Savannah High School.

The Bees had taken a 66-63 lead on senior Gerard Bowden’s jumper with 1:33 remaining. After each teams missed scoring opportunities, Warner Southern tied the game at 66 when Alex Castillo found Chris Brach open in the left corner and Brach drained the three with 8.8 seconds. On the ensuing inbounds play, Johnson knocked the ball away from Bowden near the three-point line, collected the ball and laid it up for the game-winning basket. After a SCAD timeout, the Bees’ halfcourt shot fell short as the horn sounded.

Johnson led four Warner Southern players in double figures with 17 points while Brandon Hamilton added 15. Castillo tallied 13 points and a team-high seven rebounds while Brach finished with 10 points. Eze Andrews led the Bees with 21 points, nine assists and four blocks while Bowden contributed 14 points and eight rebounds. Tim Stammen also finished in double digits with 12 points.

WARNER SOUTHERN 68, SCAD 66

WARNER SOUTHERN (17-7, 7-1 FSC) - Maurice Johnson 6-8 4-5 17; Brandon Hamilton 4-8 6-7 15; Alex Castillo 6-11 0-0 13; Chris Brach 4-8 0-0 10; Errol Porteous 3-10 1-2 7; Preston Adams 1-5 1-1 4; Mike Tolliver 1-2 0-0 2; Danny Miller 0-2 0-0 0; Marco DeLaCruz 0-0 0-0 0; Tommy Kleinschnitz 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-54 12-15 68.

SCAD (10-17, 2-7 FSC) - Eze Andrews 8-14 5-7 21; Gerard Bowden 4-10 3-4 14; Tim Stammen 4-10 2-2 12; Ron Kus 3-7 2-2 9; Peter McDonald 2-7 1-1 5; Chas Johnson 2-5 0-0 5; Kevin Polit 0-0 0-0 0; Andrew Dapore 0-0 0-0 0; Brandon Davis 0-0 0-0 0; Brandon Chambers 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-53 13-16 66.

Halftime-Warner Southern 30, SCAD 27. 3-point goals-Warner Southern 6-18 (Chris Brach 2-5; Preston Adams 1-4; Brandon Hamilton 1-4; Maurice Johnson 1-1; Alex Castillo 1-4), SCAD 7-14 (Gerard Bowden 3-6; Tim Stammen 2-4; Ron Kus 1-2; Chas Johnson 1-2). Fouled out-Warner Southern-None. Rebounds-Warner Southern 27 (Alex Castillo 7), SCAD 34 (Eze Andrews 9). Assists-Warner Southern 10 (Alex Castillo 4), SCAD 16 (Gerard Bowden 5). Total fouls-Warner Southern 14, SCAD 11. A-74.

01.30.07 - ERAU Site
Men's Basketball
Adams 22 Second-Half Points to Lead WSC to 58-57 Comeback Victory Against ERAU

DAYTONA BEACH , FL - Orlando native and Boone High School product Preston Adams came out a little cold as is expected at times in your freshman season, but the rookie quickly heated up in the second half and virtually took control of the game scoring 22 points to lead Florida Sun Conference first-place Warner University (16-7 overall and 6-1 in the FSC) to a 58-57 road victory against Embry-Riddle University Tuesday night.

Adams, who was 0-for-4 in the first half (0-for-2 beyond the three-point arc), was 9-for-10 in the second half with four three-pointers. ERAU (19-6 overall, 4-3 in the FSC) pushed the lead to 13 early in the second half and Adams kept the Royals in the game hitting back-to-back threes keeping it a 10-point game. Denver Cobb gave Embry-Riddle a 43-30 lead on his three-point at the 15:12 mark of the game, but Adams countered with a jumper and Maurice Johnson followed with a three-pointer to cut the advantage to single-digits at 43-35. The Royals were potent from beyond the arc in the second half converting 66.7 percent from downtown (6-of-9 and four from Adams).

The Eagles regained a 10-point lead on Tyler DeBord's layup 10:02 left, but Adams was relentless on the offensive end of the floor canning two more long-range buckets to trim the margin to 48-44 with 7:59 remaining. Following a Houston Wright layup, Adams took over once again with a jumper and after an Eagle miss he came back with a driving layup to make it a two-point game 50-48 with just over seven minutes to go.

Alex Castillo tied the game with a jumper at the 4:50 mark and Drew Whitaker gave the Eagles a 51-50 lead splitting a pair of free throws. Johnson made 1-of-2 from the charity stripe to tie the game at 51 and then current FSC Player of the Week Brandon Hamilton sank a three-pointer with 1:43 left to give Warner Southern a 54-51 lead - their first lead since 12-11 at the 11:48 mark of the first half.

DeBord brought it back to a one-point game with a layup with 1:17 to go, but Adams converted another layin to push it to 56-53 Royals. Cobb got loose around the tight pressure by WSC guarding against the three and made it a 56-55 ballgame with 49 ticks left. After the teams traded timeouts Alex Castillo took the ball into the lane and was fouled by Cobb with 22 seconds and he calmly converted both attempts to give the Royals a 58-55 lead.

After a Warner Southern timeout, the Eagles passed on the three-pointer to tie the game as DeBord drove the lane for the layup and the foul by Errol Porteous. However, DeBord missed the free throw, but the ball went off a Warner Southern player and back to the Eagles with eight seconds to go. ERAU took its final timeout of the game and inbounded the ball to DeBord who bobbled it for a second and turned to the basket but his layup attempt hit off the bottom of the backboard and then after a scramble for the board Drew Whitaker came up with it, found Ryan Ridder on the wing, but his three-point attempt missed and Porteous grabbed the board to end the game. Porteous had seven points, but most importantly 13 boards (10 defensive) on the evening, and Hamilton added 11 points, five rebounds and three steals.

DeBord finished with 14 points, six rebounds, three assists and two blocks, while Cobb led the Eagles with 20 points. Ryan Exter returned to the lineup and was 0-for-3 playing just 14 minutes.

The Eagles schedule gets no easier as they travel to Northwood on Saturday, Feb. 3rd for a 4 p.m. tip-off, while Warner Southern is idle this weekend before the five-hour trip to Savannah College of Art and Design next Wednesday Feb. 7th at 7 p.m.

01.17.07
Men's Basketball
Warner Southern Royals Defeat Legend Rollie Massamino’s Seahawks 87-69

LAKE WALES, Fla. - It is not everyday that Lake Wales Florida plays host to an NCAA Division I, National Championship Coach, but that was just the case tonight as Warner University Royals (WSC) faced the nationally ranked 17 (NAIA II), Northwood University Seahawks (NU) and Head Coach Rollie Massimino who led Villanova to the NCAA I title in 1985.

WSC (12-7, 2-1) did not let the legend get in the way of the job at hand defeating NU (14-5, 1-2) 87-69.

WSC came out strong in the first half going on a 7-0 run, with Brandon Hamilton scoring a quick five points, and only relinquished the lead twice the entire game.

After a time out by Northwood they broke the lead down to two points (17-15) at the half-way mark of the period.

NU then tied the game at the 19 minute mark; the two teams went back-and-forth for the next ten minutes until a 12-2 run gave the Royals a 37-26 lead. NU’s Ward helped the Seahawks back into the contest, scoring the next 10 Northwood points to lead the Seahawks on a 12-4 run to close the half. WSC headed into the locker room with a 41-36 lead.

The second period of play saw WSC leading 46-42 at the 17 minute mark, with solid defensive play by Errol Porteous, who was strong under the boards posting crucial defensive boards for the Royals.

NU cut the WSC lead to one, Northwood then took a 54-53 lead on the strength of a 10-2 run early in the second half before the Royals took control, holding the Seahawks to just four baskets over the final 12:26 while scoring 10 of their own. Five different WSC players scored during the pivotal stretch, led by Adams with 10.

WSC exploded offensively and defensively the second period finishing off the Seahawks 87-89.

Sophomore Brandon Hamilton led the Royals with 20 points, as he was one of four WSC players in double figures. “We played as a team and stuck to our principles tonight; pulling together and trusting one another was what gave us the edge tonight,” said Hamilton.

Sophomore Chris Brach chipped in 16 while junior Errol Porteous added 14 and freshman Preston Adams notched 12 posting key shots in the second period controlling the tempo of the game for WSC.

“We played hard and never gave up, coming up strong all night, we had the desire tonight,” said Adams. Porteous also grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds as the Royals held a 47-31 edge in rebounds in the contest. Senior Maurice Johnson dished out a game-best six assists.

“The key to our victory tonight was stopping their big post players” said, WSC Head Coach Sean Hanrahan. “We were outsized at the four-guard all night, but we took care of the ball in the second period and played team oriented basketball.”

Warner Southern continues action Saturday as they travel to Florida Memorial for a 7:30 p.m. contest.

01.15.07
Men's Basketball
Royals Tight Match Against SCAD Brings Win

LAKE WALES, Fla. - The Warner University men's basketball team improves its conference record to 1-1 as they win a tight match over Savannah College of Art and Design, 74-71.

The Royals played a great game against SCAD; they were outscored by the Bees, 29-35 at the half. The Royals jumped out to a 4-point run to take the lead in the second half. With under two minutes left, the score tettered back and fourth until Alex Castillo hit a clutch, 3-point shot; great defense and a pair of free throws by Castillo sealed the lead for the Royals.

Leaders for the Royals were Alex Castillo (18 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks), Brandon Hamilton (16 points, 5 rebounds), Maurice Johnson (11 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists) and Errol Porteous (11 points, 4 rebounds, 2 blocks).

Key players for the Bees were Eze Andrews (21 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks), Xavier Blain-Cruz (19 points), and Peter McDonald (12 points, 7 rebounds, 4 steals).

The Royals host Northwood University Wednesday, January 17 at 7 p.m.

01.10.07
Men's Basketball
Runnin' Royals Lose Tight Game to ERAU

LAKE WALES, Fla. - The Warner University men's basketball team lost to nationally ranked, conference rival ERAU (8) 78-86 in the home opener of conference play.

After a great first half, the Royals hit a last second two-pointer to tie the game 40-40.

Coming back out the Eagles took the lead, but the Royals tied the game at 51-51. With eight minutes left in the second half, the Royals trailed the Eagles 12 points (62-74).

Great efforts by the Royals brought the game within six points. But the Royals would end up fouling four times before the end of the game.

Errol Porteous led the Royals with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore Brandon Hamilton chipped in 15 points, with Preston Adams dropping in 11 points on the night.

The Eagles' Denver Cobb had 18 points and 8 rebounds, with teammates Nick Miller (17 points), Tyler DeBord (16 points) and Drew Whitaker (14 points) backing him up on the offense.

The Royals host Flagler College Saturday, Jan. 13 @ 7 p.m.

11.08.06
Men's Basketball
Porteous and Hamilton Spark Men’s Basketball Victory over Johnson and Wales

LAKE WALES, Fla. - The Warner University men’s basketball team defeated Johnson and Wales University 88-66 last night taking the Royals to a perfect 3-0 start for the season.

Leading the Royals efforts for the night was junior transfer Errol Porteous (Broward CC), who posted a double double with 10 points, 14 total boards and two assists. “We came out of the locker room confident and ready to play, we have a good time playing together and I just knew from the start that we were going to win,” said Porteous.

Sophomore Brandon Hamilton (Sarasota H.S.) led the Royals scoring efforts with 21 points on the evening, shooting 50 percent from the field and posting seven rebounds and three assists.

Freshman Point Guard Preston Adams (Boone H.S.) posted 14 points for the night while Senior Maurice Johnson (Wharton H.S.) followed with 13. “Our overall rebounding (13 RBM) and assists (21.7 APG) ratio over our opponents is really helping us post the wins,” said head coach Sean Hanrahan.

“I am very pleased with the defensive effort these guys have put out day in and day out. I am also excited to see such offensive, unselfishness,” said Hanrahan. “We have 20 assists for the third straight game, which is a credit to their team chemistry.”

The Royals are now 3-0; ranked in the top three in the country in 3-point field goal percentage, with 58 percent in three games. Overall, the Royals are shooting 56 percent from the field.

The Royals continue action on November 14, as they travel to Tallahassee to face NCAA Division One FAMU.

“As a team we look forward to the challenges ahead with our next three road games, where we will face FAMU (D1), Rollins (NCAA II, picked #1 in Sunshine State Conference pre-season rating) and Bethune-Cookman (D1). Playing teams as strong as these will further prepare and build us as a unit as we look ahead to conference play,” said Hanrahan.

10.28.06
Men's Basketball
Runnin' Royals Season Opener is a Victory

Lake Wales, Fla. - The Warner University Runnin' Royals defeated NAIA Division II opponent Fisher College, 91-84, Saturday night.

Coach Hanrahan was very happy with the unselfish play of the entire team offensively.

Leading scorers for the Runnin' Royals were sophomores Brandon Hamilton (22) and Chris Brach (19) and freshmens Preston Adams (18) and Alex Castillo (14).

"We scored 91 points in a total team effort with two sophomores and two freshman leading us in scoring," said Coach Hanrahan.

The Royals dished out a combined 23 assists, 3 blocked shots, 23 defensive rebounds and 14 offensive rebounds.

"Defensively, Michael Newcombe (Fisher College) was a very good player and we had a tough time stopping him," said Coach Hanrahan. "He made several good shots."

But overall, Coach Hanrahan was very pleased with the overall game.

Leading Fisher College in points was Newcombe (40), Jofre Cruz (22) and Stephen Rice (10). As a team Fisher College had 11 assists, 13 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive rebounds.

The Royals travel to Clearwater Christian Thursday, November 2 at 7 p.m.

Royals Hold Number One Spot (6-1) in the FSC after defeating 7th Ranked Embry Riddle 58-57.

LAKE WALES, FL - After a 58-57 victory over No. 7 nationally-ranked, Embry-Riddle Tuesday night, the Royals jump on the map as the No. 16 nationally ranked team. The Royals have taken a giant lead over ERAU as they move down to NO. 21.

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Posted in the Orlando Sentinel: Friday, August 18, 2006

Chris Warren, John Harper and Preston Adams were the big winners Thursday at the 15th annual Midnight Basketball awards luncheon.

Dr. Phillips' Warren was presented the leadership award. He is a senior major-college basketball prospect.

Harper, now a freshman at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, was presented the Paul Snead Jr. scholarship award for his academics, leadership and basketball at Pine Castle Christian Academy.

Adams, now a freshman at Warner University in Lake Wales, received the Seifert Miller Scholarship Award for his academics, leadership and basketball at Boone.

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