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Wayne Cavadi | krikya18.com | January 4, 2019

DII men's basketball: We picked a starting five based on the best stats from the season's first half

Shaw Athletics Amir Hinton leads DII men's basketball in scoring with 34.3 points per game.

Let’s take a position-by-position look at the statistical leaders from the 2018 half of the DII men’s basketball season. This is the first installment of our monthly look at the DII dream starting five lineup based purely on stats.

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G — Amir Hinton, Shaw

Hinton is the current active leader in DII points per game after a stellar two years at Lock Haven. Now with the Bears, Hinton has been an absolute beast, yet to score below 24 points in any of his ten games this season. He’s broken the 40-point barrier three times, with a season-high of 52 on Dec. 19 for a 34.3 point-per-game average that's best across all three divisions. 

G — Juvaris Hayes, Merrimack

This spot could have gone to Glenville State’s Darhius Nunn who is averaging 22.3 points per game with a DII-best 9.6 assists per night. But Hayes' all-around game is one of the best in DII basketball. Hayes led DII in assists as a freshman in 2017 and followed that up by leading DII in steals as a sophomore. He’s once again delivering in all facets of the game, scoring 21.5 points per game while ripping down 6.9 rebounds, dishing out 6 assists, a stealing a DII-best 4.1 balls per game. 

F — Will Vorhees, Notre Dame (OH)

Alonzo Ortiz-Traylor is the top scoring forward in DII, dropping 24.9 points per game for winless LIU Post, but Vorhees gets the first nod at forward. The senior forward isn’t far off the leader, averaging 23.6 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. He’s posted a double-double in eight of his ten games played this season and is adding 1.5 blocks per night as well. 

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F — Shaun Willett, Queens (NC)

Willett has led the Royals back to the top of the South Atlantic Conference, at least for the time being. The 6’4 forward leads DII in double-doubles, recording one in 11 of his 14 games. He’s also third in the division in rebounds, pulling down 11.6 boards a game combining for 33 rebounds in his last two contests before the break. Willett needed to step up this season to keep Queens competitive and thus far he’s answered the call. 

C — Andrew Sischo, Daemen

Sischo and the Wildcats opened 2019 on the right foot, upsetting No. 4 St. Anselm and moving to 10-1 on the year. The redshirt-sophomore is a big part of that. Sischo leads all centers in points (21.4 per game) and is second at the position in rebounds at 10.4 per game. He adds more than a block per game and you better watch him if he steps outside the arc. The 6’9 big man is 3-for-4 from 3 on the year. 

MORE: Programs with the most DII titles | DII basketball news

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