By Steven M. Glassman

Director of Sports Information

March 11, 2024

PETERSBURG, VA—United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division I University of Maine-Fort Kent (12-14) freshman guard Maksim Vukcevic scored 24 points as the eighth-seeded Bobcats defeated the seventh-seeded Manor College Blue Jays (12-8), 80-72, in the USCAA Division I Men's Basketball Small College National Championships Consolation Bracket game at National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region X Division II Richard Bland College of William and Mary.

Manor led 11-4 with 16:33 remaining on sophomore forward Cheikh Diagne's (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast) three-point basket. Fort Kent went on a 11-3 run between 15:30 and 13:07 (a 2:33 stretch) and took the lead for the remainder of the half, 15-14, on a junior forward Veljko Culibrk's free throw.  The Bengals opened up its first double-digit lead, 25-15, on sophomore guard Jordan Guerrero's three-point basket with 11:21 left.  They led by 37-26 on Culibrk's layup with 7:05 remaining.  The Blue Jays twice got within six, 32-26, with 4:57 remaining on senior Eddie Fortescue Jr's (Blue Bell, PA/Wissahickon) free throws and, 42-36, with 0:55 left on Fortescue Jr's layup.  Fort Kent led 42-36 at halftime.  Freshman guard Manny Roach (Medford, NJ/Life Center Academy) led both teams with 12 points.  Vukcevic paced the Bengals with 10 points.

Fortescue Jr tied the game at 44 with 17:12 remaining on a layup. Diagne tied the game again at 47 with 16:30 left on a three-point basket.  Fort Kent answered with a 12-1 run between 16:19 and 13:41 (a 2:38 stretch) and opened up a 59-48 lead on Vukcevic's layup.  Manor responded with a 16-1 run between 13:21 and 9:48 (a 3:33 stretch) and led 64-60 on Roach's steal and layup.  The Bengals scored 10 straight points between 8:49 and 5:41 (a 3:08 stretch) and led 70-64 on Vukcevic's jump shot. The Blue Jays answered with a 6-1 run between 4:56 and 1:31 (a 3:25 stretch) and got within 71-70 on sophomore forward Bryce Nwobu's (Marlton, NJ/Cherokee) layup. Fort Kent outscored Manor in the second half, 38-36.  Roach led both teams with 18 points.  Nwobu came off the bench and paced both teams with 10 rebounds. Vukcevic paced Fort Kent with 14 points and freshman guard Briton Franklin led both benches with 11 points.

Statistical Leaders: Roach led both teams with 30 points and Nwobu scored 12 points and paced both teams with 14 rebounds. Diagne scored 11 points.  Junior guard Namir Simmons (Philadelphia, PA/Academy Park) paced Manor with five assists.  Fortescue Jr led the Blue Jays with four steals.

In addition to Vukcevic, Culibrk added 11 points and led both teams with three blocked shots. Franklin paced both benches with 13 points. Sophomore forward Aiden Grady led Fort Kent with nine rebounds.  Junior guard Katsuya Sasaki paced both teams with nine assists.

Manor 2024 USCAA Small College National Championships Tournament Statistical Leaders:

Minutes: 72, Roach.

Minutes per Game: 36.0, Roach.

Overall Field Goals Made: 17, Roach.

Overall Field Goal Attempts: 40, Roach.

Overall Field Goal Percentage: 42.5%, Roach.

Three-Point Field Goals Made: 11, Roach.

Three-Point Field Goal Attempts: 25, Roach.

Three-Point Field Goal Percentage: 44.0%, Roach.

Free Throws Made: 11, Fortescue, Jr..

Free Throw Attempts: 15, Fortescue, Jr.

Free Throw Percentage: 73.3%, Fortescue, Jr.

Points: 47, Roach.

Points per Game: 23.5, Roach.

Offensive Rebounds: 8, Nwobu.

Offensive Rebounds per Game: 4.0, Nwobu.

Defensive Rebounds: 9, Simmons.

Defensive Rebounds per Game: 4.5, Simmons.

Total Rebounds: 14, Nwobu.

Total Rebounds per Game: 7.0, Nwobu.

Assists: 7, Simmons.

Assists per Game: 3.5, Simmons.

Steals: 5, Simmons.

Steals per Game: 2.5, Simmons.

Blocked Shots: 2, Nwobu.

Blocked Shots per Game: 1.0, Nwobu.

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Scoring Leaders (including ties): Roach (11), Simmons (7), Diagne (2), and Fortescue Jr (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Rebounding Leaders (including ties): Diagne (5), Fortescue Jr (4), junior forward Jarid Vertil (Willingboro, NJ/Rahway) (4), Roach (3), Simmons (3), Nwobu (2), sophomore forward Idris Holman (Philadelphia, PA/Mercy Vocational Technical) (1), and Cristeph Lamothe (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Assists Leaders (including ties): Simmons (16), Roach (5), Diagne (4), Fortescue Jr (3), and Vertil (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Steals Leaders (including ties): Roach (8), Simmons (8), Fortescue Jr (5), junior guard Shyere Mayhue (Philadelphia, PA/People for People Charter) (2), and Diagne (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Double-Figure Scoring Leaders: Roach (19), Simmons (17), Fortescue Jr (16), Diagne (12), Vertil (11), freshman forward Deacon Linder (Philadelphia, PA/Hardy Williams Academy [Mastery]) (2), freshman guard Steven Latimer (Hainesport, NJ/Rancocas Valley) (1), Mayhue (1), and Nwobu (1).

Manor 2023-2024 20-Point Games Leaders: Simmons (9), Roach (7), and Fortescue Jr (4).

Manor 2023-2024 30-Point Games Leaders: Roach (3).

Manor 2023-2024 Double-Figure Rebounding Leaders: Diagne (2), Holman (1), Nwobu (1), Roach (1), Simmons (1), and Vertil (1).

Manor 2023-2024 "Double-Double" (Points and Rebounds) Leaders: Diagne (2), Nwobu (1), Roach (1), Simmons (1), and Vertil (1).

Manor 2023-2024 "Double-Double" (Points and Assists) Leaders: Simmons (1).

Season Series (Since 1994-1995):  This is the first meeting between the two schools. 

Manor Trailing at Halftime (Since 2021-2022): Manor is 4-4 overall (0-3 at neutral sites) when they are trailing at halftime this season.  

Manor Scoring 70 or More Points: The Blue Jays are 2-2 overall (1-2 at neutral sites) this season when they score 70 to 79 points in a game.  They are 4-8 overall (2-4 at neutral sites) since the 2021-2022 season.

Manor at Neutral Sites: Manor is 2-4 this season when playing at a neutral site.  They are 5-10 since the 2021-2022 season.

Manor in the Postseason: The Blue Jays are looking for its first win in the USCAA Division I Small College National Championship Tournament.  They have won three postseason games since the 2008-2009 season when they were NJCAA Region XIX Division II members.  The Blue Jays last postseason win was on March 4, 2016 in the NJCAA Region XIX Division II Postseason Tournament Semifinals (87-73 versus the County College of Morris at Morris).  They last won a First Round or Quarterfinal game on February 24, 2015 when they defeated Raritan Valley Community College, 75-64, at Manor in the NJCAA Region XIX Division II Postseason Tournament.

Next Game: Manor finishes its season versus the USCAA Division II Christendom College Crusaders (13-10, 6-2) in the ESAC Championship Game on Saturday, March 16 at 1:30 p.m. in Front Royal Virginia.  The Blue Jays and Crusaders split the season series.  Manor won at home in the first ever series meeting, 102-83, on December 15, 2023.  The Blue Jays lost on the road, 75-65, on February 24.

Manor Athletics on Social Media:

Instagram: manor_athletics.

Twitter: @manorbluejays.

#manorbluejays

#ManorStrong