News
DiBetta Joins 1,000-Point Club
Manhattanville's John DiBetta Becomes 19th Member of Valiants' 1,000-Point Club
January 22, 2007
Senior John DiBetta, the 2005-06 Manhattanville Department of Athletics Humanitarian of the Year, scored his 1,000th career point in a game against Farmingdale State. The thrilling 70-69 win over the defending Skyline Conference Champion made Dibetta only the 19th Valiant to reach the historic mark.
"He's one of the toughest kids ever to play here and this is something he's worked very hard for," Head Coach Pat Scanlon said.
A former walk-on who played sparingly as a freshman, DiBetta scored nearly 400 points each of the last two seasons and reached the 1,000-point plateau when he knocked down a three-pointer with 6:08 left in the first half Saturday, a shot that put the Valiants ahead 27-19. DiBetta would finish the game with 13 points (1,006 for his career), leading Manhattanville to a win over the Rams in their first meeting since Farmingdale State beat the Valiants in the 2005-06 Skyline Conference Tournament Championship Game.
DiBetta also passed Dan Mackle for 18th on the all-time list in Saturday's game and should move even further up the charts in the coming weeks. The senior is seven points behind Brian Glendon and just 20 points back of his coach, Scanlon, who scored 1,026 points from 1999-2003.
"It's impressive because he's not a natural scorer but a guy who just finds ways to score," Scanlon said. "But it's not all he's about because he does so many other things for us with his defense, rebounding and leadership."
This season DiBetta is averaging 12.8 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists, all second on the team. A career 45.2% shooter, the senior is knocking down 47.7% of his field goal attempts this year.
A communication major with minors in history and creative writing, DiBetta was honored with the Manhattanville College Department of Athletics Humanitarian Award for the 2005-06 school year. DiBetta is a volunteer with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Mount Kisko, N.Y. and serves as a volunteer firefighter in his hometown of Valhalla, N.Y.