GAME NOTES: Statesmen Basketball vs. Rollins/Saint Leo
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CLEVELAND - The Delta State University Men's Basketball team will make its longest road trip of the season this Friday and Saturday, Nov. 12-13, as the Statesmen officially open the 2010-11 schedule at the Gulf South Conference/Sunshine State Conference Challenge. Eight teams from two of NCAA Division II's top basketball conferences will sqaure off in the battle for South Region supremacy. Valdosta State University is serving as host for the event.
"We're excited to get back out their on the court and this one count," Jason Conner, Statesmen head coach stated. "In our two exhibitions with Ole Miss and Mississippi Valley State we played well at times, but we've got to have better effort if we want to contend for the national title. I feel confident we've put in the work and I believe the guys will respond this weekend."
The Statesmen will face a nationally-ranked opponent in the season opener for the first time under Conner, as DSU tangles with No. 17 Rollins College on Friday at 5 p.m. EST. Led by All-American and National Player of the Year candidate Nick Wolf, the Tars claimed the SSC championship last season and are a favorite to repeat as league champs this year.
Wolf, a 6-foot-6 shooting guard, averaged 17.7 points and 8.5 rebounds for coach Tom Klusman. The Tars also return All-SSC guard Myk Brown, who averaged 15.6 points per game. Rollins lost to Valdosta State 71-56 in last season's NCAA South Region Championship game.
Friday's meeting with the Tars will be the first in men's basketball for the two schools. DSU owns a 6-2 all-time mark against teams from the Sunshine State Conference.
On Saturday, Delta State will face Saint Leo at 4 p.m. EST at the HPER Complex on the campus of Valdosta State. The Statesmen and Lions have never met on the court, but both schools have played in other sports.
The Lions were selected to finish ninth in the SSC Preseason Coaches' Poll, but return a bevy of talented players, including seniors Jeremy Jackson, Matt Salay and Saladeem Dewberry. All three combined to lead SLU to an 11-20 overall record last season.
Jackson, a 6-foot-5 senior guard from Chicago, Ill., is the team's leading returning scorer at 9.8 points per game, while Dewberry, a 6-foot-5 forward, averaged 5.6 points and 3.8 rebounds.
Live stats are available for all games at the GSC/SSC Challenge. Links to each game's stats will be available on the calendar section of GoStatesmen.com each day.
