GAME NOTES: UA-Huntsville/Lee @ Delta State (1.24-26.19)
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CLEVELAND, Miss. - With two games separating seven teams in the Gulf South Conference standings, the Delta State University men's basketball team enters a critical homestand this week, as the Statesmen (12-5, 8-2 GSC) welcome the University of Alabama at Huntsville (12-5, 5-4 GSC) to Walter Sillers Coliseum on Thursday, Jan. 24. Tipoff is set for 7:30 PM. DSU continues its homestand on Saturday, Jan. 26, as Lee University (10-8, 7-3 GSC) travels to Cleveland for a 4 PM start. Both games will be broadcast on the Statesmen Sports Network and streamed online at GoStatesmen.com.
Philip Tang will have the call.
Thursday's game versus the Chargers is the 14th since 2012-2013 and the 37th all-time between Delta State and Alabama Huntsville. The Statesmen, who lead the series 20-16, defeated UA-Huntsville, 62-50, on Jan. 2, 2018 at Walter Sillers Coliseum in the lone meeting between the schools last year. P.J. Davis led the Statesmen with 20 points and six rebounds while
Brett Warner added 19 points and four assists.
Following Thursday's game versus UAH, Delta State hosts Lee University on Saturday, Jan. 26. Tipoff is set for 4 PM and DSU will be observing "Family Fun Day" with $3 tickets. The matchup is the 12th meeting between the clubs with DSU owning an 8-3 edge in the series. The Statesmen were 0-2 against the Flames in the regular season last year but rebounded to eliminate Lee, 68-58, in the first round of the GSC Tournament.
Delta State went 1-1 last week with a 71-65 victory at Union and a 90-88 loss at Christian Brothers. In the win at Union,
Brett Warner led all scorers with 23 points. In the loss at CBU, the Statesmen trailed by 25 before closing the game on a 27-6 run in the final 3:45. DSU's last second shot fell off the iron, as CBU claimed the win.
Rasheide Bell led the Statesmen with 28 points.
INSIDE THE PAINT: @DELTASTATEMBB NEWS & NOTES
- A founding principle of coach Jim Boone's style of play is tenacious, grinding defense. As the Statesmen (12-5, 8-2 GSC) enter the a key Gulf South Conference homestand, Delta State leads the league in field goal percentage defense (40.7%) and ranks No. 18 nationally in NCAA DII in scoring defense (65.4).
- Delta State enters the week ranked No. 2 in the GSC in FG percentage, shooting 49.3% from the field, as the Statesmen average 73.4 points per game.
- Senior guard Brett Warner, a preseason All-GSC selection, comes into this week ranked fifth in the league in points per game (14.7). The Collierville, Tenn., native became the 18th player in DSU history to top 1,000 career points with his 22 point effort versus Fisk on Nov. 15, 2018 at Sillers Coliseum. He is currently 11th on the career scoring chart with 1,255 points. His 40 combined points in last week's games moved him past Brad Longino (1990-1993/1,219) on the career chart. Warner also tied Longino for fourth on the career 3-pointers made list (174). He joins former All-American Devin Schmidt, DSU's all-time leading scorer with 2,594 points, P.J. Davis (2014-2018/1,350) )and Jack Madgen (2012-16/1,163) to accomplish the feat under coach Jim Boone.
- Delta State enters this week's match-ups versus Alabama Huntsville and Lee ranked 18th in NCAA Division II in scoring defense, allowing 65.4 points per game.
- Senior guard Rasheide Bell scored a career-high 28 points, including 20 in the second half, at Christian Brothers. The Evansville, Ind., native is averaging 11.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. Bell's numbers increase against GSC competition, averaging 15.2 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
- Justin Slocum has increased his productivity mightily in the last few weeks, scoring a career-high 24 points and 17 rebounds in DSU's 88-83 win over No. 14 Valdosta State. The junior from Macon, Ga., is averaging 11.6 points per game and ranks third in the GSC with 7.8 rebounds per contest. He is also third in FG percentage (57.2%) and ranks 21st in scoring.
- Armon Benford continues to play at a high level, averaging 8.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game. He ranks fifth in the GSC in assists per game and eighth in assist-to-turnover ratio.
- Senior forward Cedric Harper has owned the paint for the Statesmen and is on pace to set a new DSU record for career FG percentage (70.2%). The Tallahassee, Fla., native currently leads the GSC in FG percentage (66.4%) and blocks (29) while averaging 10.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.
- Matthew Wilson is currently ranked 13th in the GSC in 3-pointers made per game (1.9) and ranks fourth in 3-point FG percentage (40.0%). The Farmington, Ark., native is averaging 9.0 points per game.
- Cameron Burkett, a senior forward from Houston, Texas, is averaging 3.9 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. The former Bossier Parrish CC transfer scored a career-high 10 points in DSU's 71-65 win at Union University last week.
