GAME NOTES: Delta State at Shorter/West Georgia
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CLEVELAND, Miss. - With nine teams separated by less than two games in the Gulf South Conference standings, the Delta State University men's basketball team will travel to Georgia this weekend to face Shorter University and the University of West Georgia to jumpstart 2019. The Statesmen (7-4, 3-1 GSC) are in a five-way tie for second in the GSC standings, one game back of Lee University (7-5, 4-0 GSC).
Saturday's matchup is the 13th all-time between Delta State and Shorter. The Statesmen, who lead the series 7-5, lost their only meeting with the Hawks last year, 78-77, in overtime at the Winthrop-King Centre in Rome on Jan. 20, 2018. In fact, the last two games with Shorter have come down to the final shot, as
Brett Warner canned a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Statesmen an 82-81 victory on Feb. 11, 2017.
Following Saturday's game at Shorter, the Statesmen will travel to Carrollton, Ga., on Monday, Jan. 7 to face the University of West Georgia. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. EST at The Coliseum. The game marks the 49th meeting all-time between the Statesmen and Wolves, with DSU holding a 27-21 edge in the series.
Both games will be broadcast on the Statesmen Sports Network's flagship station WMJW 107.5 FM and online at GoStatesmen.com.
Philip Tang will have the call.
INSIDE THE PAINT: @DELTASTATEMBB NEWS & NOTES
- Delta State enters the week ranked No. 2 in the GSC in scoring defense, as the Statesmen allow 64.8 points per game. The Statesmen have been particularly good in GSC play, holding West Alabama to just 62 points and Union to 57, which is 27 below its seasonal average.
- Senior guard Brett Warner, a preseason All-GSC selection, comes into this week ranked seventh 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 tied with Paul Davis (1990-94/1,151) for 15th on the career scoring chart with 1,151 points. He joins former All-American Devin Schmidt, DSU's all-time leading scorer with 2,594 points, and Jack Madgen (2012-16/1,163) to accomplish the feat under coach Jim Boone.
- Delta State enters the first week of January leading the GSC in field goal percentage and field goal percentage defense. The Statesmen are shooting 50.3 percent from the floor, connecting on 293-of-583 attempts. Conversely, the Statesmen are just a good defending the field goal, holding the opposition to 39.2 percent (235-of-600).
- Senior point guard Armon Benford is third in the GSC this season, averaging 5.1 assists per game. The Chicago, Ill., native is also averaging 7.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
- Senior forward Cedric Harper has owned the paint through the first 11 games for the Statesmen and is on pace to set a new DSU record for career field goal percentage (71.1%). The Tallahassee, Fla., native currently leads the GSC in FG percentage (66.2%) and blocks (18) while averaging 9.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.
- Senior guard Rasheide Bell continues to expand his role for the Statesmen. The Evansville, Ind., native is averaging 10.7 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game this season. In DSU's 74-65 win at Mississippi College, Bell led the Statesmen with 17 points and followed up that performance with 18 points and five boards in Monday's 77-57 win over Union.
- Matthew Wilson is currently ranked seventh in GSC in 3-pointers made per game (2.4), but leads the league in 3-point FG percentage (50.0%). The Farmington, Ark., native is averaging 11.0 points per game after scoring a career-high 23 in DSU's 90-62 win over Bethel.
- Justin Slocum has proven to be major force on the glass, ranking ninth in the GSC in rebounds per game (6.8). The junior from Macon, Ga., is also averaging 10.7 points per game in 23.7 minutes of action.
- Cameron Burkett, a senior forward from Houston, Texas, is averaging 3.8 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. The former Bossier Parrish CC transfer scored a season-high eight points in DSU's 74-65 win at Mississippi College on Dec. 15.
- Delta State enters the week as one of the GSC's toughest defensive teams, as the Statesmen rank third in blocks (33/3.0 bpg) and steals (84/7.64 spg).
