Men's Basketball Hosts Triad Rival Elon Thursday
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG men's basketball team concludes its five-game home stand Thursday night as the Spartans host Southern Conference and Triad rival Elon in a pivotal league game at the Greensboro Coliseum. Elon enters the game in first place in the SoCon North Division with the Spartans trailing the top spot by two games in the loss column.
Thursday's game marks the 33rd meeting all-time between the two schools, which are separated by just 20 miles. The Spartans trail the all-time series by a 13-19 margin since the 1971-92 season. The series has seen each team post significant winning streaks over the past 12 years as Elon has won the past five meetings, while UNCG won seven straight prior to the current run.
Last season, Elon posted a season-series sweep with an 80-72 victory in the Greensboro Coliseum and a 93-79 victory in Burlington. UNCG was led by Trevis Simpson (Douglas, Ga./Coffee) averaged 24.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game against Elon last year as he scored 27 at home in the loss and 22 on the road. Derrell Armstrong (Mechanicsville, Md./Allegany CC) was limited to just 14 points in the two games as he connected on just 30 percent (6-of-20).
Elon was led by Jack Isenbarger who averaged 21.5 points per game and shot 50 percent (9-of-18) from three-point land in the two games. Lucas Troutman chipped in 18.5 points per game while shooting 63.2 percent (12-of-19) from the field. Sebastian Koch paced the Phoenix on the glass grabbing 10.5 rebounds per game against UNCG.
The Spartans enter Thursday's game with a 6-13 overall record and a 4-4 SoCon mark. UNCG has won three out of its last four games, including back-to-back games for the first time all season with wins over Samford and Chattanooga. Simpson was the catalyst to the UNCG offense as he earned SoCon Player of the Week honors after averaging 35.5 points per game in the two victories.
Simpson has scored 71 points in two games with 30 points against Samford and a UNCG single-game record 41 points against Chattanooga. He leads the team and the SoCon in scoring at 19.9 points per game. He ranks 16th in NCAA Division I in scoring while shooting 45.4 percent (122-of-269) from the field and 36.4 percent (39-of-107) from long range.
Armstrong is second on the team and third in the league in scoring at 15.5 points per game, despite scoring a career-low two points Sunday against Chattanooga. Armstrong has connected on 27 three-pointer this season and is second on the team grabbing 5.2 rebounds per game. Freshman forward Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) is third on the team in scoring at 9.8 points per game while sophomore Nicholas Paulos (Salt Lake City, Utah/New Hampton School) is second on the team with 38 three-pointers.
Elon enters Thursday's game with a 13-7 overall record and a 6-2 mark in SoCon play as it sits alone in the first place in the North Division. The Phoenix has won five straight games with wins over Western Carolina, Furman, Wofford, Chattanooga and most recently The Citadel.
Lucas Troutman leads the team in scoring at 15.4 points per game while grabbing 5.8 rebounds per game. Troutman is shooting 53.7 percent (130-of-242) from the field and has attempted a team-high 71 three-pointers. Isenbarger is second on the team in scoring at 14.9 points per game and has dished out a team-high 54 assists. He leads the team with 58 three-pointers made, connecting on 36.9 percent.
The game will be broadcast on 1320 WCOG AM with Scott Pryzwanksy and Darryl Kosciak the call. Additionally, the audio and video will be streamed for free online at www.uncgspartans.com.
- UNCG -