Thursday
St. Francis (N.Y.) at NSU, 7 p.m., Joseph Echols Hall
Radio: WNSB Hot 91.1 Online | Live Audio
Live Video | Live Stats | Game Notes
NORFOLK, Va. - After spending the first two and a half weeks on the road to start the season, the Norfolk State men's basketball team will play its home opener and celebrate last year's historic season on Thursday against St. Francis (N.Y.) at 7 p.m. at Joseph Echols Hall.
Prior to the contest, the Spartans will receive their 2012 MEAC Championship rings and then unveil the banners for last year's conference championship and NCAA tournament appearance. The pregame activities get underway a half hour before tip-off.
Media Coverage: The game against the Terriers can be heard on WNSB Hot 91.1 online, available here, with Ross Gordon on the call. Fans can watch the game online and follow along with the live stats. The video feed will also carry Gordon's play-by-play commentary with it.
Last Time Out: Jarrett Stokes hit a deep 3-pointer with 27 seconds left to lift Morehead State to a 73-67 victory over NSU on Monday at MSU's Ellis T. Johnson Arena. The game featured 11 lead changes in the last six minutes of play after NSU held an eight-point advantage with a little more than eight minutes to go.
Malcolm Hawkins led NSU with 18 points, and Rob Johnson added 10 points, nine rebounds, six assists and four steals. Jamel Fuentes added 11 assists for the Spartans, who were without starting guard Pendarvis Williams as a precaution due to injury. MSU, which was without suspended head coach Sean Woods, was led by Milton Chavis' 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Series History: Last year's contest in Brooklyn marked the first-ever meeting between the two programs. NSU came out on top, 84-74, in a game played two days before Christmas.
About St. Francis: The Terriers own a 2-2 record on the year after their most recent action, an overtime victory at Brown last Saturday. Jalen Cannon led St. Francis with 20 points and averages a team-leading 16.0 points and 9.8 rebounds per game on the year. Kevin Douglas adds 13.0 per game, while Akeem Johnson (10.3) and Ben Mockford (10.0) also reached double figures.
Spartans Stepping Up: Kris Brown and Malcolm Hawkins stepped up their productivity against Morehead State, as each recorded career highs in points. Hawkins added 18, the most points he's scored in a collegiate game, including his time at Delaware. Brown added 13 points to reach double figures for the first time in his career as well.
Rob Johnson also had a big game, nearly posting his second career double double with 10 points and nine boards. He also added career highs of six assists and four steals. The trio shot a combined 16-of-29 against the Eagles.
Fuentes on Fire: Jamel Fuentes handed out 11 assists at Morehead State, the most since Aleek Pauline had 11 at Coppin State on Jan. 31, 2011. Prior to that, the last time someone had more than 11 in a game occurred when Pauline had 12 against Hampton on Feb. 28, 2009.
As a team, NSU had 19 assists against Morehead State, the most since posting 19 against those same Eagles last year on Jan. 24, 2012 at Echols Hall. The Spartans had 21 at Coppin State on Jan. 16, 2012 as well.
Solid Start: Freshman Rashid Gaston proved why the coaches were high on him entering the year, as he tallied his first career double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds at Longwood, leading the Spartans in both categories. Four of his six baskets against the Lancers came after grabbing an offensive board. This, of course, was after posting seven points, seven rebounds and two blocks in just 16 minutes off the bench in his collegiate debut at Rhode Island.
He averaged 11.3 points and 9.3 rebounds per game in three games from Nov. 15-18. Nearly half of his total rebounds this year (26-of-53) have come on the offensive glass.
Hitting the Offensive Glass: The Spartans have grabbed 22 more offensive rebounds than their opponents, leading to an 100-72 margin in second chance points on the year. NSU ranks second in the MEAC with 15.1 offensive rebounds per game.
Battling on the Boards: NSU has outrebounded five of its seven opponents this year despite having just a 0.9 rebounds per game edge.
The MEAC Leaderboard: Several players have cracked the top 5 in the MEAC statistics, including Brandon Goode, who ranks third in shooting percentage (62.2 percent). Rashid Gaston also stands third in offensive rebounds (3.7) and fourth in total rebounding (7.6). Malcolm Hawkins (47.6 3-point shooting) and Pendarvis Williams (90.5 free throw shooting) sit fourth in their respective categories.
March to 1,000: Now with 744 career points, Pendarvis Williams needs just 256 more to become NSU's 30th all-time 1,000-point scorer. He is on course to accomplish the feat in mid-to-late February.
