Sunday
NSU at LIU Brooklyn, 2 p.m., Steinberg Wellness Center
Live Stats | Live Video | Game Notes

NORFOLK, Va. - Another trip to the New York area is on tap for the Norfolk State men's basketball team. Less than a week after playing a pair of games at Rutgers as part of the NIT Season Tip-Off, the Spartans head back north to take on LIU Brooklyn on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Steinberg Wellness Center.

Media Coverage: Live stats for the contest against the Blackbirds will be available here, while live video will be available through NEC Front Row here.

Series History: NSU and LIU Brooklyn have met three times before, including a home-and-home during the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons. The Blackbirds lead the series 2-1, with NSU taking the previous meeting by a 73-62 score on Dec. 14, 2011 at Joseph Echols Hall.

About LIU Brooklyn: The Blackbirds advanced to the NCAA tournament last year but have followed that up with a 1-4 campaign so far this year. They nearly upset a ranked Indiana squad on the road, falling by just one, but have lost their last three to UC Irvine, Eastern Washington and Boston University by at least 15 each time. LIU Brooklyn has four players averaging double figures, led by E.J. Reed's 12.0 points per game clip. Gilbert Parga (11.6), Gerrell Martin (11.2) and Lando Atterberry (10.4) also provide offense, while Jason Brickman sets them up with 9.6 assists per game. The Blackbirds have been outrebounded by nearly 10 boards a game, and opponents have shot 51 percent from the floor while holding LIU Brooklyn to a 38 percent clip.

Last Time Out: Led by a 32-point effort from Pendarvis Williams, NSU reached the 100-point plateau for the second time this year in a 105-83 victory over Stillman on Tuesday in the NIT Seaon Tip-Off at the Rutgers Athletic Center. Williams hit 12-of-15 from the field with seven rebounds and five assists, while Brandon Goode shot 10-of-14 for 22 points to go with 11 rebounds and six blocks. NSU hit 41-of-66 overall, a 62.1 percent shooting clip. NSU also had a 45-26 advantage on the glass.

Lend a Helping Hand: NSU had 25 assists on 41 baskets in the win over Stillman, the most assists in the Division I era (1997-Present). It marked the most helpers the Spartans have posted in a game since they had 29 in a win over Knoxville on Jan. 29, 1996.

More Stillman Fun Facts: NSU also had 41 field goals in the win over Newberry earlier this year. It marked the most since the Spartans had 42 in a win over Troy State on Dec. 30, 1998.

NSU's 62.1 perdent shooting clip (41-of-66) against Stillman was the best since hitting 23-of-35 (65.7 percent) in a win over Eastern Kentucky on Nov. 27, 2011.

Best D-I Start: NSU's 5-2 record this year marks the best start to a season in the D-I era. The Spartans started the 2011-12 season 4-2 before dropping their next game. It stands as NSU's best start since beginning the 1995-96 campaign 9-1.

Another Big Game: Pendarvis Williams had 32 points against Stillman, the second time this year he reached the 30-point plateau after scoring 38 against Newberry. He became the first player since Michael Deloach in 2009-10 to top 30 points in a game at least twice in one season.

Dominating the Inside: Norfolk State has outscored opponents 328-223 in points in the paint, an average of 15.0 points per game. Against East Carolina, the Spartans had a 50-16 edge in points in the paint, and against Stillman that margin was 62-26.

In fact, it marked the second time this year NSU had 62 points in the paint in a game, The Spartans also accomplished the feat against Newberry. Those two performances are tied for the most points NSU has scored since the 2002-03 season. The Spartans also had 62 points in the paint at Morgan State on Feb. 27, 2010.

Dominating the Glass: The Spartans posted 21 offensive rebounds against Texas Southern, the most since grabbing 24 against Coppin State on Jan. 30, 2012. So far this year, the Spartans have outrebounded five of their first seven opponents and were even with Newberry on the glass, 35-35. UNC Asheville was the only team to outrebound NSU this year, 41-22.

Offense on the Go: The Spartans have averaged 13.3 fastbreak points per game over the last six contests, and against Newberry and East Carolina had a combined 51 points off turnovers.

Beginning the Climb: With a career-high six blocks against Stillman, the most since Kyle O'Quinn had six on Feb. 15, 2012 against Delaware State, Brandon Goode moved into a tie for third with current assistant coach Larry Vickers on the all-time list with 102 career blocks. Goode needs six more to move into a tie for second-place all-time at NSU with Karandick Ogunride. Of course, the best Goode can finish is second, as the all-time leader is O'Quinn, who had 283 in his four-year career.

Sitting at No. 27 right now in the all-time scoring list at NSU with 1,244, Pendarvis Williams needs 51 more points to move into a tie for 26th with Morrell James.

Jame Fuentes, meanwhile, has 290 assists in his career. He needs 12 to move into a tie for 11th place all-time at NSU and 27 to reach the top 10.

High Scoring: NSU has reached the 100-point plateau twice this year. The Spartans have done that only one other time in the D-I era, in 1998-99 when they scored 100 in three different contests.

Hot Shooting: Thanks to his 12-of-15 performance in the last game, Pendarvis Williams is shooting 53.8 percent (50-of-93) from the floor this year. Brandon Goode, Anell Alexis and Riley Maye, meanwhile, have combined to shoot 76-of-121 (62.8 percent). As a team, the Spartans are shooting 52.5 percent this year.

The Spartans have shot at least 44 percent from the field in all seven games this year, the first time shooting that well in seven straight since doing so in nine straight from Jan. 22-Feb. 19, 2011. The Spartans have already topped 60 percent shooting twice this year, the fifth and sixth times during the D-I era they have done so.

Mistake-Free Ball: NSU had a 19-4 assist-turnover ratio against UNC Asheville, the fewest turnovers and the best assist-turnover ratio in the D-I era. It marked the fewest turnovers since the Spartans had just one at Johnson C. Smith on Feb. 18, 1997. NSU had never posted an assist-turnover ratio of 2-1 or better in the D-I era.

According to statsheet.com, only three teams, Rutgers, Connecticut and Louisville, have had less than four turnovers in a game this year (all with three). Along with NSU, numerous schools this year have had four turnovers in a game.

Big Performance: Only five other Division I players this year have scored more in a game than Williams' 38 points, Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky (43), Arizona State's Jahii Carson (40) and Oklahoma State's Marcus Smart (39) all did so on Nov. 19, while Boise State's Derrick Marks and UC-Santa Barbara's each had 39 in late November contests as well.

No Young Guns: According to research done by Joe Pott of the Southern Illinois athletics department, SIU and NSU are, unofficially, the only two programs in the country that do not have a freshman on the roster. The Spartans have four newcomers this year: D-I transfers Anell Alexis and Hefeng Sun, junior college transfer LaTre'e Russell, and Sajae Pryor, who sat out last year as an NCAA non-qualifier and as a result will have sophomore eligibility this year.