High Point Game Information (Tuesday, Nov. 27 – 7 p.m. – McAlister Field House)
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Mercer Game Information (Saturday, Dec. 1 – 1 p.m. – McAlister Field House)
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CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Citadel men's basketball team opens a four-game homestand this week with games against High Point (Nov. 27, 7 p.m.) and Mercer (Dec. 1, 1 p.m.). The Bulldogs will play five of the last six games of the 2018 portion of the schedule at home.
UPCOMING PROMOTIONS
Tuesday's 7 p.m. home game against High Point will be Kids Eat Free Night, where children 12 and under can eat for free while supplies last. The game is sponsored by Verizon Wireless, Sticky Fingers and Pepsi. The game against the Panthers will also be the first of three games in the Bulldogs' Toys for Tots Toy Drive. Any fan who brings in a new, unwrapped toy to the next three home games will be admitted for just $5. The promotion will run through the game against Johnson & Wales on Wednesday, Dec. 5. Saturday's Southern Conference opener Mercer will be sponsored by Papa John's and Ashley Furniture.
STALLWORTH NAMED COLLEGE SPORTS MADNESS SOCON PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Lew Stallworth was named the College Sports Madness Player of the Week for the Southern Conference, it was announced Monday. In the Bulldogs' two road wins last week, Stallworth averaged 24 points, 36 minutes, 5.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game, while shooting 56.3 percent from the field and 91.7 percent from the free throw line. Stallworth started his week off by leading the Bulldogs to a thrilling, 91-82, overtime win over James Madison. The Los Angeles, California native led all players with a career-high 26 points in 39 minutes of action. Stallworth went 10-of-18 (55.6 percent) from the field and finished with six assists and five rebounds against the Dukes. In Saturday's 84-81 win at South Florida, Stallworth was tied for tops in the game with a 22-point performance, including scoring 16 points in the second half. He finished that game 8-for-14 (57.1 percent) from the field in 33 minutes of work, and was tied for tops on the team with six rebounds.
WINNING BACK-TO-BACK GAMES ON THE ROAD
The Citadel won back-to-back, non-conference road games last week for the first time since the 1986-87 season, when the Bulldogs bested South Alabama (84-76) on Nov. 28, 1986 before going to Army for a victory (69-65) on Dec. 4, 1986 with a home win over Coker sandwiched in between. The back-to-back road wins marked the first time The Citadel has won two non-conference road games without a home game in between since the 1970-71 season, when the Bulldogs bested George Washington 73-68 on Dec. 17, 1970 and defeated Xavier 73-68 on Dec. 19. The 2015-16 team won three games away from Charleston, with two being neutral site contests at USC Upstate's Palmetto State Shootout Tournament held in Spartanburg. The 2014-15 team was the last team to win back-to-back road games with SoCon wins over Samford on Feb. 2, 2015 and Furman on Feb. 19, 2015 with a home loss to VMI sandwiched in between.
CONVERTING BEYOND THE ARC
The 16 3-pointers made by the Bulldogs in the game at South Florida (Nov. 24) are tied for the seventh most in program history against an NCAA Division I opponent, and are tied for 15th-most overall in any single game. The Bulldogs converted 18 3-pointers earlier this season against Johnson (Nov. 14) and set a program record with 23 against Mid-Atlantic Christian (Nov. 12). The Bulldogs currently lead the nation in 3-pointers made per game, averaging 14.2 treys per contest.
FAST START UNDER BAUCOM
The Bulldogs have started the season off 4-2 for the first time since
Duggar Baucom's first season in Charleston, 2015-16. That team earned wins at home over Stetson and Mid-Atlantic Christian, defeated USC Upstate on the road and won neutral-site games over Georgia Southern and Bob Jones.
STALLWORTH LEADING THE CHARGE
Stallworth has scored at least 20 points in each of the last three games, and started his Citadel career off by netting double-digit points in each of his first six games. Prior to the 2018-19 season, Stallworth had scored 20 points in just three games (all during the 2016-17 season at UT Rio Grande Valley). In the last three games (all on the road, at Texas, at James Madison, at USF), Stallworth has averaged 23 points per game to go along with 5.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists per contest.
STALLWORTH NATIONALLY
Stallworth enters the week tied for 18th in the nation with 36 assists and tied for 25th with an average of 6.0 assists per contest.
FRIERSON NATIONALLY
Matt Frierson enters the week second in NCAA Division I, and tops in the SoCon, with an average of 5.0 3-pointers per game. His 30 made treys so far this season also ranks second in the nation.
KEEPING THE STREAK ALIVE
Frierson extended his current streak to 44 games with at least one trey made on Saturday at South Florida. Frierson finished the game with 15 points off five made treys, marking the 29th time in his career the senior guard has converted at least four 3-pointers in a game. The last time the senior guard failed to convert at least one 3-pointer was Saturday, Feb. 11, 2017 at VMI. Frierson now has 250 career 3-pointers made, the third most in program history.
THE HISTORY WITH HIGH POINT
The Citadel and High Point have played six times with each program claiming three wins in the series that dates back to 1951. The Bulldogs have won both meetings in Charleston and won last year's game, 79-77, in High Point. The two last played in the Holy City on Nov. 23, 2010, a 71-63 win by the 'Dogs. Neither team has won back-to-back games in the series.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
The 2018-19 season marks the first for High Point under the direction of
Tubby Smith, an HPU Hall of Famer, who was an all-conference guard for the Panthers during his playing years. Smith comes to High Point after two years at Memphis. Smith coached Kentucky to the 1998 national championship and is one of two head coaches to guide five different programs to the NCAA Division I Tournament (Tulsa, Georgia, Kentucky, Minnesota and Texas Tech). High Point started the season by dropping games at William & Mary and at home to Wofford. Since then, the Panthers have gone 3-1 with neutral-site wins over South Dakota State and Air Force and a road win on Saturday over East Carolina. Through the first six games of the season, teams are connecting on 45.3 percent of their shot attempts against the Panthers, including shooting 33.9 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. Eight players returned from last year's squad, led by
Jahaad Proctor and
Brandonn Kamga. Proctor, who netted 11 points against the Bulldogs in last year's game, leads the team with an average of 19.7 points per contest and 19 assists. Kamga, who scored 13 points in last season's game between these two, is second on the team this season with an average of 11.5 points per contest, but has only seen action in four games, making three starts. Proctor,
Jordan Whitehead and
Ricky Madison have started every game for the Panthers.
THE HISTORY WITH MERCER
Mercer controls the all-time series over the Bulldogs by a mark of 16-5 dating back to the 1924-25 season. The Citadel's 76-74 win back on Jan. 27, 2018 broke a 13-game winning streak in the series by the Bears and marked the first win in the series for the Bulldogs since the 1926-27 campaign. The Bears and Bulldogs have met in Charleston as SoCon rivals just five times with the Bears winning all five games. The last Citadel win in the series in Charleston came back on March 5, 1927 in the championships game of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) Tournament when the Bulldogs won 42-41. The last regular-season victory for The Citadel in Charleston came a few weeks earlier on Feb. 12, 1927, a 38-33 win.
SCOUTING DA BEARS
Mercer comes into the week with a 3-3 record, including 0-3 on the road. The Bears have played UAB, Georgia State and NC State all on the road. The Bears have picked up wins over Piedmont College, UT Martin and Maryland Eastern Shore and host Brewton-Parker on Tuesday, Nov. 27. The Bears are currently averaging 77.2 points per game while shooting 46.2 percent from the field and 35 percent from 3-point range. The Bears return just one starter from last year's team,
Ross Cummings. Cummings is second on the team with an average of 11.0 points per game and he leads the team with 12 3-pointers.
Djordje Dimitrijevic, a transfer from Western Nebraska, leads the team with 15.5 points and 3.5 assists per game, while shooting 50 percent from the field.
Ethan Stair is currently third on the team with 10.2 points per game to go along with 5.0 rebounds per contest. Freshman
Fardaws Aimaq leads the team under the basket with 6.5 boards per game to go along with five blocks and 5.8 points per contest. Cummings, Stair,
Jaylen Stowe and
Cory Kilby have started every game for Mercer.
SEASON TICKETS AND MINI PLANS ON SALE
Season tickets, mini plans and single game tickets are currently on sale for the 2018-19 Citadel men's basketball home games. The entire season, featuring 15 games inside McAlister Field House, can be purchased for $150, or $340 for courtside. Fans can also purchase mini plans and choose six home games to attend for $72. Single game tickets are $15.
Faculty and staff of The Citadel, as well as recent Citadel graduates (2013-18), are entitled to discounted season tickets. Fans can also join The Citadel Basketball Association (CBA) to receive discounts and additional perks while supporting the program.
Tickets can be purchased in person at the ticket office located inside McAlister Field House or by calling (843) 953-DOGS (3647). Fans can also get more information online at this link:
CLICK HERE. Hours for the ticket office are Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
For more information on The Citadel basketball team, please visit CitadelSports.com and follow @CitadelHoops and @CitadelSports on Twitter and Instagram.
