| Virginia State (4-6) vs. Livingstone (4-3) |
| Date |
Saturday, January 8, 2022 |
| Time |
4:00 p.m. |
| Live Stream |
Live Stream |
| Location |
Salisbury, NC (New Trent Gym) |
| Social Media |
@VSUsports | @vsutrojans_1882 |
The VSU men's basketball team looks to relieve their built up frustration from last game after watching victory slip through their fingers to WSSU on the road in overtime 90-88. The Trojans have now dropped seven of their last eight games but have tremendous confidence moving forward because they were so close to winning the game despite missing almost half of the roster. Coach Lonnie Blow's squad is currently second in the conference in assist/turnover ratio with a 0.92 and fifth in made three's per game with 5.9.
Francis "BJ" Fitzgerald is third in the conference in points per game (17.1), fifth in field goal percentage (49%) and eighth in three-point field goals per game (2.0).
Last Time Out
- Terrence Hunter-Whitfield recorded the first 30-point double-double in recent history with 31 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the field along with 11 rebounds. Hunter-Whitfield went 5-of-9 from downtown while knocking down 8-of-10 free throws.
- Francis "BJ" Fitzgerald scored 20 points while shooting 50% from the field along with a season-high 11 rebounds and three blocks.
- Virginia State forced 15 turnovers, which turned into 19 points on the offensive end.
- VSU was also able to grab 14 offensive boards, which led to 17 second chance points.
- The Trojans drew 31 fouls and shot 42 free throws in the evening contest.
Scouting the Blue Bears
The Blue Bears are fresh off their first conference win of the season against ECSU that also put them over .500. The win over ECSU was also their first home game and home win of the season. Before yesterday's win, LC had two games in a row postponed. Livingstone leads the conference in points per game with 80.3 while also leading with conference in field goal percentage averaging 49% per contest. Livingstone does a superb job of sharing the basketball as 12.75 dimes per game ranks them third in the conference. While the squad shoots it well they will look to improve upon their ball security as 16 turnovers per contest rank them fourth in the contest. As previously stated, LC is first in the conference in scoring but on the flip side they are last in the conference in points allowed per game with 83. The Blue Bears are in the middle of the pack in other defensive categories such as rebounding margin, opponent field goal percentage and opponent three-point percentage. That being said, the Blue Bears are second in the conference in blocks per game (4.75) and third in the conference in steals (8.00). LC has a legitimate scoring threat in Navar Elmore as he leads the conference in field goal percentage shooting 65% on the season. Elmore also ranks sixth in points per game with 16.1 while also ranking fifth in rebounds averaging 8.5 per contest. Elmore puts in a substantial amount of work on the defensive end as well leading his team in steals (9) while also leading the conference with 2.6 blocks per game. Deshone Hicks is currently third in the conference in assists with 3.4 per game and second in assist/turnover ratio (1.9).
Series History
The Trojans are currently winning the series 12-5 taking 10 of the last 11 matchups between the two. The last matchup saw VSU take the victory 82-67 as the Trojans had four players finish in double figures while the team shot 47% from the field.
A Win Would…
- Help the Trojans stay undefeated in the series conference record (11-0)
- Give the Trojans their first win of 2022
- Improve their away record to 2-5
