GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG men's basketball team hosts Chowan in non-conference action Tuesday night for the Spartans' Greensboro Coliseum season opener. Game time is set for 7 p.m. The game will be aired for free in full HD on the SoCon Digital Network with links available at www.uncgspartans.com. Additionally, the game will air of 1320 WCOG AM and online via Tune In Radio with Scott Pryzwansky and Darryl Kosciak providing the call.
The Spartans are come off an 86-69 victory over crosstown foe Greensboro College Saturday evening. Five different players scored in double figures with seven players scoring at least eight points in the victory. Junior guard Clay Byrd (Connelly Springs, N.C./East Burke) led all scorers with 17 points off the bench as well as grabbing a career-high six rebounds. Byrd was 5-of-9 from 3-point land in the victory while hitting both of his free throws.
Junior guard Diante Baldwin (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) added 15 points, five assists and four steals as he was 6-of-10 from the field and 3-of-4 from the charity stripe. Sophomore Marvin Smith (Richmond, Va./Fork Union Military Academy) also chipped in 15 points while grabbing a team-high seven rebounds. Smith connected on 9-of-11 from the free throw line. Senior forward Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) added 10 points and six rebounds as he was 4-of-8 from the field and hit both of his free throws.
Freshman guard Francis Alonso (Malaga, Spain/Cushing Academy) made his UNCG debut and finished with 10 points in 19 minutes of action. Senior Asad Lamot (Mebane, N.C./Lees-McRae) made his first career start and scored nine points while junior forward Jordy Kuiper (Groningen, Netherlands/Canaries Basketball Academy) added eight points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field and 2-of-2 from the free throw line.
Tuesday's game marks the third straight year UNCG and Chowan have met on the basketball court. In 2013-14, UNCG posted a 97-58 victory as five players scored in double figures and eight players scored at least eight points. Last season, the Spartans opened the regular season with a 76-62 victory over the Hawks in Fleming Gymnasium. Center R.J. White (Frisco, Texas/Frisco) scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds as he was 7-of-10 from the field. White missed the first game of the year with a lower leg injury and is a game time decision.
Chowan enters Tuesday's game with a 1-1 record on the year. The Hawks opened the year with a 4-point loss at West Virginia State before rebounding with a 5-point win over Virginia-Wise. Chowan is averaging 78.5 points through two games with Jeremy Smith leading the way at 20.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. Kortez Smith is second on the team in scoring at 14.0 points per game while Joe Goodwin is third on the team at 13.0 points per game.
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