GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG men's basketball team returns home to the Greensboro Coliseum off back-to-back road wins Thursday night as the Spartans host Southern Conference newcomer East Tennessee State. Game time is set for 7 p.m. Thursday and the game will be streamed online for free in full HD on the SoCon Digital Network. Additionally, the game will be broadcast on 1320 WCOG AM and online with the TuneIn App with Scott Pryzwansky and Darryl Kosciak providing the call.

The Spartans posted two road victories last week at VMI by 29 points and at The Citadel by 16 points to move into a tie for seventh place overall. UNCG sits just a half game out of the sixth place spot with the top six teams earning byes in the 2015 SoCon Tournament held in Asheville March 6-9. ETSU currently holds sole possession of fifth place overall in the league standings but UNCG will be looking for the season-series sweep of the Bucs and ownership of a possible tiebreaker.

Over the last two games, UNCG is averaging 82.0 points per game while limiting opponents to 59.5 points. The Spartans are out-rebounding opponents 44-36.5 during the two games while dishing out 36 assists compared to 26 turnovers. UNCG is shooting 51.7 percent (61-of-118) from the field and 47.4 percent (18-of-38) from long range. Defensively, the Spartans are limiting opponents to 26.6 percent (33-of-124) shooting from the field and 23.6 percent (13-of-55) from 3-point land.

Senior guard Nicholas Paulos (Salt Lake, City, Utah/New Hampton School) is averaging 17.0 points in the last two games, hitting 7-of-9 (77.8%) from distance. Sophomore guard Diante Baldwin (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) is adding 12.5 points and 7.5 assists per game while redshirt sophomore center R.J. White (Frisco, Texas/Frisco) chips in 12.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game off the bench.

Thursday's game marks the 20th meeting all-time between UNCG and East Tennessee State. The Spartans trail the all-time series by a 11-8 margin and have dropped six out of the last eight meetings between the teams. The Spartans and Bucs played earlier this year as ETSU returned to the SoCon this year, marking the first game between the teams since 2005.

In that game, UNCG opened league play with an 80-79 victory in Johnson City marking its third straight win of the year. All five starters scored in double figures for the Spartans, accounting for 72 of the 80 points in the win. UNCG connected on 50 percent (26-of-52) from the field and 9-of-20 (45%) from long range in the victory while also hitting 19-of-26 (73.1%) from the free throw line. ETSU conversely connected on 37.1 percent (23-of-62) from the field and 11-of-32 (34.4%) from long range. The Bucs were strong at the free throw line hitting 22-of-25 (88%) but were out-scored in the paint 24-18.

Sophomore guard Tevon Saddler (Aberdeen, Md./St. Frances Academy) led the way with 24 points, six assists and five rebounds as he was 9-of-12 from the field and 6-of-9 from the free throw line. Saddler hit a pair of free throws with 4.7 seconds remaining to seal the victory on his way to SoCon Player of the Week honors. White posted a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds while junior Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) added 12 points and seven rebounds as UNCG dominated play in the paint.

The Spartans were also strong from the outside as sophomore Clay Byrd (Connelly Springs, N.C./East Burke) scored 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from distance while Paulos added 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting. Jalen Riley led the Bucs with a game-high 28 points off the bench as he was 9-of-20 from the field and 6-of-12 from 3-point land. A.J. Merriweather added 13 points and 14 rebounds while Rashawn Rembert chipped in 13 points in the loss.

Saddler leads the team in scoring at 15.0 points per game, which ranks eighth in the SoCon. He has scored in double figures in 18 of 23 games this season. Saddler leads the team with 85 assists and is 19th in the conference on the glass at 4.7 rebounds per game. Locke is second on the team in scoring at 13.0 points per game, which also ranks 13th in the league. He is averaging 5.4 rebounds per game while shooting 47.7 percent (125-of-262) from the field.

Paulos is third on the team in scoring at 11.1 points per game. He leads the team from beyond the arc, hitting 41.9 percent (70-of-167) while also grabbing 4.0 rebounds. White also averages 11.1 points per game and ranks second in the league on the glass at 7.0 rebounds per game. He is shooting 54.1 percent (112-of-207) from the field and has come off the bench the last four games. Baldwin rounds out the Spartans in double figures scoring at 10.3 points per game. He is second on the team with 70 assists, despite missing the first eight games of the year due to an injury.

East Tennessee State enters Thursday's game with a 13-10 overall record and a 6-7 mark in Southern Conference play. ETSU has dropped games recently at Wofford, at Furman, home to Wofford and home to Samford. The Bucs' lone victory during the five-game stretch with a 61-59 non-conference win over N.C. Central. The Bucs are 5-6 on the road this year and 2-3 in league play with their last road victory came Jan. 15 at WCU as they have dropped three straight league road games.

Riley leads the Bucs and the SoCon in scoring at 19.7 points per game, despite coming off the bench in 19 of 23 games this year. He has hit 64 3-pointers this year and has gone to the free throw line a team-high 166 times, hitting 81.3 percent. Rembert is second on the team in scoring and sixth in the league at 15.6 points per game. He leads the team with 80 3-pointers and is shooting 41.5 percent from long range. Lester Wilson rounds out the Bucs in double figures at 12.6 points per game. Wilson is third on the team with 58 3-pointers as ETSU averages 10.0 3-pointers made per game.

Merriweather leads the Bucs on the glass at 5.9 rebounds per game, which ranks ninth in the conference. He averages 9.3 points per game and is shooting 49.1 percent (78-of-159) from the field. Petey McClain leads ETSU with 96 assists, ranking second in the SoCon.

-UNCG-