GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG men's basketball team hits the road once again Thursday night when the Spartans travel to Lexington, Va., for a meeting against VMI. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at Cameron Hall in Southern Conference action. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3 and the ESPN App with Wade Branner and Grafton Young on the call. Additionally, the game will run on 1320 WCOG AM and online via Tune In with Scott Pryzwansky on the call.
Thursday's game marks the 19th meeting all-time between UNCG and VMI. The Spartans lead the all-time series by a 11-7 margin and have won 10 out of the last 11 meetings, including all three since the Keydets returned to the Southern Conference. Last season, UNCG posted a 75-63 victory in the Greensboro Coliseum before picking up an 86-56 win in Lexington.
Earlier this year, the Spartans posted an 85-68 victory over the Keydets in Greensboro. Led by five in double figures, UNCG connected on a season-high 58 percent shooting from the field (29-of-50) while also hitting 45.5 percent (10-of-22) from distance and 89.5 percent (17-of-19) from the free throw line. The Spartans defense held the Keydets to just 34.8 percent (23-of-66) shooting from the field and 34.4 percent (11-of-32) from distance in the victory.
Freshman guard Francis Alonso (Malaga, Spain/Cushing Academy) finished with 24 points on a stellar 9-of-11 shooting from the field, including 4-of-6 from distance Junior guard Diante Baldwin (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) added 15 points, five assists, five rebounds and two blocked shots while junior center R.J. White (Frisco, Texas/Frisco) scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds on 7-of-9 shooting from the field. QJ Peterson led VMI with 14 points but was held to just 4-of-17 shooting from the field.
The Spartans enter Thursday's game with a 9-16 overall record and a 5-7 mark in Southern Conference play. UNCG has dropped two straight and three out of their last four games. The Spartans are just 1-12 this season on the road and 1-5 in league road games. UNCG is averaging 72.4 points per game while allowing 74.4 points per game. The Spartans are shooting 44 percent (650-of-1476) from the field and 36 percent (219-of-608) from long range.
Senior forward Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) leads the team in scoring at 13.1 points per game. Locke is second on the team with 5.4 rebounds per game while averaging 15.3 points per game in SoCon play. Alonso is second on the team in scoring at 12.9 points per game. He leads the team in shooting, hitting 40 percent (64-of-160) from distance and 83.3 percent (60-of-72) from the free throw line.
White leads the team on the glass, grabbing 7.3 rebounds per game. He also ranks third on the team in scoring at 11.8 points per game and is shooting 61.7 percent (116-of-188) from the field. Baldwin rounds out the Spartans in double figures scoring at 10.3 points per game while leading the team with 129 assists. Sophomore forward Marvin Smith (Richmond, Va./Fork Union Military Academy) chips in 9.6 points per game while hitting 42 3-pointers.
VMI enters Thursday's game with a 6-17 overall record and a 1-11 mark in Southern Conference play. The Keydets have six straight games with their lone win coming at home to Samford. VMI is 5-5 on the year at home and 1-12 on the road. VMI is averaging 66.0 points per game while holding opponents to 73.8 points per game. The Keydets are shooting just 40.2 percent (541-of-1345) from the field and are hitting 33.2 percent (199-of-600) from distance.
QJ Peterson leads the team in scoring at 17.3 points per game. Peterson has taken 344 field goals this year with the next closest Keydet 97 attempts away. He is shooting 40.1 percent from the field and has hit a team-high 61 3-pointers (35.3%). He is also shooting 89.9 percent (62-of-69) from the free throw line. Julian Eleby is second on the team in scoring at 14.6 points per game. Eleby is second on the team with 54 3-pointers made, hitting at a 40.9 percent clip. Phillip Anglade is second to Peterson on the glass at 5.4 rebounds per game while leads the team with 34 blocked shots.
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