GREENSBORO, N.C. – The final men's basketball game of the 2015-16 regular season is Sunday and the stakes will be high between UNCG and Mercer in Southern Conference basketball action at the Greensboro Coliseum. The two teams are battling for the sixth and final first round by in the SoCon Tournament. The winner of Sunday's game will earn the bye and the No. 6 seed while the losing team will fall to No. 7 seed.
Sunday's game is set for a 1 p.m. tip-off at the Greensboro Coliseum. Prior to the game, the Spartans will honor their seniors in Michael Adams (Raleigh, N.C./Leesville Road), Asad Lamot (Mebane, N.C./Eastern Alamance) and Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh). The game will be televised on ESPN3 and the ESPN App with Scott Pryzwansky and Dave Odom providing the call. Additionally, the game will be aired on 1320 WCOG AM and online via Tune In with Cabell Philpott and Darryl Kosciak on the call.
The winner of Sunday's game will advance to the SoCon Tournament quarterfinal round and will face third-seeded Furman Saturday at 8:30 p.m. in Asheville. The losing team will play Friday in first round action against No. 10 The Citadel at 7:30 p.m.
UNCG has won four straight games entering Sunday's contest, picking up a wins over Wofford, Samford, Chattanooga and The Citadel. The victory over Chattanooga snapped the Mocs' 19-game home winning streak and was the first win by a visiting team since January of 2015. The four-game winning streak marks the first time UNCG has won at least four straight since a six-game winning streak Jan. 12-Feb. 2, 2012 in head coach Wes Miller's interim year.
During the four-game winning streak, junior guard Diante Baldwin (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) is averaging a team-high 19.0 points per game. Baldwin has scored 21 points against Wofford, 18 against Samford, 22 against Chattanooga and 15 against The Citadel. He is shooting 60 percent (27-of-45) from the field and has dished out 15 assists. Freshman guard Francis Alonso (Malaga, Spain/Cushing Academy) has also scored in double figures in all four games during the stretch, averaging 17.3 points per game. He is also shooting 52 percent (13-of-25) from three-point land while hitting 92.3 percent (12-of-13) from the free throw line.
UNCG enters Sunday's game with a 13-17 overall record and a 9-8 mark in Southern Conference play. UNCG is averaging 73.3 points per game this year and holding opponents to 73.7 points per game. The Spartans are shooting 45 percent (791-of-1758) from the field and hitting 35.9 percent (256-of-713) from 3-point land this year. Opponents are shooting just 44.1 percent (743-of-1683) from the field and hitting 36.6 percent (247-of-674) from distance.
Four Spartans are averaging double figures this year with five players scoring at least 9.7 points per game. Alonso leads the Spartans in scoring at 13.2 points per game the team with 77 3-pointers made as he is shooting 40.3 percent from distance. Senior forward Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) is second on the team in scoring at 12.7 points per game while grabbing 5.5 rebounds per game. Locke is shooting 45.8 percent (149-of-325) from the field.
Junior center R.J. White (Frisco, Texas/Frisco) is third in scoring at 12.2 points per game while leading the team on the glass at 7.0 rebounds per game. White is shooting 62 percent (147-of-237) from the field this year. Baldwin rounds out the Spartans in double figures scoring at 11.5 points per game while grabbing 5.1 rebounds per game. He leads the team and ranks second in the SoCon with 149 assists. Sophomore forward Marvin Smith (Richmond, Va./Fork Union Military Academy) chips in 9.7 points per game and is second on the team with 5.6 rebounds per game.
Mercer enters Sunday's game with an 18-11 overall record but an 8-9 mark in Southern Conference play. The Bears have dropped six straight games with losses to Chattanooga, Wofford, Furman, Western Caroline, East Tennessee State and most recently VMI. Mercer is 2-6 in league play on the road this year. The Bears are averaging 72.9 points per game while allowing 68.5 points per game. Mercer is shooting 45.4 percent (780-of-1717) from the field and 35 percent (184-of-526) from 3-point land.
The Bears have been hurt by the suspensions of two starters in Jestin Lewis and Desmond Ringer. The two have missed the last seven games. Lewis was averaging 14.0 points per game and Ringer was adding 7.8 points per game. Stephon Jelks leads the Bears in scoring at 12.2 points per game while leading the league on the glass grabbing 8.7 rebounds per game. Jelks is shooting 45.7 percent (126-of-276) from the field and has hit 36.2 percent (47-of-130) from 3-point land.
Phillip Leonard is second on the team in scoring at 10.6 points per game. Leonard leads the team with 145 assists and has gone to the free throw line a team-high 159 times, hitting 66 percent. Jordan Strawberry adds 8.3 points per game and has hit 35 3-pointers at a 37.6 percent clip.
-UNCG-
