SPARTAN ESSENTIALS
Who: Green Bay (0-2)
Where: Eckerd College | St. Petersburg, Fla.
When: Thursday, November 18 | 3 p.m.
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Game Notes: UNCG |
Green Bay
GREENSBORO, N.C. – It will be a week of firsts for the UNC Greensboro (UNCG) men's basketball program when it competes in the Jersey Mike's Classic in St. Petersburg, Florida beginning Thursday.
All three of UNCG's contests will be played on the campus of Eckerd College and will be televised nationally. UNCG will play three quality opponents for the first time in program history when it battles Green Bay on Thursday, UMass on Friday, and Florida International on Sunday.
The Green Bay and UMass games will air on CBS Sports Network while the FIU contest will be shown on Pluto TV, an internet television service owned and operated by ViacomCBS Streaming.
Green Bay will be the second Horizon League opponent the Spartans will face in the early part of their schedule. UNCG edged Northern Kentucky, 70-69, last Friday in overtime on the road.
The Spartans will also compete against a UMass squad from the Atlantic 10 and a Florida International squad that is a member of Conference USA for now. FIU is in the process of transitioning to the American Athletic Conference.
UNCG has won its first three games behind the time-honored combination of sticky defense, tenacious rebounding, and a balanced offense. In each victory, the Spartans have been led by a different scorer and rebounder.
De'Monte Buckingham had 28 points in a season-opening win over North Carolina A&T. Mohammed Abdulsalam finished with 13 points in a one-point overtime win over Northern Kentucky. Khyre Thompson scored that same amount in a win over Coppin State.
UNCG has outrebounded all three opponents by double figures. It enjoyed a plus-17 rebounding advantage against North Carolina A&T and Coppin State and an 11-rebound edge against Northern Kentucky.
Overall, UNCG is ranked sixth nationally in defensive rebounds per game (35.0), 11th in total rebounds (146) and field goal percentage defense (31.9), 14th in rebounds per game (48.6), 21st in rebound margin (15.0), and 46th in scoring defense (56.7).
Here's a quick look at the three programs UNCG will face in Florida with records through Tuesday, Nov. 16.
Green Bay (0-2)
- The Phoenix have dropped games to Indiana State and Wisconsin.
- Emmanuel Ansong (9.5 points per game), Donovan Ivory (9.5), and Kamari McGee (9.0) are the leading scorers for Green Bay.
- Ansong and Lucas Steiber earned Horizon League All-Freshman Team honors last season.
- The Phoenix were picked 11th out of 12 programs in the Horizon League preseason poll.
UMass (2-1)
- Trent Buttrick, a Penn State transfer, is the leading scorer (15.3 points per game) and rebounder (6.7).
- Also averaging double figures for the Minutemen are Noah Fernandes (12.7), C.J. Kelly (12.5), and Rich Kelly (12.0).
- UMass has made 43.8 percent of its shots this season.
- Five Minutemen scored in double figures as the Massachusetts men's basketball team rolled to an 81-56 win over Penn State on Monday.
- Buttrick led the Minutemen with 19 points in the victory over Penn State.
- UMass has defeated UMBC and lost to Yale.
Florida International (1-1)
- The Panthers dropped a seven-point decision at Georgia in its season opener before rebounding with a rout against non-NCAA member Trinity, 111-48, last Friday.
- The Panthers finished the game shooting 61.5 percent from the field and made 15 3-pointers.
- FIU will be the second opponent this season for UNCG that had a game in which it has made 15 3-pointers (Northern Kentucky).
- A total of four FIU players posted double-figure scoring efforts, paced by sophomore Daniel Parrish, who tabbed a team-high 15.
- Junior Tevin Brewer notched 14, while Clevon Brown and Aquan Smart each added 11.
- Brewer scored 14 points against Georgia, a game in which FIU led with 10 minutes remaining.
Up Next
- UNCG closes November with three home games: North Carolina Wesleyan (Nov. 24), Vermont (Nov. 27), and Elon (Nov. 30).
