CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College men's basketball team will open their final homestand of the season on Thursday when they host the University of North Alabama at 8:00 p.m. in A.E. Wood Coliseum.
This will be the 45th all-time meeting between the two schools with North Alabama holding a 27-17 edge in the series. The Choctaws are 9-11 all-time in A.E. Wood Coliseum against the Lions, including winning 67-50 back in the 1996-97 season, the last time the two teams played in Clinton. MC traveled to UNA back on January 5th and picked up an 81-68 victory in Florence.
Jay Case went 6-of-8 from the three-point line and led the Choctaws with 22 points on the night. Nathan Spehr led UNA with 24 points.
Head coach
Don Lofton is in his 11th season at the helm, winning his first two games of the season for his 180th career victory. Lofton has compiled a 108-33 (.766) record at home, including a perfect mark in the 2005-06 season.
The Choctaws are coming off their first overtime game of the season, picking up a 92-88 victory over the University of West Florida in two extra periods. It was MC's third straight win overall, and they swept both games of a road trip with wins over Valdosta State and UWF.
Tristan Moore tallied career-highs in points (28) and rebounds (12).
Tory Rice tallied his 12th double-double of the season with 20 points and 13 rebounds, while
Stacey Mack had 13 points and 11 boards for his second double-double of the year.
Rice is the team's leading scorer (16.4 ppg) and rebounder (9.7 rpg) on the season, shooting 57% from the field and going 95-of-138 from the free throw line.
Johnny Rucker also averages in double-figures with 12.2 points per game, while Moore averages 10.9 points per contest with a team-high 88 assists.
Case is shooting 47% from the three-point line this season and is 95-of-203 from behind the arc in his career. He currently ranks 3rd in school history in career three-point percentage (47%), and he needs five more long balls to become the seventh player in school history with 100 career three-pointers.
Led by 12th-year head coach Bobby Champagne, the Lions have been rolling as of late, winning five of their last six games, including 3-of-4 over their four-game homestand last week. They picked up a 77-67 victory over Lee University in their last contest and beat Shorter last Thursday by a score of 89-65. The Lions are 7-5 at home this season, but have gone just 3-of-4 on the road. They play four straight games on the road before returning home to host Alabama Huntsville to close out the regular season.
UNA has four players that average over 30 minutes played per game and four players averaging in double-figures. Nathan Spehr leads the team with 16.1 points per game and 96 total assists. He is also shooting 43% from the three-point line and 94% from the free throw line. Calvin Dade (14.1 ppg) leads the team with 9.1 rebounds per contest and is the reigning GSC Player of the Week.
