WHO: UAB (13-3, 3-0 C-USA) at Old Dominion (9-7, 2-1 C-USA)
WHEN: Thursday, January 14 at 7:00 p.m. EST
WHERE: Ted Constant Convocation Center – Norfolk, Va.
---MEDIA---
TV: CBS Sports Network (CBSSN)
TV Announcers: John Sadak (Play-By-Play) and Chris Walker (Color)
COX CHANNEL: 216
NATIONAL CHANNEL LINE-UP
CHARTER: 821
DIRECT TV: 221
FIOS: 94/594 HD
DISH: 158 AND 200/258 HD
---RADIO---
The game will air across the Commonwealth on ESPN Radio 94.1 in Hampton Roads, Sports FM 100.5 in Central Virginia and WLVA 94.1 and FOX Sports 580 in Lynchburg.
(Ted Alexander and Dave Twardzik’s live pregame show begins at 6:30 p.m. EST)
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion (9-7, 2-1 C-USA) will look to extend the nation’s fourth longest home win streak against UAB (13-3, 3-0 C-USA) on Thursday, Jan. 14 at 7:00 p.m. EST. UAB won the Conference USA tournament a season ago, advancing to the NCAA tournament, where the No. 14 seeded Blazers stunned No. 3 seeded Iowa State in the second round, 60-59. This preseason, UAB was voted to repeat as Conference USA champions by conference coaches for the 2015-16 season. The game will be televised on the CBS Sports Network with John Sadak handling play-by-play duties and Chris Walker taking care of the color commentary.
The Monarchs enter Thursday’s contest on a 32-game home win streak, the country’s fourth longest. ODU’s last loss at the Ted came on Feb. 22, 2014.
THE ALL-TIME SERIES – UAB vs. OLD DOMINION
UAB is 19-9 all-time against Old Dominion and has won the last four meetings between the two. Three of the previous four games were decided by double digits with UAB winning by an average of 13.3 points per game. The last time the Monarchs took down UAB was during the 2006-07 season.
Longest Active NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Home Winning Streak
1. Arizona (47)
2. Wichita State (39)
3. Kansas (34)
4. Old Dominion (32)
5. Villanova (31) – Plays at home vs. Marquette on Wed.
LAST TIME OUT FOR OLD DOMINION
Old Dominion returns home after going 1-1 on its road trip last week.
On Thursday, ODU snapped the country’s second longest home win-streak when the Monarchs handed LA Tech (12-3, 1-1 C-USA) a 56-53 loss at the Thomas Assembly Center. Prior to Thursday night, the Bulldogs had not lost a game on their own hardwood since Dec. 14, 2013. Thursday night also marked LA Tech’s first ever home loss in Conference USA. The victory was the Monarchs’ fifth straight win.
In what was ODU’s first time playing in Ruston and only the third ever meeting between Old Dominion and La Tech, Trey Freeman led all scorers with 21 points to compliment five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Aaron Bacote followed with 17 points on 6-10 shooting and 2-3 from three. The Monarchs led for a total 32:38 of the possible 40 minutes in a game which experienced six lead changes and five ties.
Then on Saturday, despite Trey Freeman’s game-high 24 points and six assists, Old Dominion had its five game win streak snapped by Southern Miss (4-10, 1-2 C-USA) at the Reed Green Coliseum by a score of 73-71.
Brandan Stith hauled down a game-high 12 rebounds to compliment eight points. Aaron Bacote finished with 15 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block. Nik Biberaj chipped in nine points and four rebounds.
ODU held advantages for points in the paint (24-16) and bench points (28-11). For the contest, the lead changed 10 times and the score was tied a total of seven times.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS FOR OLD DOMINION
For the season, Trey Freeman is leading the way for the Monarchs averaging 17.4 ppg and 3.5 rpg. Aaron Bacote is averaging 15.4 points a contest, while Zoran Talley is averaging 8.0 points and 4.5 rebounds. Brandan Stith is netting 7.8 ppg to compliment 8.4 boards per contest, while Nik Biberaj is chipping in 6.3 points per outing to go along with 4.2 boards. Denzell Taylor currently leads ODU with 109 total rebounds (6.8 per game).
Old Dominion is averaging 66.6 points a game, while holding opponents to 59.8 points on 38.7% shooting from the floor and 32.0% from long-range. The Monarchs turn the ball over 9.4 times per game, while forcing opponents into an average of 11.3 forced turnovers per contest.
MEET UAB
UAB (13-3, 3-0) extended the nation’s fourth-longest winning streak to 10 on Saturday after holding on to defeat UTEP 87-80. The victory also tied the school record for the most consecutive home wins with 19.
Sophomore William Lee scored 18 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked five shots to lead four Blazers in double figures. Lee enters the week ranked fifth in the nation with 3.1 blocks per game and is averaging 13.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game during league play.
Chris Cokley added his own double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds and leads UAB with 14.9 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. The Savannah, Ga.-native also stands third in Conference USA and 16th in the NCAA with a .620 field goal percentage.
Point guard Nick Norton finished with 13 points and a game-high seven assists for his sixth game with at least seven helpers. Norton, who is averaging 7.7 assists per game over his last three games, is second in the NCAA with a 5.67 assist/turnover ratio. Additionally, UAB is fifth in the country with 19.6 assists per game and 16th in the nation with a 1.58 assist/turnover ratio.
DON’T MISS THE ACTION!
Monarch basketball season tickets are on sale now for the 2015-16 season at YNottix.com or by calling the box office 757-683-4444.
TICKETS (Single Game)
Adult Lower Bowl - $17
Adult Club - $31
Military/Seniors/Youth/Faculty Staff - $15
Group pricing available by calling Todd McKeating at 757-683-7087
WHAT A DEAL! - VOUCHER BOOKS
Get 10 tickets to use at any home ODU basketball games during the 2015-16 regular season. Use them all at one game to bring family and friends, or spread them out over the season. The choice is yours! The price is $120 for a men’s basketball voucher book. That’s a $50 savings over purchasing at the ticket window. Purchase now at www.ynottix.com.
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For a more in-depth look into the men’s basketball program, be sure to follow @ODUMBB on Twitter and ‘ODU Basketball’ on Facebook!