Gents Back At Home On Wednesday Versus Southwestern
The Centenary men's basketball team will be back on its home court for the first time in almost a month on Wednesday evening as the Gents welcome Southwestern University to the Gold Dome for a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference contest set for 5:30 p.m.
Shreveport - The Centenary men's basketball team will be back on its home court for the first time in almost a month on Wednesday evening as the Gents welcome Southwestern University to the Gold Dome for a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference contest set for 5:30 p.m.
Live stats are available for the game at the link below:
Stats: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/mbkb/2021-22/boxscores/20220112_lo5q.xml
The Gents (6-6, 2-3 SCAC) and Pirates (4-8, 1-2 SCAC) were supposed play the game on New Year's weekend but it was postponed until Wednesday. Centenary and Southwestern each dropped a pair of games last weekend, as the Gents lost on Friday at Colorado College 93-74 and on Sunday at St. Thomas 70-59. The Pirates lost twice to Schreiner by scores of 73-59 and 77-70.
Centenary, 4-1 at home this season, is eager to be back inside the friendly confines of the Gold Dome as the Gents have won 27 of the last 35 games on their home court. The Pirates are 2-3 on the road this season and their last win in Shreveport came on Dec. 29, 2018.
Southwestern has two players averaging double figures this season led by 17.1/game from conference leader Kyle Poerschke. Chris Smith Jr. averages 11.0 PPG and Poerschke leads the team in rebounding (8.3/game) to rank third in the league. The Pirates average 73.8 PPG as a team to rank fifth in the conference and are fourth in field-goal percentage (41.9 %). Southwestern shoots 34.4 % from beyond the arc and averages 37.1 rebounds per game.
The Gents, averaging 70.2 PPG and shooting 38.9 % overall from the floor, are led by senior F Jarrell Taylor (Leesville, La.) who is averaging a team-best 13.8 PPG. He has scored in double figures nine times this season and scored a season-high 24 in a 73-50 win at Millsaps in November. Taylor is also the Gents' leading rebounding, grabbing 6.2 board per game, and is the team leader in shooting at 48.0 % overall from the field and an impressive 45.7 % from beyond the arc. He also shoots 70.6 % from the free throw line. Taylor is currently eighth in the league in scoring and 11th in rebounding.
Junior F Seth Thomas (Kilgore, Texas) scored a game-high and season-high 19 points in Sunday's game at St. Thomas to lead the Gents. He grabbed eight rebounds, went 3-6 from beyond the arc, and went 2-4 from the free throw line in 34 minutes of action. Thomas was 7-11 overall from the floor and had two assists, blocked a shot, and had a steal. He reached double figures for the third time this season and all three have come in conference play.
Thomas has been especially hot over the last four games, as he has scored 54 points (13.5 PPG), grabbed 25 rebounds, with 11 steals, nine assists, and gone 7-16 (44 %) from beyond the arc. He also played a season-high 34 minutes on Sunday.
Senior G AJ Hall (Thibodaux, La.) added 11 points in 24 minutes with three rebounds and an assist on Sunday. He was 3-3 from the free throw line and was 4-9 overall from the floor. Hall is averaging 9.4 PPG this season along with 3.4 rebounds/game. Hall has scored in double figures in four of his last five games and scored a career-high 21 points in the Gents' 73-52 win over Mississippi University for Women on Nov. 23. Junior G Ralph Johnson (White Castle, La.) has started all 12 of the Gents' games this season and is averaging 7.7 PPG, 2.4 rebounds per game, 2.6 assists/game and 1.3 steals/game. Johnson has scored in double figures twice this season and shoots a stellar 94.7 % from the free throw line.
Sophomore G Braeden Board (Rayne, La.) is averaging 8.0 PPG but 11.8 in conference play and averages 3.4 rebounds per game for the season. He scored 16 last Friday against Colorado College and poured in a career-high 21 in Centenary's 87-78 home win over Trinity last month. Junior F Joseph Wiggins (Bossier City, La.) came off the bench to score six points in 13 minutes on Sunday versus the Celts with a pair of rebounds, a blocked shot, and made 3 of 6 shots from the floor. He averages 4.1 PPG and 2.6 rebounds per game.
Senior G Kile Mingo (Cypress, Texas) averages 5.1 PPG and 2.4 rebounds per game, junior G Jalen Behr (Athens, Ga.) 6.3 PPG and 2.9 rebounds/game, and senior G Tevin Baker (Port Arthur, Texas) averages 4.0 PPG, 1.4 rebounds/game and a team-best 2.7 assists per game, just ahead of Johnson who averages 2.6.
The Gents are second in the conference in scoring defense, allowing just 68.5 PPG while Southwestern yields 78.7/game. Centenary and Southwestern are currently third and fourth in the conference in field goal percentage defense, with the Gents third at .420 and the Pirates just behind at .423. The Pirates lead the conference in three-point FG % defense (.293) and the Gents rank fourth at .310. On the other hand, both teams shoot it well from deep, as Southwestern ranks second in the SCAC in three-point FG % (.343) and Centenary is third (.324). The Gents are third in the SCAC in three-point FG's made with 97 and make an average of 8.1/game.
The Maroon and White also rank second in the conference in blocked shots (47 total/3.9/game) and are third in steals with 103 for the season for an impressive 8.6/game. Centenary also leads the league in turnover margin (+6.58) and ranks fourth in assist to turnover ratio.
Several Gents are prominently found among the conference's individual statistical leaders. Baker and Johnson are ranked eighth and 12th respectively in assists per game, Thomas ranks 12th in free throw % and is second in steals while Johnson is 14th. Taylor is 14th in FG %, fourth in three-point FG %, and eighth in three-point FG's made as well as sixth in defensive rebounds. Behr is seventh in three-point FG %, and three Gents are in the top 15 in the conference in blocked shots – Thomas (T6), Board (11) and Wiggins (14).
Centenary will now play five of its next six games at home, beginning with Wednesday's game versus the Pirates. The Gents will next face Champion Christian College on Saturday, Jan. 15 at 4 p.m.
A link to the Gents' complete 2021-22 schedule can be found here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/mbkb/2021-22/schedule
Admission is FREE to all Centenary home athletic contests but be advised of current COVID-19 protocols for fans. Updated COVID-19 information is now available via www.GoCentenary.com.
Live stats and live video stream are available for all Centenary home contests. Please note that all dates and times are subject to change.
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