LAKELAND, Fla.— The Fire will face one of the toughest teams in the conference, and the nation, in #6 Warner University on Thursday.
Southeastern, who has an 11-9 record so far this year, has only lost once at home this season and is in need of a signature conference win to move them up in the Sun Conference standings. If the Fire can pull off the upset, it will certainly give them momentum heading into the last half of conference play.
Previous Meeting:
In their first matchup of the season, which took place in Lake Wales, Warner came out of top by a score of 109-79. The Fire only allowed Warren Hall to score 22 points, 16 points under what he was averaging at that time, but other players stepped up and delivered for the Royals. Nick Macon, who leads the conference in assists (7.32 per game), recorded a game-high eight helpers, while Andrew Lamb, the conference leader in blocks (38 total), shut down six shot attempts.
Freshman guard,
Jase Miguez, led the Fire in scoring against the Royals earlier in the year with 20 points. Deshaun Wilcox and
Carlon Holder each contributed double digit efforts on the scoresheet, as well, adding 10 points each.
Since the game in Lake Wales, the Fire have greatly improved, going 8-5 in all contests, including a six game winning streak. During the streak, Southeastern rattled off back-to-back wins against ranked opponents, Bethel University and Taylor University.
Keys to the Game:
The key to stopping the Warner offense lies in shutting down the nation's leading scorer, Hall, who averages just north of 31 points per game. However, Hall also averages 4.36 assists per game, so getting the ball out of his hands early in possessions should bode well for the Fire defensively.
Southeastern's senior point guard, Wilcox, tops the team in steals. Since a key to the Fire's success is removing the ball from Hall's hands, any turnovers Wilcox can force will increase the chances of a Fire upset.
Wesley Johnson will look to combat the Royals' center, Lamb, in the paint. The transfer from Charleston Southern ranks 15
th in the NAIA in total blocks (33) and 17
th in blocks per game (1.65).
The game is scheduled to start at 7pm in the Furnace.
Live Stats
Live Video
