Men’s Basketball Faces Ave Maria on Silent Night, Travels to Regent

LAKELAND, Fla.—Following a tight road victory over Keiser, the Fire return home to host Ave Maria in the annual "Silent Night" game this Thursday night. SEU will then make the journey to Virginia Beach, as Southeastern battles Regent University.
 
GAME INFO:
#11 Southeastern University (7-1, 4-0 TSC) vs Ave Maria University (7-3, 2-2 TSC)
Date: Thursday, December 6, 2018
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Lakeland, Fla. (The Furnace)
Game Coverage: Live Updates- @SEUFireMBB on Twitter, Live Stats/Video- https://portal.stretchinternet.com/southeastern/
 
Defensive Dominance:
 

• Since SEU's only loss of the season, the Fire have rattled off three straight wins, largely due to stout defense.
• During the span, Southeastern is holding opponents to just 61.7 points per game and 35.8 percent shooting from the field (69-193 FG). In the four games prior, the Fire gave up an average of 85 points per contest.
• This type of play has propelled SEU in the national leaderboards, as Southeastern now ranks 17^th in 3-pt defense (30.2%) and 40^th in scoring defense (75 ppg).
• Josiah Barsh, who leads the team in scoring, steals an average of 2.7 opponent possessions per competition, which ranks second in the country.

 
The Gyrenes:
 

• Ave Maria comes into the matchup with a 7-3 (2-2 TSC) record. The Gyrenes have already bested their win total from a season ago after going a mere 4-25 in 2017. AMU has also tied the number of conference wins they had last year through just four league contests.
• The Gyrenes are led by the duo of Leo Behrend and Gianpaolo Riccio. Behrend, a redshirt junior from Pocatello, Idaho, leads AMU in points per game (19.2), rebounds per game (9.5), steals per game (2.5) and blocks per game (1.0).
• Riccio is the reigning Sun Conference Player of the Week after averaging 28.5 points last week. The senior, who has notched the 20-point mark in four of the last five games and shot 14-22 from downtown the past two contests, ranks fourth in the nation in 3-pt field goals made per game (4.2) and seventh in total threes made (42).

 
GAME INFO:
#11 Southeastern University (7-1, 4-0 TSC) at Regent University (0-4)
Date: Saturday, December 8, 2018
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Location: Virginia Beach, Va.
 
The Royals:
 

• Regent University is competing in the NCCAA Division I athletic association as a first-year program. So far, the team is still in search of its first victory in program history as the Royals sit at 0-4 in 2018.
• The Royals have three players averaging at least ten points, while Kristopher Warren is dropping nearly 15 points per game. Warren, who scored 28 in a 76-71 defeat versus Brewton-Parker College, leads the squad in field goals made (22), three pointers made (7) and rebounds per game (8.75).
• Regent averages 61.0 points per competition, while giving up 88.5 per game. The team's scoring margin (-27.5) ranks 43^rd of 46 teams in NCCAA Division I.