Fire Men's Basketball Set to Face Two Sun Conference Opponents

LAKELAND,Fla. - The No. 18 Southeastern University Men's Basketball team returns to action this week with two Sun Conference match-ups against St. Thomas University and Florida Memorial University. The Fire currently hold a 20-5 overall record (10-3 SUN) and are ranked first within the Gardens on Thursday to play the Bobcats and will return home to host the Lions, Saturday at 7 p.m.

The St. Thomas University Bobcats come into this week 11-8, (8-5 SUN) coming off of a 84-79 victory over Coastal Georgia to extend their winning streak to three. The Bobcats come into this match-up averaging 80.3 points per game, making 44.5 percent of their shots, and shooting 34.1 percent from the three-point line. 

The last time the Bobcats saw the Fire, SEU came out on top 91-85. Riley Minix finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. Chris Whitaker from the Bobcats finished with 30 points. 

Players to watch for the Bobcats are:. Chris Whitaker, Jonas Parker, and Augustus Stone. All three of these players average 15 points per game. 

The Florida Memorial Lions come into this weekend's Sun Conference match-up with a 13-7 overall record and a 9-4 Sun Conference record, winning their last contest against Thomas University 71-70. The Lions are averaging 75.4 points per game, shooting 42.1% from the field, and shooting 70% from the free throw line. 

Senior Guard Corey Benton leads the way for the Lion as he is the team's leading scorer averaging 16.9 points per game. The Columbus, Ohio has been efficient from the free throw line making 84.3% of his attempts, shooting 40.8% from the field and 29.2% from beyond the arc. 

Last time Florida Memorial and Southeastern met resulted in a 77-74 Fire victory. 

The No.18 Fire are coming off of a 71-59 victory against Webber International. Southeastern come into this week averaging 83.2 points per game, making 46.9% of their shots, and shooting 35.2% from the three-point line. 

Seven time Sun Conference Player of the Week Riley Minix leads the Fire squad in points per game (23.1), rebounds (10.6 rbg), three-pointers made (67), and blocks (29). Reggie Mesidor has been efficient, the team's second leading scorer averaging 10.3 points per game, and leads the team in steals with 35. Jordan Gorman leads the team in assists and three-point percentage with 77 total assists and shooting 46.5% from behind the arc. 

Tickets to this weekend's match-up can be found and purchased at https://southeastern.universitytickets.com/w/?cid=172.