Concord Gears Up for Frostburg State, Wheeling

Concord Stats - Frostburg State Stats - Wheeling Stats - Live Audio - Live Stats - Live Video - Complete Game Notes

ATHENS, W.Va. - The Concord University men's basketball team hosts Frostburg State 4:30 p.m. Saturday before starting a three-game road trip 7:30 p.m. Monday at Wheeling.

LIVE COVERAGE
Audio: Jason Reed and Steve Cox will have the live play-by-play radio broadcast on 94.5 "Willie" FM and online at www.mywillie.com
Stats: Both the Concord and Wheeling University Sports Information Departments will have live in-game statistics of each game.
Video: Live streaming video is available for both contests from the respective home school. 

RECORDS
CU is 3-3 after falling to Alderson Broaddus over the weekend.

Frostburg State is 2-4 after falling on the road against Charleston on Wednesday.

Wheeling has a mark of 0-4, but the Cardinals are in their second pausing of basketball activities this winter.

GETTING ALL THE REBOUNDS
In the loss to AB, the Mountain Lions continued their reliance on the glass as CU outrebounded Alderson Broaddus, 31-30. As a team, Concord notched 10 offensive rebounds which marked the third consecutive game the Maroon and Gray had double-digit offensive rebounds. The 10 offensive rebounds translated into a season-high 14 second-chance points. Individually, junior forward Mohamed Bundu had half of the offensive rebounds as part of his 10 rebounds against AB. It also marked the third straight game Bundu had tallied 10 or more rebounds—the longest streak for a CU player with double-digit rebounds since Simun Kovac in the final three regular-season games of the 2018-19 season. Junior guard Brandon Kennedy also tied his career high with eight rebounds versus AB. 

TAKING AWAY THE BEST
In two games last week, Concord limited West Liberty and Alderson Broaddus to 11 combined made three-pointers—two teams that were combining to make nearly 20 three-pointers per game on average. CU allowed the Battlers to make just six three-pointers on 20 attempts (30 percent). In four of six games this season, the Mountain Lions' opponents have shot 30 percent or less from beyond the arc. Going back to the start of last season, Concord has held 13 different opponents to 30 percent or less from three-point range—a 36-game sample size. In 12 halves of basketball this season, Concord has only given up more than five three-pointers in a single half twice (second half against both West Virginia State and West Virginia Wesleyan).

MARCH TO THE LINE
Over the last two games, Concord has attempted 66 free throws, 32 against Alderson Broaddus and a season-high 34 against West Liberty. It was the first time CU has attempted 30 or more free throws in back-to-back games since the MEC Semifinals and Championship Game in March 2016. The only team in the MEC to attempt more foul shots than CU's 155 in 2021 is West Virginia State with 187. However, the Mountain Lions are 11^th in the MEC in free-throw shooting percentage (63.9). Two bright spots at the foul line in the last two contests have been Bundu who hit 17-of-22 (77.2 percent), and Da'Vion Moore who was 4-for-4 at the charity stripe against AB after starting the season 0-of-5 at the free throw line. Additionally, junior guard Seth Brown is 5-of-5 at the foul line over the last two games.

DOWN TO THE WIRE
Concord and Frostburg State will meet for just the third time with the first two coming last season in two FSU wins, by a combined seven points. In a 68-65 loss at Frostburg State, Concord limited the Bobcats to 34.7 percent from the floor and 29.6 percent from three-point range. Senior forward Liam Evans had 12 points. In a December 2019 defeat, 62-58, the Mountain Lions once again stifled Frostburg State to 37.1 percent shooting, but FSU was able to knock down eight three-pointers in the slim win. Senior guard/forward Malik Johnson had 15 points while sophomore guard Ethan Heller chipped in 11 points. The only other opponent CU played last season where the winning margin was five points or less twice was Notre Dame—at home and in the MEC Tournament.

MIRROR IMAGE
A look at the box score in Concord's 74-71 road loss at Wheeling last season shows how even last year's game at the McDonough was. Both teams finished the game shooting 42.4 percent (25-for-59) from the floor. Each team made four three-pointers with Wheeling attempting one more than CU (17-16).  The Cardinals were one better in second-chance points (9-8). The biggest difference in the game was Concord committing 23 fouls to Wheeling's 17 fouls, resulting in WU hitting three more free throws than the Maroon and Gray. The Cardinals were also +8 on the glass (40-32). In the loss, Evans recorded his only career double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds on 9-of-13 shooting. Heller added 10 points and four assists.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
6- Consecutive games to start the season CU has had the opponent under 40 percent shooting from three-point range.

28- Points over the last two games for Brown after scoring 52 in his first 32 career games.

164- Points needed by Johnson to reach 1,000 for his career.

FROSTBURG STATE AT A GLANCE
Frostburg State lost one of the best scorers in the MEC from a season ago in Daniel Alexander who averaged over 20 points per game. Agyei Edwards is one of the most potent scorers in the conference this season, averaging 22.8 points per game. Canaan Bartley pours in 16 points per game while Jihar Williams is just under 10 points per game at 9.8. The Bobcats are averaging 77.7 points per game, but giving up 96.2 points per game, 12^th in the MEC. The wins for FSU—against Notre Dame and West Virginia Wesleyan—have come by a combined five points.

WHEELING AT A GLANCE
First-year head coach Chris Richardson is searching for win number one at Wheeling. Though the Cardinals do return four of their top five scorers from a season ago, Richardson is the fourth different head coach in four seasons at WU. The returners are headlined by Jordan Reid, an All-MEC First Team pick in 2019-20. Reid is averaging 22.7 points per game, fourth in the MEC. Three-year starting guard Jay Gentry is averaging 10.3 points per game while Jarett Haines pours in 17.3 points per game on average. Two of the four losses for the Cardinals are by six points (home to Alderson Broaddus and at Notre Dame). Wheeling is 10^th in the MEC in points allowed this season at 86.8 per game.