Concord Stats -
Davis & Elkins Stats -
Live Audio -
Live Stats -
Live Video -
Complete Game Notes -
MEC Tournament Information
ATHENS, W.Va. - The Concord University men's basketball team hosts Davis & Elkins in an opening round play-in game of the Mountain East Conference Tournament 7:00 p.m. Monday at the Carter Center.
LIVE COVERAGE
Audio: Jason Reed and
Steve Cox will have live radio play-by-play coverage of Monday's gae on 94.5 "Willie" FM and streaming online at www.mywillie.com
Stats: The Concord University Sports Information Department will provide live in-game statistics of Monday's contest.
Video: Live streaming video with Reed and Cox's commentray simulcast is available for the game.
RECORDS
The Mountain Lions are 8-7 this season after a 100-81 loss to Glenville State to close the regular season.
Davis & Elkins was off Saturday as it finished the regular season on Thursday with an 80-79 victory over Alderson Broaddus on the road to close with a 4-10 record.
WELCOME TO THE CLUB
On Monday night, senior guard/forward
Malik Johnson will be vying to become the 40
th member of the 1,000-point club at Concord. The Wytheville, Virginia native needs 10 points to reach 1,000 for his career. Johnson would be the first player since
Tommy Bolte (2015-2019) to reach 1,000 points when Bolte reached the mark February 2018 as he went on to score more than 2,000 points. If Johnson gets to 1,000 points on Monday, he would be the first CU player to tally career point 1,000 in a postseason game since
Damien Tunstalle (2009-13) scored his 1,000
th point against Pitt-Johnstown in the opening round of the WVIAC Tournament February 26, 2013. Already this season, Johnson has gone over 100 career three-pointers, and he would be one of 16 players in program history with 1,000 career points and 100 career triples.
3D (DOUBLE-DOUBLE DAVE)
Senior forward
David Bea Mulumba notched his fourth double-double of the season on Saturday in the setback against Glenville State by scoring 10 points and adding 10 rebounds. Three of the four double-double for Mulumba have come in the last five games. Over the last five contests, the Antwerp, Belgium native has pulled down 51 rebounds, becoming the second player for Concord to tally 50 or more rebounds over a five-game stretch this season. Junior forward
Mohamed Bundu had 56 rebounds from January 16-February 6, including 13 in his first career start at Davis & Elkins January 16. With Bundu (6.6 rebounds last five), Johnson (6.2 rebounds last five) and Mulumba patrolling the glass, CU has outrebounded the opponent in the last five games by an average of 41.8-39.0.
GLUE GUY
Junior guard
Brandon Kennedy has only scored 10 or more points in four of 15 games this season, but Kennedy has routinely been locked up on the other team's best perimeter scorer. Earlier this season, the Chillicothe, Ohio native forced West Liberty All-American Dalton Bolon into seven turnovers in an upset of the Hilltoppers. Kennedy has also frustrated All-MEC candidate Glen Abram of West Virginia State as well as limited Frostburg State's leading scorer, Agyei Edwards, into 4-for-13 shooting in each contest. On Saturday, Kennedy locked down 20-point per game scorer Hegel Augustin of Glenville State as he shot just 2-of-12 from the floor. Kennedy dished out a career-best and team-high five assists in the GSC loss. One of Kennedy's double-digit games did come in the February 13 overtime win over Davis & Elkins as he scored 10 points. In two matchups with D&E this season, Kennedy has shot 4-for-9 from three-point range.
WELCOME TO MARCH
In head coach
Todd May's first season on the sidelines in Athens, CU failed to make the MEC Tournament, but in the three conference tournaments since the Mountain Lions have won at least one game despite never being higher than the fifth overall seed. In 2018, Concord defeated Fairmont State in the MEC Quarterfinals in the 3/6 matchup, did the same to Charleston as the lower seed in the 4/5 matchup in 2019, and last year rallied from a nine-point halftime deficit to beat Notre Dame as the eight seed in the opening round 8/9 matchup. The last time Concord hosted a home postseason game was 2013 when it fell to Pitt-Johnstown in the 8/9 game. The last win for CU in a tournament game played at the Carter Center was 2012 when the Mountain Lions defeated Ohio Valley in the 6/11 matchup.
REGULAR SEASON SPLIT
Concord and Davis & Elkins each won over the other at home during the two regular season meetings. Davis & Elkins took a 67-56 home win on January 16. The Mountain Lions returned the favor just 15 days ago with an 87-82 overtime victory in Athens. In the matchup at Concord, both team shot over 50 percent with CU shooting 51.5 percent—the second-highest percentage for the 2021 season. Concord netted 10 three-pointers at home versus the Senators which started a three-game streak of making at least 10 triples. The Mountain Lions had to navigate the first game against D&E without regular starters sophomore guard
Ethan Heller and Mulumba. Johnson was the only CU player to score in double figures as he posted 16 points. At home, Heller pumped in a then-season high 25 points on 11-for-19 shooting. Johnson added 18 points. Bundu gave Concord a spark off the bench with 12 points, and Kennedy and Mulumba each had 10 points with Mulumba adding eight rebounds.
PREMIUM ON THREE-POINTERS
While the two teams did combine for 20 three-pointers in the latest meeting, on average CU and Davis & Elkins only combine to make 13 triples per game this season. The Mountain Lions have been tough on opponents all season from three-point distance as their defensive percentage from beyond the arc of 31.2 percent ranks second in the MEC. Meanwhile, the Senators are just one of two teams in the conference this season to be shooting less than 30 percent from behind the arc, 28.9. The only Davis & Elkins player with at least 20 made three-pointers and a percentage of 30 or better is Gyasi Powell who has canned 26 three-pointers and is making 31.0 percent of his attempts.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
13- Years since Concord and Davis & Elkins met in a postseason game with CU coming away with a 105-96 road victory in 2008.
18- Assists by Concord in the loss to Glenville State, one off a season high. CU is 3-1 this season when it has at least 15 assists, including a 17-assist game against D&E in mid-February.
20- Points scored by senior forward
Liam Evans against Glenville State, his second 20-point game of the season, and just two off his career high.
DAVIS & ELKINS AT A GLANCE
Much like Concord when it visited Davis & Elkins, the Senators weren't at full strength on their road trip to Athens. Since the teams last met, D&E has seen the return of MEC Freshman of the Year candidate Sam Rolle IV to the lineup. Rolle is averaging 18.1 points and 7.2 assists per game (best in the MEC) in 13 games played. Gyasi Powell and Breland Walton combined for 63 of Davis & Elkins' 82 points at Concord with Powell dropping in 34 points. In the four games since, Powell is averaging 13.7 points per game and is shooting just 36.6 percent. Against CU, Powell was 13-for-21 from the floor and buried seven triples. Breland Walton is one of three players in the MEC averaging a double-double as he comes into play Monday night at 20.9 points per game (fifth in the MEC) and 10.6 rebounds per contest (second in the MEC).
