Liberty (7-3) vs. Alcorn State (0-2)
Lynchburg, Virginia – Liberty Arena
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 1:00 p.m. ET

Last Meeting: Liberty won, 76-54, on Nov. 23, 2018
Series History: Liberty leads 1-0

Projected LU Starters:

1 Chris Parker (Sr., 6-1, 170) – 8.9 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 4.9 apg
2 Darius McGhee (Jr., 5-9, 150) – 13.9 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.6 apg
10 Elijah Cuffee (Sr., 6-4, 200) – 10.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 1.7 apg
22 Kyle Rode (So., 6-7, 220) – 5.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.3 apg
32 Blake Preston (R-So., 6-9, 225) – 7.8 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 1.2 apg

Projected Alcorn State Starters:

3 Davie Pierce (Jr., 6-3, 215) – 8.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 0.0 apg
13 Oddyst Walker (Jr., 6-3, 175) – 6.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 0.0 apg
0 Troymain Crosby (Sr., 6-4, 200) – 16.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.5 apg
15 Malik Hardmon (Jr., 6-6, 205) – 1.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 0.0 apg
4 Anthony Fairley (Sr., 6-8, 190) – 0.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 0.0 apg

QUICK FACTS

  • Liberty has a 28-game winning streak at home which is the second longest streak in the country.
  • Liberty has made 116 three-pointers this season which ranks No. 1 in Division I. The Flames’ 11.6 makes per game ranks No. 8 in the country.
  • Darius McGhee is currently 3rd in the country with 25 made three pointers this season. McGhee is one of three players who rank in the top 40 nationally in made three pointers as Cuffee is No. 19 and McDowell is No. 36.
  • Chris Parker ranks No. 6 in the country with 49 assists this season.
  • Liberty ranks No. 14 as a team in assist turnover ratio. The Flames lead the nation with 169 assists as a team this season.
  • The Flames are No. 18 in scoring defense holding opponents to 57.9 points per game.

PREVIEW

The Liberty Flames close out the non-conference portion of its schedule with Tuesday matinee against the Alcorn State Braves. No TV or streaming will be available for this contest. Led by first year head coach Landon Bussie, Alcorn State is 0-2 on the season following losses to UAB (99-50) and Houston (88-55) to begin the year.

Alcorn State faced UAB on Nov. 25 then had to go on a pause due to COVID issues and did not return to play until Sunday at Houston. Like Liberty, this will be the Braves’ final non-conference tune up before beginning SWAC play on Jan. 2 at home against Texas Southern. The Braves are coming off a 15-15 season last year where they finished 11-7 in SWAC play, tied for 4th.

Playing against two top 100 KenPom teams to begin the season, Alcorn State is struggling. The Braves are allowing 93.5 points per game while their opponents are shooting 51.6% from the field. On offense it’s even worse as Alcorn State has just 7 team assists in two games while averaging just 52.5 points per game and shooting 32.7% from the field and 22.9% from three.

In addition to Troymain Crosby who leads the team with 16 points per game, 5’10” redshirt-junior guard Kurk Lee is also in double figures with 14 points. Lee did not play Sunday at Houston, but in the season opener at UAB he scored 14 on 6 of 11 shooting and 2 of 3 from three point range.

KENPOM PREDICTION

Liberty 75, Alcorn State 57