Drew Smith’s hot
The junior forward from Highlands Christian Academy in Pompano Beach, Florida has been playing extremely well recently. Since conference play started, Smith is averaging 13 points and 6 rebounds while shooting 15-of-26 (58%) from the field. Prior to these last 3 games, he has had 3 double digit scoring performances in his entire career.

Not to mention his dunk against Campbell which was featured on SportsCenter’s top 10 plays for the night.
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Gielo’s surge
Not to be outdone by his frontcourt counterpart, Tomasz Gielo has had an impressive stretch of 10 games. In these past 10 games, he’s scored in double figures 8 times and is averaging 13 points and 6.6 rebounds while shooting 50-of-94 (53%) from the field and 11-of-27 (41%) from 3-point range. For comparison’s sake, in the first 8 games of the season, Tomasz scored in double figures just once while averaging 7.5 points and 3.9 rebounds while shooting 22-of-54 (50%) from the field and 5-of-17 (29%) from 3.

Braxton Bonds feature
Liberty basketball signee Braxton Bonds was featured in an article by The Tennessean this week. The article also includes a video interview with Bonds, his coach, and some teammates. It is a good piece which touches some on his relationship with his uncle Barry and grandfather Bobby Bonds, Sr.

Women’s hoops update
The Lady Flames defeated Presbyterian 59-51 to set up a big showdown against Winthrop between the schools tied atop the Big South standings at 6-1. After trailing much of the first half and into the 2nd half, the Flames rallied to take a late lead. Winthrop would, however, send the game into an overtime on Schaqulla Nunn’s buzzer beater. Liberty would pull out the victory in overtime 77-70, though. With the win, the Lady Flames take over sole possession of first place in the Big South at 7-1. Mickayla Sanders scored a career-high 17 points in the win over Winthrop.

Walt Aikens getting more love
Walt Aikens continues to get some love during the offseason as he prepares for the upcoming NFL draft. In addition to playing in the Medal of Honor Bowl and the Senior Bowl, profootballspot.com recently caught up with Aikens for an interview. You may recognize the picture at the top of the article.

Chris Summers signs with Bills
Former Liberty standout wide receiver Chris Summers signed with the Buffalo Bills this week. Since being signed as an undrafted free agent in April 2012 by the Chicago Bears, Summers has spent time with both Chicago and the Minnesota Vikings’ practice squad. Summers concluded his Liberty career as the all-time leader in receptions (188), receiving yards (2,712), and touchdown receptions (26).

 

Monty Fenner scheduled to visit
There are plans for several prospective student-athletes to visit campus this weekend including 2014 football prospect Monty Fenner. Fenner has offers from Liberty, Hampton, Campbell, Towson, and Robert Morris. The Flames are looking at him for Safety. I’m sure Fenner will get a tour of the brand-new Jerry Falwell Library.

FlameFans thread of the week
Speaking of the library, on our message board FlameFans, as you can imagine, we have a thread dedicated to the library and its grand opening, Jerry Falwell Library Grand Opening. It gets our nod this week as the FlameFans thread of the week.

Social media plug
Just a shameless social media plug to be sure you are aware of all the ways we can connect. We are currently on twitter, facebook, and instagram. Be sure to give us a follow on each site you use, as we continue to bring you all the latest on Liberty University Athletics. All Liberty. All Day.