Merry Christmas
From myself and all of us here at Flames Nation, we would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year! We thank you all for your support and feedback throughout the year. 

homesleyFlames have dropped 9 straight, face VCU Sunday
Liberty’s losing streak has reached 9 after dropping a contest to Saint Francis Brooklyn, 64-55, this past Sunday. It was a game the Flames could have won as they controlled the game for the first 30 minutes of play, but John Dawson suffered through foul trouble as the Terriers eventually took the lead and began to pull away. Dawson led the team with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Liberty has now lost 24 straight contests away from the Vines Center. After a break for Christmas, Coach McKay and the team will be in Richmond this weekend as they face VCU on Sunday. The Flames are 1-5 all-time against the Rams, but haven’t played them since 1998. VCU is 6-5 on the season and is coming off a 90-69 win over Buffalo in a game where they forced 31 turnovers. The Rams are known for their “havoc” style of defense first developed under Shaka Smart, but continuing under Smart’s successor Will Wade. The Rams are 16th in the country in turnovers forced per game while the Flames are 283rd in turnovers committed.

FlamesNation POY 2015
Voting for 2015 FlamesNation Player of the Year finalist closes New Year’s Eve. Be sure to get your votes in now! The finalists are Chima Uzowihe, Alex Close, and Ashley Rininger.

Basketball commits update

  • Brock Gardner is off to a terrific start to his senior season. He’s averaging 26.6 points, 12.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 2.6 steals per game. Gardner is shooting 62% from the field and 52% from 3 point range. His team is 5-0 and ranked as the 10th best team in the state of Arizona according to MaxPreps.
  • Signee Xzavier Barmore is averaging 22.8 points, 6.3 assists, 3.5 rebounds, 6.8 steals, and 2.3 turnovers per game while shooting 34% from 3. His team is 7-0 on the season and is the 2nd ranked team in the state of South Carolina according to MaxPreps.
  • Josiah Talbert is still missing time with a torn ligament in his toe.
  • Defending state champs Poca and Liberty commit Elijah Cuffee have now won 31 straight games dating back to last season. Cuffee is averaging right at 20 points per game and nearly had a trouble double in a win on Tuesday finishing with 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists. The Poca Dots are 3-0 on the season and ranked #14 in the state of West Virginia according to MaxPreps.
  • 2017 signee Jay Barber had 16 points to lead LCA in a win at Amherst this week.

Gielo playing well for 10-2 Rebels
Tomasz Gielo, who transferred from Liberty at the end of last season, has been playing well for Ole Miss. In the Rebels’ first 12 games, Gielo is averaging 9.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game while shooting 33% from 3. He’s scored in double figures in 4 straight games including a season-high 23 points in Ole Miss’ win against Troy on Tuesday. The 23 points tied his career-high. He also scored 23 against Delaware November 17, 2014.

FCS playoffs update
Danny Rocco and the Richmond Spiders got beat by North Dakota State, 33-7, in the FCS semifinals last Friday night. North Dakota State advances to the title game for the 5th straight season where they look for an unprecedented 5th straight national championship. The run the Bison are on is remarkable. They moved up to FCS from Division II in 2004 and are in their 6th straight playoffs. NDSU has an overall record of 20-1 in the FCS playoffs since becoming eligible in 2008. The Bison have been equally as good against FBS opponents with a 5-0 mark against FBS opponents dating back to 2010 with wins over Kansas, Minnesota, Colorado State, Kansas State, and Iowa State. North Dakota State will face Jacksonville State for the national championship on January 9th in Frisco, Texas. The Gamecocks beat Sam Houston State, 62-10, in the semifinals.

Flames in the NFL update
Rashad Jennings rushed for 107 yards and 1 touchdown on 16 carries as the Giants nearly upset the undefeated Carolina Panthers. Walt Aikens did not record any stats in the Dolphins 30-14 loss to the Chargers.

Women’s basketball update
Just one game for the Lady Flames this week as they beat Shepherd, 69-57. Coach Green gave playing time 13 players with no one playing more than 24 minutes. Big South Preseason Player of the Year Ashley Rininger will have surgery on her knee and is expected to miss 4-6 weeks. With that timetable, she should be expected back around the first of February. The Lady Flames resume conference play December 29th at Campbell.

FlameFans thread of the week
This week’s FlameFans thread of the week is Game #14: @ VCU.