After winning consecutive conference games, the Flames fell to Jacksonville State for the second time this season over the weekend. Let’s take a look at the current condition of Liberty Basketball.
Record:
The Flames are currently 13-8 overall with a 10-8 record over Division I opponents. Liberty is 2-4 in Conference USA play.
Last Week’s Recap:
The Flames came into Pete Mathews Coliseum on a two-game win streak, hoping to avenge the Gamecocks from their loss a couple of weeks earlier in Lynchburg. The Flames could not slow down the Gamecocks, who shot a blazing 62.2% from the field in a 73-62 win.
The Jacksonville State tandem of Marcellus Brigham and KyKy Tandy proved hard to stop as the two combined for 44 points on 16-22 shooting and 11 rebounds. The Gamecocks dominated the paint, scoring 23 of their 28 field goals from inside the arc, while also out-rebounding Liberty 34-22.
Kyle Rode and Colin Porter led the Flames with 15 points, while Brody Peebles added 14 off the bench on 5-10 shooting. Liberty won the turnover battle, only turning the ball over five times to Jacksonville State’s ten. Unfortunately, Liberty struggled from the line, going just 9-17, barely over 50% from the charity stripe.
This marks the first time since the 2017-18 season that Liberty has lost to a conference opponent twice during the regular season (the Flames lost to Radford and Campbell twice that season). Jacksonville State seems to have Liberty’s number as of late. They not only beat Liberty twice this season by double digits to take the lead in the all-time series but are the only team to win multiple times against the Flames in Liberty Arena, including breaking Liberty’s 45-game home winning streak during the 2021-22 season. That loss ended up causing the Flames the regular season crown in the ASUN and ultimately a trip to the NCAA tournament.
Liberty’s road struggles continue after three weeks of conference play. Liberty has not won a conference game on the road to date and is 1-4 overall, with their lone road victory coming in December over Utah Valley. Hopefully, things can change, as the Flames have two more road games before returning home to Lynchburg. While the Flames were able to clean up the turnovers, the struggles from the free throw line continued. Liberty ranks 350th in the nation in free throw attempts and 332nd in free throw percentage. Zach Cleveland, who went 0-6 from the line on Saturday, has 78 free throw attempts on the year while no other Flame has more than 34. Cleveland is shooting 50% from the line this season.
For whatever reason, 70 seems to be the magic number for Liberty this season. Liberty is undefeated in games when they score 70+ in regulation (Liberty scored 76 in an overtime loss to Louisiana Tech but had under 70 before OT). On the other hand, Liberty has only won once when allowing an opponent to score over 70. That win came in the Myrtle Beach Classic, an 88-74 win over Furman.
Rankings Roundup:
Here’s where the Flames currently stand in current credible national rankings:
NET: 110 (-4)
KenPom: 102 (-7)
ELO Rankings: 133 (-26)
SOS (Strength of Schedule): 170 (+18)
BPI (Basketball Power Index): 79 (-10)
Best Win: vs #95 Charlotte (Quad 2)
Worst Loss: vs #175 Jacksonville State (Quad 4) *The 2nd loss to JAX ST is a Quad 3 loss.
CUSA Standings: Tied for 3rd (or last depending on how you look at it)
Statistical Leaders:
Points per game: Kyle Rode – 14.0
Rebounds per game: Joseph Venzant – 7.3
Assists per game: Colin Porter – 4.3
Steals per game: Joseph Venzant – 1.0
Blocks per game: Zach Cleveland – 0.8
Field Goal Percentage: Zach Cleveland – 61.5%
Up Next:
This week, the Flames road trip continues further west, with two huge games against New Mexico State and UTEP. The Aggies are currently a game ahead of Liberty in the standings at 3-3, while the Miners are 2-4 as well. Both teams are undefeated at home in conference play and have only lost on the road, which has been a common trend amongst many Conference USA teams thus far.
This has not been an ideal start to conference play, however, everything that Liberty wants to achieve this season is still on the table. Every game matters, but with no homecourt advantage in the CUSA tournament (neutral site) and with the top 7 seeds having to play the same number of games to get to a CUSA championship, regular season success means a lot less in Conference USA than it did in the ASUN. If the Flames can get hot at the right time and play their best basketball in March, then that is what matters. Hopefully, the Flames can take a step forward and get back on track with a couple of road wins this week.
