TSC Men’s Basketball Game of the Week - 2/7
#16 Warner (19-7, 12-2 TSC) at St. Thomas (9-13, 8-6 TSC)
Thursday, February 7
7:30 p.m.
Miami Gardens, Fla. – Fernandez Family Center
Headlines:
- Warner took sole possession of first place in the conference with Ave Maria’s win over Southeastern in last week’s game of the week. The Royals magic number to clinch the conference regular season title with four games to go is three.
- St. Thomas sits in fifth place in conference, a half game ahead of Thomas and Coastal Georgia and a half game behind Keiser. The top six in the conference standings will qualify for the conference tournament.
- Warner won the previous meeting between these two teams earlier in the season in a come-from-behind effort. St. Thomas held a 40-36 halftime lead in Lake Wales before the Royals outscored the Bobcats 43-32 over the final 20 minutes to come away with a 79-72 win.
- Trae Graham had 26 points and 10 rebounds for Warner in the win in Lake Wales. He was 9-of-13 from the field and 8-of-10 from the charity stripe. The Bobcats were led by Justin Brown in that game with 24 points and five rebounds. Brown was 14-of-14 from the free throw line.
Inside the Numbers:
- Warner comes into Thursday night’s matchup with the top offense in the conference, scoring 84.8 points per game.
- The Royals are shooting 49.6 percent from the field on the season, tops in the conference, and are making 36.6 percent from behind the arc, good for third in the conference.
- Warner ranks sixth nationally in total assists (465) and seventh in assists per game (17.9).
- St. Thomas brings in one of the conference’s top scoring defenses, allowing 74.2 points per game.
- The Bobcats are second in the conference in offensive rebounds per game, bringing in over 12 offensive boards per contest. STU ranks 22nd nationally in offensive rebounds per game.
- St. Thomas averages 7.6 steals per game which ranks second in the conference and 31st nationwide.
Who to Watch:
- Darryl Mercer will be a player to watch for Warner. The 6-0, guard is averaging 12.4 points over 26 games played this season but has averaged 16.5 points over his last 14 games including three 24+ point performances in his last six game. Mercer had points in the previous meeting with St. Thomas.
- Mercer also leads the team in assists with 98 and steals with 30. His 47 made threes is best on the team and the guard is shooting 88 percent from the free throw line.
- Forward Aaron Dutcher is a player to watch for St. Thomas. The California native is averaging 11.9 points per game. He recorded a 20 point performance on 10-of-13 shooting last week against Johnson & Wales.
- In 15 games for St. Thomas, Dutcher is shooting a team best 56.6 percent from the field and grabbing a team high 6.9 rebounds. He also has 11 blocks on the season.
Quotables:
"As we get closer to the end of the regular season every games importance is magnified. Even more so when we play at St. Thomas. The great history and bond I have with their coaches always leads to interesting finishes and has been one of our toughest games every year. We have a great amount of respect for their team and look forward to the challenge.’ - Sean Hanrahan, Head Coach Warner
“This week's match-up is a huge game. We are playing the top team in the Sun Conference as well as in the NAIA [in Warner]. We feel that we are playing well and peaking as the playoffs approach. Having a match-up like this late in the season, at home, is something we are looking forward to.” - Adrian White, Head Coach St. Thomas
Quotables:
Current Record |
STU
9 - 13 |
WU
19 - 7 |
| Scoring |
1586 |
2205 |
| Points Per Game |
72.091 |
84.808 |
| Scoring Margin |
-2.136 |
8.500 |
| Field Goals |
561 |
827 |
| Field Goal Percentage |
0.425 |
0.496 |
| 3-pt FG |
184 |
150 |
| 3-point FG Percent |
0.336 |
0.366 |
| 3-point FG made per game |
8.364 |
5.769 |
| Free Throws |
280 |
401 |
| Free throw pct |
0.714 |
0.740 |
| Rebounds |
794 |
968 |
| Rebounds per game |
36.091 |
37.231 |
| Rebounding Margin |
-0.864 |
6.923 |
| Assists |
308 |
465 |
| Assists per game |
14.000 |
17.885 |
| Turnovers |
344 |
357 |
| Turnovers per game |
15.636 |
13.731 |
| Turnover margin |
0.364 |
-1.654 |
| Assist/Turnover Ratio |
0.895 |
1.303 |
| Steals |
167 |
168 |
| Steals per game |
7.591 |
6.462 |
| Blocks |
42 |
82 |
| Blocks per game |
1.909 |
3.154 |
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