Live Video: Queens Sports Network
Phil Constantino (pxp), John Short (color)

Live Stats
 
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – For the first time in three years, the 10th-ranked Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team (5-1) will face Belmont Abbey College (4-1) on Saturday afternoon in a renewal of a local rivalry between old conference foes. The Royals and the Crusaders will meet for the 46^th time, with Queens holding a 29-16 all-time edge. Queens and Belmont Abbey met at least once every year from 1990-2013.

The Royals have won both meetings since leaving Conference Carolinas prior to the 2013-2014 season, including a 92-74 victory on Nov. 28, 2015, in the most recent encounter.

Opening tipoff from the Levine Center is scheduled for 2 p.m. Tickets are $6 and all Queens students will receive free admission with their Queens ID.
 
Quick Facts
No. 10/10 Queens Royals (5-1)
(Game Notes)

-Queens picked up a fourth-straight win with an 82-74 overtime victory over Palm Beach Atlantic University on Nov. 17, claiming its first true road win of the season. The Royals were led by double-doubles from Shaun Willett and Lewis Diankulu. Willett scored 14 points to go along with 10 rebounds to record his fifth double-double in six games this season, while Diankulu scored 13 points and secured a career-high 12 boards for his first career double-double. Daniel Carr added 16 points.

-Through five games, Queens ranks in the top-50 nationally in several offensive categories: scoring offense (86.2 PPG, 42nd), field goal percentage (50.7%, 29th), assists per game (17.0 APG, T-46th), 3-point field-goal percentage (44.9%, 8th) and 3-point field goals per game (10.3, T-37th).

-Several Royals rank in the top five of the League's statistical categories, three weeks in to the season. Carr is fourth in the South Atlantic Conference in scoring, averaging 18.7 points per game, and fifth in assists with 5.7 assists per game. Willett is the League's leading rebounder, averaging 12.0 rebounds per game, while Jachai Taylor ranks fourth in the SAC in 3-point shooting (58.3%).

-Queens remained in the top 10 of the official coaches' poll with a No. 10-ranking in the most recent edition of the NABC/Division II Rankings released on Tuesday. The placement in the first official poll of the season marked the 46th consecutive week in which Queens has been featured in the national rankings dating back to the first poll of the 2015-2016 season on Nov. 24, 2015. The Royals opened the year at No. 7 in the coaches' poll and have cracked the top-10 nationally during each of the last four seasons. Queens is the only SAC team currently featured in the national rankings.

Additionally, Queens improved four spots to No. 10 nationally in the D2SIDA Media Poll released on Tuesday. The Royals are the No. 1-ranked team in the Southeast Region, with a region record of 4-0.

-Queens opened its season in the prestigious Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic presented by Hillyard. The Royals won their first game, 101-87, over William Jewell College before dropping their second game, 87-74, to Northern State University in a rematch of last year's national semifinal. The elite field featured the last two national champions and three of last year's four national semifinalists.

-The loss to Northern State put an end to the Royals' streak of consecutive unbeaten starts to the season. In the last three years, Queens had previously opened a combined 44-0 before losing a game. The streak began with a 12-0 start to the 2015-2016 campaign which at the time set program records for both longest winning streak and best start to a season. The Royals eclipsed or tied both of those records during each of the next two years, both times opening 16-0 before losing. Queens was the only NCAA men's basketball program to open each of the last three seasons at least 10-0 before losing (more than 1,200 NCAA institutions).

-The loss also marked the earliest loss in a season since Queens fell in its season opener to Georgia College on Nov. 14, 2014, and the first regular-season non-conference loss since falling to Livingstone on Dec. 3, 2014. The Royals had won 23 straight non-conference regular-season games.

-Head Coach Bart Lundy is in his sixth season since returning to Queens and his 11^th overall at the helm in Charlotte. In 17 years as a head coach in Division I and II, Lundy has posted an overall record of 333-169 (.663 win pct.) and a record at Queens of 237-82 (.743 win pct.). Lundy has led Queens to all three of its Elite Eight appearances.
 
Belmont Abbey Crusaders (4-1)

-The Crusaders enter Saturday afternoon having won four consecutive games and most recently defeating Johnson C. Smith University, 85-78, on Tuesday night. Romaeo Ferguson paced four Crusaders in double figures with 21 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals. LJ McCoy added 20 points.

-Belmont Abbey's only loss came at Wingate University, 104-87, on opening night. BAC is 2-1 versus SAC competition this season, with wins over Mars Hill University and Coker College.

-The Crusaders are led by DeQuan Abrom who is averaging 18.2 points per game. Last year, Abrom averaged 19.2 points, four rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game en route to a first-team all-conference selection.

-Last season, despite a 12-19 overall record, and a 5-13 league record, BAC made a postseason run and reached the Conference Carolinas Championship Game. The Crusaders lost to the Lees-McRae Bobcats, 75-72, to end the year.

-The Crusaders were picked sixth in this year's CC Preseason Coaches' Poll.

-Billy Taylor is in his third season as head coach at Belmont Abbey and 14^th as a collegiate head coach after spending 11 years in Division I. Taylor spent five years as the head coach at Lehigh University and six years as the head coach at Ball State University before joining the Crusaders prior to the 2016-2017 season. Taylor holds an overall record of 195-203 (.489 win pct.) and a record at BAC of 30-35 (.461 win pct.).