CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team (7-2) are set to begin an intense four game road stretch on Friday, Dec. 9^th when the Royals travel to in-state foe High Point University (8-1) on Friday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. inside the Qubein Center and will be broadcasted on ESPN Plus.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Royals used a dominant second half performance outscoring Paine College 52-29 in the second half to storm past the Lions 89-60. Junior Gavin Rains posted his 18^th career double-double, and fourth this season with a 12 point and 19 rebound performance. The 19 rebounds were a career-high for Rains and also tied the program's single game record set by Daniel Camps on Feb. 1, 2016. AJ McKee reached double figures for the ninth straight game pouring in 12 points, grabbing six rebounds, and dishing out a season-high six assists. Senior Quan McCluney found his groove offensively dropping a season-high 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
Friday night will mark the eighth overall meeting between the Royals and the Panthers, and the first since March 1, 1997. In the last meeting, the Panthers narrowly escaped with a 71-68 victory which snapped a four-game losing skid in the series. Queens will make their first appearance in the freshly built Nido and Mariana Qubein Arena and Conference Center which opened in 2021.
 
Game Notes
QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTE (7-2 overall; 0-0 ASUN)

• Queens enters Friday night averaging 81.1 points per game on 48-percent shooting from the field and 34-percent from behind the arc. In the last two seasons, Queens is 28-0 when they reached the 80-point threshold.
• The Royals defense is allowing 68.7 points per game on 42-percent shooting from the field and 29-percent from behind the arc. The Royals perimeter defense is second best in the ASUN.
• Queens has put together a winning record of .500 or higher through nine games for the last eight seasons dating back to the 2014-15 season.
• Senior Kenny Dye is the leader of the veteran Royals squad. Dye is averaging a team-high 16.7 points per game while hauling in 3.8 boards and dishing out 4.3 assists per game. The Royals are 102-22 when Dye is in the starting lineup. Across the ASUN, Dye is top five in points per game and second in assists per game.
• Junior Gavin Rains has been a force on the block for the Royals to open the season. The Trinity, N.C. native is averaging 8.4 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. The forward leads the ASUN in rebounds per game and field goal percentage. Across the nation in D1, Rains is top 15 in rebounds per game. The forward has been a double-double machine producing 18 double-doubles in his career, and four this season.
• AJ McKee has been a consistent producer this season reaching double figures in all nine games. McKee posted a season-high 16 points against Lynchburg as he sits second on the team in scoring and minutes per game.
• BJ McLaurin and Kalib Mathews have been weapons for the Royals as the duo is averaging a combined 17.0 points on 50-percent shooting from the field and 46-percent from behind the arc. McLaurin dropped in a season-high 16 points behind a career-best four three pointers at George Mason. Kalib Mathews is ninth in the league in steals per game with 1.4.
• The Royals are outrebounding opponents this season 385-282. Through nine games, Queens is first in the ASUN in rebounds per game with 42.8 and first in the league in offensive boards per game with 14.0. Queens is coming off their largest rebounding margin since Jan. 20, 2018 as the Royals outrebounded the Lions by 29.

 
HIGH POINT UNIVERSITY PANTHERS (8-1 overall; 0-0 BIG SOUTH)

• High Point enters Friday night with an 8-1 overall record. The Panthers are rolling to open the season as they are currently on a five-game winning streak. The lone loss of the season came at UNLV on Friday, Nov. 18^th.
• The Panthers are a high-scoring offense averaging 86.1 points per game which is eighth best in the country. High Point is shooting 47-percent from the field and 36-percent from behind the arc.
• Despite their ability to score on offense, High Point ranks last in the Big South in defensive points per game as opponents are scoring 76.8 points per game.
• Junior Jaden House is the leading scorer for the Panthers averaging 22.1 points per game on 50-percent shooting from the field. The guard sits eighth in the country in points per game as he scored a season-high 33 points against Wofford on Nov. 12^th. House has garnered Big South Player of the Week honors twice this season.
• Zack Austin has been a consistent producer for the Panthers averaging 15.4 points per game and 6.2 rebounds per game. The redshirt sophomore is top 10 in the league in points per game and rebounds per game. Austin is second in the league with a team-high 17 blocks.
• High Point is a perfect 5-0 inside the Qubein Center this season, and 15-6 overall since it opened last season.
• Last year, High Point posted a 14-18 record and made an appearance in the Big South Tournament Quarterfinals.
• G.G. Smith is in his second season at the helm of High Point and holds an 11-4 career record with the Panthers. Smith joined High Point as an assistant after spending five seasons at Loyola Maryland from 2013-2017 where he held a 56-98 record.

Fans and families can purchase their tickets for Friday night's game by visiting the High Point Athletics website. The game will tipoff at 7:02 from the Qubein Center and the broadcast will begin at 7:00 p.m. on ESPN Plus.

Be sure to follow the Royals men's basketball program on Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date on all the latest news and updates surrounding the team. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics on social media @QueensAthletics to follow all of the Royals sports in action.