JACKSONVILLE, FLA. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team (13-7 overall, 3-4 ASUN) will look to depart Jacksonville with a victory as the Royals are set to face Jacksonville University (10-8 overall, 3-4 ASUN) on Saturday afternoon inside Swisher Gymnasium. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 PM EST and the game will be broadcasted on ESPN Plus.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Royals dropped a high-scoring shootout at North Florida on Thursday night by a final score of 95-90. The loss marked the second game in the last three outings in which the Royals scored 90 points and lost. AJ McKee scored a season-high 28 points, including a career-best 10 free throws made. Junior Jay'Den Turner reached double figures for the second consecutive game dropping 17 points on a 7-for-11 clip from the field. Kenny Dye packed the stat sheet with a 15-point and seven-assist performance. BJ McLaurin put together an impressive night off the bench scoring 10 points and grabbing seven rebounds, including four on the offensive glass. The difference in the game proved to be on the glass as the Ospreys won the rebounding margin 38-31, including 14 offensive boards. Carter Hendrickson was lights out from the perimeter for North Florida going 7-for-10 from behind the arc for a career-high 35 points.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
Saturday afternoon will mark the first overall meeting with the Royals and the Dolphins.
 
Game Notes
QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTE (13-7 overall; 3-4 ASUN)

• Queens enters Saturday afternoon averaging 81.8 points per game on 46 percent shooting from the field and 36 percent from behind the arc. The Royals rank first in the ASUN and first amongst provisional schools in scoring offense.
• On defense, the Royals are allowing 75.0 points per game on 45 percent shooting from the field and 34 percent from behind the arc.
• Queens is 5-5 on the road this season. The last time the Royals dropped five games on the road was in 2014-15.
• The ASUN leads all NCAA Conferences in three-point attempts this season with a combined 6,852 attempts. The Royals are averaging 27.4 three-pointers per game which is the fourth most in the league. Queens is sinking an average of 11.3 tres per game against ASUN opponents.
• The deep ball has also bit the Royals hard on defense in ASUN play as opponents are averaging 9.3 made threes per game. Eastern Kentucky, Central Arkansas, and North Florida all made 10 or more shots from behind the arc in their meeting with Queens.
• Kenny Dye is the leader of the veteran Royals squad as the senior is averaging a team-high 16.9 points per game while hauling in 3.9 boards and dishing out 5.1 assists per game. The Royals are 108-27 when Dye is in the starting lineup as he is top three in points per game and first in assists per game in the league. Dye is 48 assists away from tying the program record which was set by Donay Fullwood in 1991-95.
• AJ McKee has been a consistent producer this season reaching double figures in all 20 games. McKee remains the only player in the league to reach double figures in every game. The sophomore is averaging 19.4 points per game against league opponents which is second-best in the ASUN.
• Junior Gavin Rains has been a force on the block for the Royals. The Trinity, N.C. native is averaging 6.2 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. The forward leads the ASUN in rebounds per game and is top 10 in the country. Additionally, Rains is second in the league in field goal percentage as he is making 62.8 percent of his attempts.
• BJ McLaurin and Kalib Mathews have been weapons for the Royals as the duo is averaging a combined 17.9 points on 50 percent shooting from the field. McLaurin is second in the ASUN in three-point field goal percentage at 53.7 percent as he has buried a three in seven of the last eight games. Kalib Mathews has been a defensive nightmare for opponents swiping a team-best 28 steals and blocking a team-high 16 shots.
• Sharpshooter Chris Ashby has caught fire in league play from behind the arc as the sophomore is averaging 10.2 points per game against ASUN opponents. Ashby has reached double figures in three of his last four games and buried three or more three-pointers in that span.
• The Royals are 39-7 in the last two seasons when outrebounding their opponent. This year, Queens is second in the ASUN in rebounds per game with 39.7 and second in the league in offensive boards per game with 12.6. Queens has posted double-digit offensive rebounds in 16 games this season, including six of their last seven games.

 
JACKSONVILLE UNIVERSITY (10-8 overall; 3-4 ASUN)

• Jacksonville enters Saturday afternoon 10-8 overall and 3-4 in league play. The Dolphins are 3-4 against league opponents as they haven't won or lost consecutive games during that span.
• Jacksonville is coming off a 66-52 loss against Liberty on Thursday night. The loss was the Dolphins first setback at home since February 13^th of 2021 as they managed to rattle off 21 straight home victories.
• JU has not lost back-to-back league games since January 22^nd and 24^th last season.
• Jacksonville is averaging 64.1 points per game on 45 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent from behind the arc. The Dolphins are the lowest-scoring offense in the ASUN and sit eighth in field goal percentage.
• The Dolphins are a sound defensive team as opponents are scoring 60.7 points per game on 39 percent shooting from the field. JU is the 17th-best scoring defense in the country and the 13th-best three-point percentage defense holding opponents to a 28.5 percent mark.
• Jacksonville is led by ASUN Preseason All-Conference recipient, Kevion Nolan. The redshirt senior has started in 17 of 18 games this season and is averaging 13.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game. Nolan is third in the league in assists per game.
• Veteran guard Jordan Davis is another player to watch as he has started every game and is averaging 9.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
• Last season, Jacksonville posted a 21-10 overall record and an 11-5 mark in ASUN play. The Dolphins fell in the ASUN Championship to Bellarmine by a final score of 77-72.
• Jordan Mincy enters his 2^nd season at the helm of the Dolphins. Under his direction, Jacksonville is 31-18.

 
Fans and families can purchase their tickets for Saturday nights's game by visiting the Jacksonville Athletics website. The game will tipoff at 2:00 PM from Swisher Gymnasium 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.