JACKSONVILLE, ALA. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team (16-11 overall, 6-8 ASUN) will head south for a conference matchup at Jacksonville State (10-17 overall, 3-11 ASUN) on Thursday, February 16^th. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM and the game will be broadcasted on ESPN Plus. The meeting is a big ASUN battle as the Royals sit ninth in the league standings with four games remaining.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Royals are coming off a tough 88-84 loss against Bellarmine on Homecoming this past Saturday afternoon. The Knights outscored the Royals 56-46 in the second half and won the battle on the boards 36-32. Despite the loss, three Royals reached double figures, including a team-high 24 points from AJ McKee. BJ McLaurin notched his first double-double as a Royal with a 15-point and 10-rebound performance. Kenny Dye would add 23 points, including an impressive 12-for-13 mark from the charity stripe.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
Thursday night will be the first meeting between the Royals and the Gamecocks. Queens currently sits ninth in the league standings with a 6-8 ASUN record while Jacksonville State is 13^th with a 3-11 league mark.
 
Game Notes
QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTE (16-11 overall; 6-8 ASUN)

• Queens enters Thursday afternoon averaging 79.8 points per game on 45 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent from behind the arc. The Royals are the league's leading scoring offense and hold a 1.107 offensive efficiency rating.
• On defense, the Royals are allowing 75.2 points per game on 46 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent from behind the arc. The Royals' perimeter defense is 10^th best in a single season in program history.
• Queens is 6-7 this season in true road games, and 2-4 on the road in league play. The Royals will play three of their remaining four games on the road with three of those games being against the top two programs in the league.
• The ASUN leads all NCAA Conferences in three-point attempts this season with a combined 9,093 attempts. The Royals are averaging 26.9 three-pointers per game which is the third most in the league. Queens is sinking an average of 9.6 three-pointers per game against ASUN opponents.
• Queens has gotten to the free throw line and made the most free throws in the league. The Royals are top 40 in the nation in free throw attempts per game.
• Kenny Dye is the leader of the veteran Royals squad as the senior is averaging a team-high 17.0 points per game while hauling in 4.1 boards and dishing out 4.9 assists per game. The Royals are 111-31 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 18 assists away from tying the program record which was set by Donay Fullwood in 1991-95. The senior is also 15 points away from breaking the scoring record set by Donay Fullwood in 2007-11.
• AJ McKee has been a consistent producer this season as he is the only player in the league to reach double figures in all 27 games. The sophomore is averaging 19.4 points per game against league opponents which is second-best in the ASUN.
• BJ McLaurin has been a weapon for the Royals averaging 9.3 points and 5.8 rebounds per game across 22.0 minutes. McLaurin is coming off his first double-double as Royal, and 15^th of his collegiate career.
• Jay'Den Turner is averaging 8.1 points and 6.7 rebounds this season. The junior is fifth in the league in rebounds per game.
• The Royals are 42-7 in the last two seasons when outrebounding their opponent. This year, Queens is second in the ASUN in rebounds per game with 38.3 and second in the league in offensive boards per game with 11.7. Queens has posted double-digit offensive rebounds in 20 games this season, including 10 of their last 14 games.

 
JACKSONVILLE STATE UNIVERSITY (10-17 overall; 3-11 ASUN)

• Jacksonville State enters Thursday night 10-17 overall and 3-11 in league play. The Gamecocks are on a four-game losing skid heading into the meeting.
• The Gamecocks averaging 68.2 points per game on 43 percent shooting from the field and 37 percent shooting from behind the arc. JSU is ranked 11^th in the league in scoring offense.
• On defense, the Gamecocks are surrendering 69.5 points per game on 43 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent from behind the arc. Jacksonville State does well on the boards bringing down 35.7 rebounds per game which is fifth best in the league. The Gamecocks average the fourth most offensive boards per contest at 10.6.
• Jacksonville State is led by Skyelar Potter who is averaging 14.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game. The senior was named ASUN Newcomer of the Week on Dec. 19^th after averaging 22.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.
• Last season, Jacksonville State finished 21-11 overall and 13-3 in league play. Despite falling to Jacksonville in the ASUN Tournament semifinals, the Gamecocks represented the ASUN in the NCAA Tournament as Bellarmine was ineligible due to reclassifying restrictions. Jacksonville State lost to Auburn in the opening round 80-61.
• Ray Harper is in his seventh season at the helm of the Gamecocks program and holds a 129-93 record. Harper has a career 468-219 record across 24 seasons of coaching.

 
Fans and families can purchase their tickets for Thursday night's game by visiting the Jacksonville State Athletics website. The game will tip off at 7:00 PM EST from Pete Mathews Coliseum 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.