CLARKSVILLE, TENN. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team (15-9 overall, 5-6 ASUN) will look to leave the volunteer state victorious as the Royals square off with Austin Peay University (8-16 overall, 2-9 ASUN) on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:00 PM EST and the game will be broadcasted on ESPN Plus.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Royals dropped a physical ASUN battle at Lipscomb 66-60 on Thursday night as Queens tied for their lowest-scoring output of the season. Queens struggled on the glass as the Royals were outrebounded 45-33 which was the largest deficit on the boards this season. Despite the loss, Kenny Dye remained solid scoring a team-high 17 points while grabbing seven rebounds. AJ McKee reached double figures for the 24^th straight game with a 12-point and three-assist performance.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
Saturday afternoon will mark the second meeting between the Royals and the Governors this season. The two squared off on Dec. 29^th inside Curry Arena to kick off conference play. The Royals erased a 16-point second-half deficit and held the Governors scoreless from the field over the final 10 minutes of the game. Kenny Dye sparked the comeback with a game-high 27 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field.
 
Game Notes
QUEENS UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTE (15-9 overall; 5-6 ASUN)

• Queens enters Saturday afternoon averaging 80.0 points per game on 46 percent shooting from the field and 36 percent from behind the arc. The Royals are the league's leading scoring offense and hold a 1.116 offensive efficiency rating.
• On defense, the Royals are allowing 74.6 points per game on 45 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent from behind the arc.
• Queens is 5-7 on the road this season. The Royals have the third-highest winning percentage on the road across the league behind Liberty and Kennesaw State.
• The ASUN leads all NCAA Conferences in three-point attempts this season with a combined 8,189 attempts. The Royals are averaging 27.6 three-pointers per game which is the second most in the league. Queens is sinking an average of 10.7 three-pointers per game against ASUN opponents.
• In the last two seasons, Queens is 33-3 when hitting the 80-point threshold. The Royals managed to rattle off 30 straight wins when reaching 80 points.
• 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 4.1 boards and dishing out 5.0 assists per game. The Royals are 110-29 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 29 assists away from tying the program record which was set by Donay Fullwood in 1991-95.
• AJ McKee is coming off a week in which he was named ASUN Player of the Week, becoming the first Royal to receive ASUN praise since the transition. McKee has been a consistent producer this season as he is the only player in the league to reach double figures in all 24 games. The sophomore is averaging 17.9 points per game against league opponents which is fourth-best in the ASUN.
• BJ McLaurin has been a weapon for the Royals averaging 9.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game across 20.9 minutes. McLaurin is top six in the ASUN in three-point field goal percentage at 43.9 percent as he has buried a three in 11 of the last 12 games.
• Kalib Mathews has been a force on defense for Queens as he leads the team in steals (33) and blocks (16). The 1.4 steals per game is top 10 in the league. The Franklinton native turned in a four-steal performance against FGCU.
• The Royals are 41-7 in the last two seasons when outrebounding their opponent. This year, Queens is second in the ASUN in rebounds per game with 38.8 and second in the league in offensive boards per game with 12.0. Queens has posted double-digit offensive rebounds in 18 games this season, including eight of their last 11 games.

 
AUSTIN PEAY UNIVERSITY (8-16 overall; 2-9 ASUN)

• Austin Peay enters Saturday afternoon 8-16 overall and 2-9 in league play. The Governors haven't won since defeating Central Arkansas on Jan. 7^th as they are on a seven-game losing skid.
• The Governors are 6-6 at home this season with league wins over Florida Gulf Coast and Central Arkansas.
• Austin Peay is averaging 67.5 points per game 41 percent shooting from the field and 33 percent from behind the arc.
• The Governors are surrendering 72.0 points per game on 48 percent shooting from the field and 32 percent shooting from behind the arc. Austin Peay presents a good defense that ranks third in the league in steals per game, turnovers forced per game, and three point field goal percentage defense.
• Austin Peay is led by Sean Durugordon who is averaging 12.6 points and 6.1 rebounds per game across 28.5 minutes of action. The redshirt sophomore has four double-doubles on the season.
• Elijah Hutchins-Everett is another player to watch as the sophomore is averaging 11.3 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. The 6-11 center leads the team in blocks with 16 and dropped 24 points in the first meeting with the Royals.
• Last season, Austin Peay finished 12-17 overall and 8-10 in OVC play. The Governors were bounced by Tennessee Tech in the opening round of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament last year.
• Nate James is in his second season at the helm of the Governors. Under his direction, Austin Peay is 20-33 overall. James joined the Governors following an extensive assistant tenure at Duke under former head coach Mike Krzyzewski.

 
Fans and families can purchase their tickets for Saturday afternoon's game by visiting the Austin Peay Athletics website. The game will tip off at 4:00 PM EST from the Winfield Dunn Center 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.