CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team will look to build momentum off their win on Wednesday night when they welcome Stetson University to Curry Arena on Friday, January 12^th. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN Plus.
 
GAMEDAY GUIDE
Date: January 12, 2024
Time: 7:00 PM
Location: Curry Arena (Charlotte, N.C.)
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THE MATCHUP
Wednesday night will be the second all-time meeting between the Royals and the Hatters. The programs met once last season with the Royals winning the game 71-65. Trailing by six in the first half, the Royals shot an efficient 48 percent from the field in the second half outscoring the Hatters 46-34 en route to getting the six point victory inside Curry Arena.
 
SCOUTING THE ROYALS (7-10 overall, 1-1 ASUN)

• The Royals picked up their first conference win of the season on Wednesday night edging out FGCU 78-75 inside Curry Arena. Deyton Albury poured in a career-high 27 points, including 17 points in the second to help catapult the Royals to victory.
• The Royals enter the game looking to continue to defend their home court. The Royals are 6-1 defending home court this season and hold a 242-79 record inside Curry Arena.
• Queens is knocking down 9.8 three-pointers per game which is fourth best in the league. The Royals offense is centered around the three-point shot as they have attempted the second most in the conference with 28.8 per game.
• The Royals have shown their ability to close the door in the final five minutes as Queens is 7-1 on the year when leading with five minutes to play.
• The Royals offense can score quickly as they are fourth in the conference in scoring with 79.8 points per game. Queens has reached the 80-point threshold six times this season and holds a 4-2 record in those games. The Royals are the highest-scoring team amongst schools making the transition to Division 1.
• Distributing the ball is key for the Royals as they are 6-2 on the year when dishing out 15+ assists as a team. Queens ranks fifth in the ASUN in assists as Deyton Albury leads the way with 4.1 per game, a mark that is seventh-best in the league.
• Junior guard Deyton Albury has put together a solid start to his first campaign in the Queen City. The Nassau, Bahamas native is top 10 in the league in scoring, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, steals, and assists. Albury has reached double figures in 13 games this season, including eight straight games.
• Preseason All-Conference nominee AJ McKee is the anchor for the Royals offense. On the season, McKee is averaging 16.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game. The Charlotte native is fifth in the league in scoring and third in steals.
• Senior BJ McLaurin has started all 17 games on the block for the Royals. The forward has reached double figures in 10 games this year, including six of the last seven contests. McLaurin ranks 10th in the conference in rebounds per game at 6.1.
• Sharpshooter Chris Ashby leads the Royals perimeter scoring as the junior is averaging 10.1 points per game on 39 percent shooting from behind the arc. The Houston, Texas native ranks fourth in the league in three-point field goal percentage as he has buried a three-pointer in 42-of-50 career games as Royal.
• Freshman forward Bryce Cash has made 16 starts on the year and is averaging 7.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game. Cash is shooting an efficient 48 percent from the field on the season.

 
SCOUTING THE HATTERS (10-7 overall, 2-1 ASUN)

• The Hatters enter Friday night 10-7 overall and 2-1 in conference play and they are coming off an 88-70 loss against Kennesaw State.
• Stetson has struggled in true road games so far this year as they are 2-7 overall, and 0-7 outside of the Sunshine State.
• Similar to Queens, the Hatters put together a challenging non-conference slate which ranked 50^th in the country according to KenPom.
• The Hatters will look to slow the pace of play sitting 300^th in the country in adjusted tempo. For comparison, the Royals quick pace is 18^th fastest in the nation.
• Despite the slower pace, Stetson is averaging 77.4 points per game which is fifth best in the league. The Hatters have the ability to find great shots as they are shooting 46 percent from the field which is second best in the league.
• Stetson leads the nation in free throw percentage at an 83 percent mark. Stephan Swenson and Jalen Blackmon are nearly automatic from the charity stripe as both are shooting over 90 percent.
• Preseason All-Conference guard Jalen Blackmon can fill up the stat sheet as he leads the ASUN in points per game at 22.4. Blackmon has eclipsed the 30-point mark three times this year. The guard can score from anywhere on the court as he is shooting 42 percent from downtown which ranks second-best in the conference.
• Stephan Swanson is the senior leader for the Hatters as he serves as the table setter for their offense. The senior guard is second in the ASUN in assists per game with 6.1. Swanson also does a great job taking care of the basketball ranking third in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio
• Stetson University was picked to finish third in the ASUN Preseason Coaches Poll and sixth in the ASUN Preseason Media Poll. The Hatters posted a 17-14 overall record and 12-6 mark in league play last season.
• Donnie Jones is in his fifth season as the head coach of the Hatters, and his fourteenth year as a head coach at the college level. Under his direction, Stetson is 66-72.

 
WHAT'S NEXT
The Royals will head down to Florida for their first of two consecutive road games in the Sunshine state as they take on Jacksonville University on Thursday, January 18th. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. from Swisher Gymnasium and the game will be broadcast on ESPN Plus.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow the Royals on Twitter, Instagram, and Tik Tok. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics on social media to stay up to date on all the Royals sports in action.