FLORENCE, ALA. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team will look to build momentum off their home win on Wednesday night as they travel down south to take on North Alabama. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 pm and the game will be broadcast on ESPN Plus. 
 
GAMEDAY GUIDE
Date: January 27th, 2024
Time: 7:00 PM
Location: CB&S Bank Arena at Flowers Hall (Florence, Ala.)
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THE MATCHUP
The Saturday evening battle will be the second all-time matchup between the two schools. Last year, the Royals hauled in a decisive 107-78 victory inside Curry Arena. The victory was the Royals largest margin of victory in ASUN play and Queens' most points scored against a Division 1 opponent. In the win, five different Royals reached double figures as Kenny Dye led the charge with 18 points. The Royals buried 15-of-27 shots from behind the arc tying for eighth all-time in a single game in program history.
 
SCOUTING THE ROYALS (8-13 overall, 2-4 ASUN)

• The Royals are coming off a commanding 96-79 win over Central Arkansas. Queens led wire-to-wire as they dominated the pace of play scoring 45 points in transition while holding the Bears to only 17. The Royals shot 51 percent from the field which was a season-high in ASUN play. Veteran guard AJ McKee led all scorers with a season-high 28 points and added a career-high five steals on the defensive end.
• Queens enters Saturday Night looking to snap their eleven-game road losing skid. The Royals are 1-11 away from Curry Arena this year with their only win coming against Fairfield in a neutral site contest at the Market Street Challenge in Philadelphia. 
• Queens is knocking down 9.3 three-pointers per game which is fifth best in the league and ranks top-40 nationally. The Royals offense is centered around the three-point shot as they have attempted the third most in the league and hold a 7-2 record this season when draining 10+ three-pointers in a game.
• The Royals offense can score in a hurry as they are fourth in the conference in scoring with 79.4 points per game. Queens has reached the 80-point threshold seven times this season and holds a 6-3 record in those games. The Royals are the highest-scoring team amongst schools making the transition to Division 1.
• Sharing the ball is a huge 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 guard Deyton Albury leads the way with 4.0 per game, a mark which is good for seventh-best in the league.
• Controlling the tempo will be critical for the Royals. Queens is ninth in the country in pace of play according to KenPom while North Alabama sits at 131st in the country. 
• The Royals have struggled on the defensive end this season as they are giving up the most points on average in the league at 82.5. However, Queens defends the three-point line effectively as they sport the fourth-best perimeter defense in the league holding their opponents to 32 percent from three-point range.
• The Royals' senior leader AJ McKee is the anchor for the Royals offense. On the season, the senior guard is averaging 17.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game. The Charlotte native is fourth in the league in scoring and second in steals. McKee poured in a season-high 28 points against Central Arkansas while also swiping a career-high five steals. 
• Junior guard Deyton Albury has stepped into a leadership role in his first year in the Queen City. The Royals' leading scorer is third in the league in points per game. The Nassau, Bahamas native is also top-ten in the ASUN in field goal percentage and assists. Albury has reached double figures in 16 games this season, including twelve straight. Against Florida Gulf Coast, Albury poured in a career-high 27 points to help navigate the Royals to victory. 
• Rookie Bryce Cash is coming into form in his first year as a Royals. Against North Florida, the Charlotte native scored a career-high 18 points on 7-for-9 shooting from the field. He followed that up with 12 points and eight rebounds against Central Arkansas. Cash has started in 20-of-21 contests in his opening season as a Royal. The freshman forward native is averaging 8.3 points per game, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in ASUN play. 
• Sharpshooting guard Chris Ashby leads the Royals perimeter scoring as the junior ranks third in the league in three-point field goal percentage shooting 40 percent from behind the arc. The junior got on track against Central Arkansas as he exploded for 17 points on 5-for-8 shooting from three-point range. 
• Senior forward BJ McLaurin has started all 21 games down low for the Royals. The forward has reached double figures in 11 games this year. McLaurin ranks 12th in the conference in rebounds per game at 5.8.

 
SCOUTING THE LIONS (8-12 overall, 2-4 ASUN)

• The Lions enter Wednesday night 8-12 overall and 2-4 in conference play. North Alabama is fresh off a huge road win over Kennesaw State 90-84.  
• Preseason All-ASUN selection Jacari Lane leads the Lions with 14.5 points per game. Lane is the leader of the North Alabama offense leading the team with 4.2 assists per game which also ranks sixth in the ASUN. 
• Guard KJ Johnson averages 14.1 points per game as the senior has eclipsed double-digits 14 times this season. Johnson exploded for 27 points on Wednesday against Kennesaw State which tied his season-high.
• Senior forward Damian Forrest is a physical presence down low for the Lions averaging 8.4 rebounds per game which is second-most in the ASUN. 
• The Lions can also score quickly ranking sixth in the conference with 77.0 points per game. North Alabama is 5-2 this year when they eclipse the 80-point threshold. 
• North Alabama is one of the conference's most consistent free-throw shooting teams ranking third in the league in free throw percentage at 75 percent. 
• North Alabama was picked to finish seventh in the ASUN Preseason Coaches Poll and seventh in the ASUN Preseason Media Poll. The Bears posted an 18-15 overall record and a 10-8 record in league play last season.
• Tony Pujol is in his sixth season at the helm as head coach of North Alabama. After serving as the assistant coach at the University of Wyoming, Pujol has guided the Lions to their first winning season at the Division 1 level in 2021, as well as securing their first postseason appearance with a birth to the CBI Tournament last year. He has an overall 67-93 record and a 34-47 record in ASUN play as the head coach of the Lions. 

 
WHAT'S NEXT
The Royals will be back at home next Thursday evening as they take on Eastern Kentucky for the kickoff of Homecoming Weekend. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00pm and the game will be broadcast on ESPN Plus. Fans can purchase their tickets in advance by visiting the Queens Athletics website.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
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