OPENING TIP
Score: Queens 90 | Lynchburg 39
Records: Queens (1-0) | Lynchburg (0-0)
Location: Curry Arena (Charlotte, N.C.)
 
THE SHORT STORY
On the opening night of college basketball, the Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team made a statement with a dominant 90-39 victory over Lynchburg on Monday night. The Royals defense was relentless all night and held the Hornets to a 16-percent shooting clip, the lowest by a Royals opponent since joining Division 1. Queens managed to swat away nine Hornet shows to limit them to 39 points, the lowest scoring output by an opponent since January 11, 2007, against Anderson.
 
FROM COACH LEONARD
"I thought our defensive effort was fantastic. We were able to pressure the ball and use our length. I thought we helped and recovered quite well, and we contested shots the best that we have in many years."

BY THE NUMBERS
-Senior Malcolm Wilson sparked the Royals with a career-high seven blocks and 11 rebounds over 20 minutes.
-In his first outing as a Royal, junior Nasir Mann turned in a 14-point and 10 rebound double-double. Mann shot an efficient 6-of-7 from the field and also dished out a pair of assists.
-Newcomers Leo Colimerio and Yoav Berman earned their first starts as Royals and both reached double figures. Colimerio dropped 12 points on 50 percent shooting while Berman added 13 points on a 5-of-8 clip. The pair combined to grab eight boards and distribute four assists.
-Sharpshooter Chris Ashby connected on three shots from behind the arc and finished with 11 points. The senior sits eighth all-time in three-pointers as he has buried a deep ball in eight straight games dating back to last season.
-Sophomore Bryce Cash earned his first start of the season at the point and packed the stat sheet with five points, four rebounds, and four assists.
-The Queens bench outscored the Hornets 44-18 on the night as newcomers DJ Shine and Asjon Anderson sparked the points with eight each.
-The Royals connected 46 percent of their shots from the field, and 36 percent from downtown. Queens cashed in 13 three-pointers marking the 344^th game that the Royals have made a three-pointer.

NOTABLE MOMENTS
-Queens set the tone for the 2024 campaign when Malcolm Wilson rocked home a pair of consecutive dunks to jump out to a 4-0 lead. Halfway through the opening half, Queens rattled off an 18-0 run over the course of four minutes to surge ahead 28-7.
-Leading 51-23 with 16:11 remaining in the first half, the Royals ripped off a 15-0 run as the defense forced eight turnovers. The defensive pressure allowed the Royals to increase their lead to 43 at 66-23.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
-The seven blocks from Malcolm Wilson marked the fourth time the 7-0 center has swatted at least five shots in a single game as a Royal.
-Queens swiped 18 steals on the night and converted it to 33 points. The 18 steals were the most by Queens in Division 1 history, and the most since November 12, 2021, against Young Harris. The Royals forced 27 total Hornets turnovers.
-The last time Queens won a game by 50+ points was last season against Carolina Christian (61).
 
FROM MALCOLM WILSON
"The amount of work that we put in this summer has given me a lot of confidence, so I've been able to be more effective on the offensive end while also really focusing on the defensive end. Rebounding is my job so just taking advantage of getting extra possessions is big for our team."

NEXT UP
Queens will return to action on Friday, November 9^th when they welcome Western Carolina to Curry Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN Plus. Fans can purchase their tickets in advance by visiting the Queens Athletics website. Friday night will be a White Out for the Royals as the two squads meet for the first time since 1999 as a part of the ASUN-SoCon Challenge.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow Queens Men's Basketball on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok for news and updates throughout the season. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics on social media to stay up to date on all the Royals sports in action.