The Opening Tip
• Continuing a three-game homestand, Longwood hosts Morgan State Saturday in Willett Hall.
• The Lancers are 5-1 at home, marking their second time in four seasons under head coach
Griff Aldrich they have won at least five of their first six home games. Longwood is outscoring opponents by an average of 26.0 points per game at home and has yet to allow more than 64 points in Willett Hall all season.
• Longwood leads the Big South in scoring margin (+12.7), rebounding margin (+7.2), assists per game (16.3) and offensive rebound percentage (.371). Longwood's and offense and defense also rank No. 2 in the league in scoring.
• A win over Morgan State would give Longwood six wins in its first 10 games for only the second time in the program's Division I era (since 2004-05). The Lancers last achieved that feat in 2018-19 in their debut season under Aldrich.
Last Time Out
• Behind 17 points from
Isaiah Wilkins and a 31-13 run over the game's final 11:03, Longwood pulled away in the second half to dispatch Delaware State 78-58 and improve to 5-1 at home.
• The runaway win was the Lancers' fifth by at least 20 points at home this season and their fifth time holding an opponent under 60 points at home.
• That late-game run preserved a Longwood win despite Delaware State forcing 16 turnovers, which were the Lancers' second-most in a game this season.
•
Leslie Nkereuwem sparked Longwood's game-winning rally with a dunk that he finished through a foul. His ensuing free throw jump-started a 16-3 run that put Longwood ahead by double digits the rest of the way.
• Longwood hit 11 three-pointers in the win and assisted on 21 of 31 made field goals.
Justin Hill had a team-high six assists and three steals.
By The Numbers
• Longwood has excelled on its home court under fourth-year head coach
Griff Aldrich, amassing a 31-17 record in Willett Hall during his tenure. That includes a 5-1 mark this season, an 8-5 record in 2020-21, a 8-6 record in 2019-20 and a 10-5 mark in 2018-19.
• Only three of Longwood's nine opponents have shot better than 40.0 percent from the floor.
• Only two of Longwood's nine opponents have scored more than 65 points.
• Longwood has amassed more assists than turnovers in seven of nine games and ranks second in the Big South in assist-to-turnover ratio. The Lancers' 1.41 ratio also ranks tied for 39th nationally.
• Both members of Longwood's point guard tandem —
Justin Hill and
Jordan Perkins — rank among the Big South's top three in assist-to-turnover ratio. Perkins, a graduate transfer from N.C. Central, leads the league and ranks fifth nationally with a 4.7 (28/6) clip, while Hill ranks third in the Big South at 2.4 (39/16).
•
Isaiah Wilkins, a transfer from Virginia Tech and Wake Forest, has led Longwood in scoring a team-high four times and in rebounding a team-high six times. He has also scored in double figures a team-high six times.
• Wilkins is shooting .455 (10-of-22) from three-point range in his six home games this season. He averages 11.3 points and a team-high 6.3 rebounds per game in those home outings.
• Longwood's 13.9 rebounds per game ranks 16th nationally and second in the Big South. Four different Lancers are averaging more than one offensive board per game, including
Leslie Nkereuwem who is averaging 2.9.
• Longwood is converting its opponents' 14.1 turnovers per game into 17.8 points per game. Of Longwood's 76.1 points per game, 23.4 percent come off turnovers.
Quotable
"We had about four or five possessions in a row where we were active and aggressive defensively. But the rest of the game, we were not. When we were, they drove into the paint, we stole the ball and it turned into transition. When we weren't aggressive, we got threes knocked down in our face because we were passive. We have to learn that lesson."
— Longwood head coach
Griff Aldrich after the win against Delaware State
Series History
• Longwood and Morgan State meet for the fourth time in series history Saturday in a series that the Bears lead 2-1.
• Morgan State is 1-0 in the series against Longwood head coach
Griff Aldrich. The Bears won that game 73-65 on Dec. 7, 2019 during Aldrich's season year with the program.
• Saturday's game will be only the second time the teams have met in Farmville. Longwood won that home game 75-73 on Feb. 3, 2007.
• In the last meeting,
Jaylon Wilson led Longwood with 15 points and four steals while shooting 11-of-11 from the free throw line.
DeShaun Wade also scored in double figures with 13 points and three three-pointers.
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