OPENING TIP
•   Longwood hosts the Brock Challenge, a multi-team event, on Thanksgiving weekend. The Lancers, along with Delaware State, Lamar and Bethune-Cookman, will play a round robin over three days. Fans can use the code 'buytwo' to buy two tickets, get two FREE at
www.longwoodlancers.com/tickets.
•   For the Lancers, it will be the first time the team has played against Lamar, the second against Bethune-Cookman, and the fifth time against Delaware State in program history.
•   Longwood is in the midst of a five-game homestand, its longest of the season.
•   The Lancers are 2-0 within the Joan Perry Brock Center after going 54-20 in the previous five years under Head Coach
Griff Aldrich in Willett Hall.
•   Longwood has dominated the glass early in the season, ranking third in the nation in offensive rebounds per game.Â
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Michael Christmas is second in the Big South in rebounding with 8.3 boards per game.
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LAST TIME OUT
•   Longwood used a stifling first half defense and timely scoring from
Michael Christmas and
Walyn Napper to hold off North Carolina Central 73-66.
•   Christmas ripped off a career-best 22 points to go with 12 rebounds, his second double-double of the season, in the win.
•   Napper added 19 points, including 17 after halftime, to help fend off a hard charge from N.C. Central.
•   The Lancer defense gave Longwood a 30-18 lead at the break with a first half effort that held the visitors to only six made shots.
•   After halftime, though, N.C. Central's Po'Boigh King and Fred Cleveland, Jr. got hot and combined for 30 points.
•   Napper scored 11 straight to keep the visitors at bay midway through the half, and he and Christmas scored 21 of Longwood's final 22 points.
BY THE NUMBERS
•   The Lancers are one of the top rebounding outfits in the nation. The Lancers also have a +18.2 rebounding margin and have won the rebounding battle in every single game.
•   Three times, the Lancers have outrebounded their opponents by at least 10.Â
•   Longwood averages 18.8 offensive rebounds per game, which is tied for third in the nation and leads the Big South.
•   The Lancers rebound better than 45 percent of its own misses, the fourth best mark in the nation.
•   Longwood has snared at least 20 offensive rebounds twice in a game, and they have grabbed at least 14 offensive boards in every game.
•   Longwood also has four players in the top 25 in rebounding in the Big South (
Michael Christmas-2nd,
Szymon Zapala-4th,
Johnathan Massie-T9th,
Walyn Napper T16th).
•   Both Christmas and Zapala rank in the top 20 in the nation in offensive rebounds per game. Zapala is 10th (4.5) and Christmas is 17th (4.0)
•   Longwood has scored 86 second-chance points, 27 percent of the team's total points this season.
•   Defensively, Longwood leads the Big South in points allowed per game at 60.8.
•   In addition, Longwood's offense ranks third in the Big South at 79.3 points per game.
•   The offense is also the only team in the Big South averaging fewer than 10 turnovers per game (9.3). That mark ranks 32nd in the nation.
•   The Lancers are also second in the Big South in free throw percentage (.752), and they have two players in the top 10 in the league in free throw percentage in
Szymon Zapala (7th) and
Michael Christmas (8th).
•   Longwood shares the load offensively, with four players ranking in the top 25 in the Big South in scoring (
Walyn Napper-8th,
Michael Christmas-16th,
Szymon Zapala-19th,
Johnathan Massie-23rd). The Lancers are one of two teams with four players in the league's top 25 along with High Point.
QUOTABLE
"Michael is playing very free right now. I think Michael is really committed himself to letting results be what they will be, and I think there's a lightness about how he's playing, which is really fun to see. Michael is such a wonderful kid and works so hard. He really, really wants to be good and works so hard at being the best basketball player he can be and the best Longwood Lancer he can be. We really can't ask much more from his effort and focus."
—Longwood Head Coach Griff Aldrich said after Christmas's 22 point, 12 rebound double-double led the Lancers past NCCU on November 18.
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SERIES HISTORY
All-Time Record vs. Delaware State                     4-0
Under Coach Aldrich                                              3-0
Current Streak                                                        4 W
First Meeting                              W 69-65 (11/29/2008)
Last Meeting                                W 75-49 (12/3/2022)
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•   The two teams first met in 2008 to close the Las Vegas Invitational, with Longwood winning 69-65 behind Dana Smith's 18 points.
•   The Lancers won last season's matchup, their first at Delaware State, behind a defense that only surrendered 18 points after halftime.
DeShaun Wade added 21 points, while both
Jesper Granlund (12 points) and
Michael Christmas (11 points) chipped in double figures.
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All-Time Record vs. Lamar                                     0-0
Under Coach Aldrich                                              0-0
Current Streak                                                         N/A
First Meeting                                                           N/A
Last Meeting                                                            N/A
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•   This is the first meeting between the two teams in program history
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All-Time Record vs. Bethune-Cookman               0-1
Under Coach Aldrich                                              0-0
Current Streak                                                          1 L
First Meeting                               L 66-62 (11/27/2009)
Last Meeting                                L 66-62 (11/27/2009)
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•   The two teams played in the South Padre Island Invitational in 2009 in their only prior meeting, with Bethune-Cookman scoring the final four points to break a 62-62 tie with 1:55 left.
•   Antwan Carter, a sophomore, led Longwood with 19 points, and Dana Smith had 14.
•   C.J. Reed had a game-high 21 points to lead Bethune-Cookman.
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#GoWood #HorsePower
