Please note that this post contains affiliate links and any sales made through such links will reward MageeNews.com a small commission – at no extra cost to you.
This will be the 8th all-time meeting between the two schools with MC holding a 4-3 edge in the series. The teams split a two-game series last season with the home teams getting the victories.
When the teams played in Clinton, the Choctaws held Union to 41% shooting from the floor and just 7-of-20 from the 3-point line. Tory Rice led MC with 24 points and 14 rebounds, while Stacey Mack posted a double-double with 13 points and 11 boards.Jaron Edwards went 4-of-5 from long range.
The Choctaws are coming off a productive road swing last weekend, grabbing a 68-65 win at West Alabama on Thursday. They dropped a road game at West Georgia, but had a shot at the buzzer to send the game into overtime, falling 95-92.
Against the Wolves, senior Tristan Moore scored a season-high 22 points with 10 assists. In his two games at the Coliseum in Carrollton, the Senatobia native averaged 13 points and 12 assists after dishing out 14 helpers in the 2014-15 meeting.
The Choctaws are led by head coach Don Lofton, who comes into his 12th season with his 200th career victory in sight. Lofton, who has been a part of the program for more than 30 years, has won 191 games as the head man.
Rice (18.0 ppg / 11.0 rpg) is MC’s leading scorer and rebounder on the season, posting double-doubles in three of four games. The Starkville native is shooting 66% from the field and is on pace to become MC’s all-time leading offensive rebounder.
Moore (14.8 ppg) and senior Johnny Rucker (12.3 ppg) are also averaging in double-figures. Moore leads the team with 23 assists and is shooting 46% from the three-point line. Rucker ranks 2nd on the team with 3.8 rebounds per game and hit a couple of big free throws to clinch the game at UWA.
Junior Otis Harvey had a breakout game against West Georgia, going 7-of-9 from the field and 6-of-7 from the three-point line. The Gulfport native scored a season-high 17 points in the first half, finishing the game with 20.
Sophomore Stacey Mack broke out of an early season slump with 11 points against UWG. He went 5-of-8 from the field and 1-2 from long range. The McComb native had scored just eight points in the first three games.
Fellow McComb sophomore Antonio Johnson knocked down a couple of big three-pointers against West Alabama and cut the score to 93-92 in the final seconds against West Georgia. Johnson recorded nine total assists on the road trip.
The Bulldogs are led by head coach David Niven, who enters his 7th season with the program. Union’s perfect start included a 21-point win (75-54) at #5 Drury University on November 28th. They opened GSC play with home wins over Shorter (89-86) and Lee (81-61).
Union is shooting 44% from the field as a team and holding opponents to just 41%. They are outrebounding opponents by 7.5 rebounds per game and shooting 72% from the free throw line.
Marterrace Brock leads the team with 22.0 points per game, shooting 49% from the floor. Jordan Montgomery (14.0 ppg) is shooting 51% from the three-point line, while Ashanti Day (11.5 ppg) leads the team with 9.5 rebounds per game.
