The Chattanooga men's basketball team returns home Sunday for a matchup with Charlotte at 1 p.m. It’s a doubleheader with the women’s team matching up with Virginia Tech at 3:30 p.m.
It’s the first meeting in 45 years for the Mocs and 49ers. The two schools have played just four times in their histories with all four coming over a two-year period in the early 70s.
Coach Lamont Paris’ young crew has grown by leaps and bounds early in his tenure. While the record sits at 4-5, the squad is just a few plays away from 7-2 raising optimism heading toward the holiday break.
Charlotte is up next led by former NBA star and Georgia Tech legend Mark Price. The 49ers are 3-5 after starting 3-2 before losses to Davidson, at James Madison and Wake Forest. Much like the Mocs, they’ve played several close games that could go either way.
Makinde London leads the home team into Sunday’s matchup averaging 14.0 points and 7.5 rebounds per contest. He’s coming off a 25-points, 18-rebound effort at Marshall Tuesday night. The 49ers are paced by Jon Davis posting 14.3 points and 6.0 assists per game.
There is a special ticket offer benefiting Toys for Tots. Donate a new toy on gameday for a buy one, get one free ticket offer for the doubleheader.
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PROBABLE STARTERS
G - 0-Makale Foreman, 6-1, 185, So., 7.6 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 2.1 apg
G - 1-Rodney Chatman, 6-1, 175, So., 12.6 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.3 apg
F - 5-Nat Dixon, 6-4, 180, Jr., 11.4 ppg. 5.1 rpg, 50.0% 3pt
F - 10-James, Lewis, Jr., Fr., 8.3 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 50.0 FG%
F - 22-Makinde London, 6-10, 220, Jr., 14.0 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 44.1% 3pt
The women’s basketball team will host ACC foe Virginia Tech Sunday afternoon at the McKenzie Arena in the second game of a double-header. The men’s team will host Charlotte in a 1:00 p.m. tip off.
Chattanooga and Virginia Tech have met three times with the Hokies winning all three games. The first two were on the road in 1984 and 1994 with the last at home the next season.
The Mocs are 6-3 on the year, riding a six-game win streak. After falling in the first three games, UTC rebounded with wins over Indiana, Northwestern, Georgetown and Auburn. The win streak began with a victory over Presbyterian at home and the Mocs’ latest win was an overtime battle with UT Martin at the Roundhouse.
The Mocs lead the Southern Conference in 3-point shooting with 7.0 per game and making 42.6 percent of their attempts. Molly Melton, shooting 55.6 percent (10-18) from beyond the arc, leads the league. Taking up the next three spots are Keiana Gilbert (.500; 11-22), Aryanna Gilbert (.452; 14-31) and Lakelyn Bouldin (.447; 14-47). Chattanooga is second in field goal percentage, free throw percentage, blocked shots, rebounding margin and scoring defense while leading the conference in rebounding defense.
Keiana Gilbert leads the Mocs with 14.9 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. She ranks fifth in the SoCon in scoring and seventh in rebounding. She is also among the league leaders in field goal percentage (.486), assists (2.7/game), 3-point field goal percentage (.500), blocked shots (1.2/game) and minutes played (37.3). Aryanna Gilbert is second on the team with 13.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. She is shooting 45.2 percent from the 3-point line with 14, nearly doubling her career mark. Lakelyn Bouldin has a team-best 14 3-pointers and is third on the team in scoring with 13.0 points per game.
The Hokies are 8-2 on the year with wins over Auburn, Drexel and UCF. Their losses came in the Paradise Jam to Butler and West Virginia.
Virginia Tech is averaging 81.5 points per game and outscoring opponents by 22.7 points per game. The Hokies are shooting 44.2 percent from the field, 35.7 percent (84-325) from the 3-point line and 72.7 percent from the charity stripe. On the boards VT is averaging 42.2 rebounds per game and outrebounding foes by seven per game.
Taylor Emery leads Virginia Tech with 15.8 points per game, shooting 49.5 percent from the field and 15-of-38 from the 3-point line while shooting 85.4 percent at the free throw line. Regan Magarity is second on the team in scoring with 15. Points per game and has a team-high 9.3 rebounds per game. Alexis Jean is shooting 52.5 percent from the field with 13.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. Chenette Hicks is the fourth player in double figures for the Hokies with 12.4 points per game. She has a team-high 72 assists and 37 steals.