WASHINGTON – Coming off its fourth straight league win, American University men's basketball (12-3, 4-0 PL) heads to Army West Point (9-8, 3-1 PL) on Wednesday, Jan. 11, looking to go 5-0 in Patriot League action. The Black Knights are coming off a close 77-75 loss on Monday as the two teams face off in Christl Arena Wednesday night.
QUICK INFO
- Date/Time: Wednesday, Jan. 11; 6:00 PM
- Site: West Point, N.Y. (Christl Arena)
- Series History: American leads, 32-16
- TV: ESPN+
INSIDE THE SERIES
- American leads 32-16 in the all-time series. The Eagles also lead the all-time series in West Point 13-10.
- The last meeting between the Eagles and Black Knights was Feb. 19, 2022 in Washington, D.C. The Eagles won the meeting 83-67 with Colin Smalls leading American in scoring with 17 points. Four other Eagles scored in double figures with both Johnny O'Neil and Matt Rogers scoring 14 and Elijah Stephens and Stacy Beckton Jr. recording 13.
- American's last win at Army was Jan. 8, 2020 by a 68-60 final.
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT AMERICAN
- American enters Wednesday's game with a 12-3 overall record and a perfect 4-0 mark in Patriot League play.
- The Eagles are coming off a close win over Boston U. on Jan. 8, 76-74. Junior Colin Smalls led American with 13 points while three other Eagles, junior Johnny O'Neil, junior Matt Rogers, and sophomore Elijah Stephens, recorded 11 points.
- Rogers leads American in scoring, averaging 13.8 points per game. He ranks eighth in the league in scoring, and his 66.1 field goal percentage puts him second in the league and ninth in the nation.
- As a team, American is 14th in the nation in field goal percentage (49.5 percent).
- The Eagles will stay on the road for their next contest, traveling to Lehigh on Saturday, Jan. 14 for a 2 p.m. game against the Mountain Hawks.
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT ARMY WEST POINT
- Army West Point enters Wednesday's game with a 9-8 overall record and a 3-1 mark in Patriot League play. The Black Knights are coming off a close 77-75 loss to Colgate on Monday for their first Patriot League loss of the season.
- Junior Jalen Rucker joined the 1,000-point club for the Black Knights in Monday's game, putting in a three-pointer with 52 seconds left in the first half. He is the 10th Army player since 2010-11 to reach the milestone and the 37th Army player all-time to achieve 1,000 career points.
- As a team, the Black Knights are second in the league in scoring, averaging 76.2 points per game.
- After Wednesday's game, the Black Knights are set to travel to Boston, Mass. for a Saturday game against the Boston University Terriers.
WINNING WAYS
- The Eagles' 4-0 start in Patriot League play is the first 4-0 start for the program since the 2013-14 season. That season, AU went on to go 20-13 overall and 13-5 in league play, after opening up league play with a 10-game win streak.
- American advanced to the NCAA Tournament that season, falling in the first round 75-35 to Wisconsin.
RECEIVING VOTES
- The Eagles received votes for the fifth straight week in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 poll that was released on Jan 10.
- American received 28 points in the poll and has had as many as 39 points during the Eagles' long win streak.
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