WASHINGTON – The American University men's basketball team will look to bounce back from its first Patriot League loss of the season against Army West Point on Saturday, January 13, at 4 p.m. This is just the Eagles' second home game since December 2, 2023.
It will be Elementary School Day at Bender Arena, and players will be available after the game to sign autographs for fans in attendance.
Quick Info
- Date/Time: Saturday, January 13; 4 p.m.
- Site: Bender Arena
- Series History: American leads, 32-16
- TV: ESPN+
- Talent: Dan Laing and Gordon Austin
Inside the Series
- There are 48 games on record between American and Army West Point, with the the Eagles leading 32-16.
- The Black Knights have won three out of the last five contests overall, but American leads 19-6 all-time at home.
- American and Army split the season series in 2023, with both teams winning their home contests.
What to Know About American
- American suffered its first loss of the Patriot League season at Boston University on Jan. 10. The game was tied at halftime, but the Terriers made more than 72 percent of their three-point attempts in the second half to propel themselves to a four-point win.
- Senior Matt Rogers leads AU and ranks third in the PL with 15.4 points per game, adding 6.3 rebounds per game (fifth in PL). With 995 career points, he is just five points away from becoming the 34th AU men's basketball player to score 1,000 career points.
- American's bench has provided a spark for the Eagles this season, outscoring the opponents' bench in 11 of AU's 16 games. AU's bench outscored Bucknell's by eight points on Jan. 6 behind 11 points from sophomore Geoff Sprouse and nine from freshman Greg Jones.
- Junior Elijah Stephens leads AU and the PL with 5.3 assists per game. His assist/turnover ratio of 2.6 also leads the PL. With 296 career assists, he is tied for 10th all-time in AU men's basketball history. He recorded 21 points, 5 assists and 5 steals in the loss at Boston University.
- First-year head coach Duane Simpkins has eight career victories and has brought a new energy to the program. The Eagles run a faster offense and so far are averaging 7.9 more points per game than in 2022-23, as well as making 3.5 more 3-point field goals per game.
Scouting the Black Knights
- Army West Point enters Saturday's game with a 5-11 record, having won one out of their three Patriot League contests. Their best win was a road victory over UTSA, 65-53, on Dec. 21.
- Army leads the Patriot League in scoring defense, allowing only 62.8 points per game.
- Freshman Josh Scovens leads the team in scoring with 12.4 points per game. He became the second player in PL history to win Rookie of the Week and Player of the Week in the same week after scoring 31 points against Stony Brook.
- Freshman Ryan Curry is second on the team with 10.1 points per game. The freshman duo have started every game for Army.
- The Black Knights are the worst free-throw shooting team in the nation, making under 57 percent of their free throw attempts.
- Head coach Kevin Kuwik is in his first season as head coach at Army. Prior to joining the Black Knights, Kuwik was an assistant coach at Butler for a season. He was on the staff at Davidson from 2017 to 2022.
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