WASHINGTON - It's Black Out Night in Bender Arena on Wednesday, Dec. 3, as American University men's basketball hosts Drexel for a Star Wars-themed game at 7 p.m. The first 500 AU students will receive "
Dark Side" black t-shirts as American looks to pack the stands for the fifth of six straight home games.
Quick Info
- Date/Time: Wednesday, December 3; 7 pm
- Site: Washington, D.C. (Bender Arena)
- Series History: American leads, 15-7
- TV: ESPN+
- Talent: Dan Laing, Gordon Austin
Parking Information
- Parking on campus is $10 per contest for games held after 5 p.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends, available through the PayByPhone app in any garage using code (211950).
- Standard hourly garage rates apply from 8 am-10 pm in the Katzen Arts Center and School of International Service garages.
Bender Bites and The Perch
- The Perch has returned for a second year, offering a special section behind the north basket where fans ages 21 and over can purchase beer, wine and seltzers.
- New this season to the concessions area is Bender Bites, in partnership with AU Kitchen. The menu is expanded from past offerings, and there will be multiple areas for purchasing food, snacks and drinks around the arena.
What to Know About American
- The Eagles are in the midst of a six-game homestand, and will wrap it up against UMES later this week. They've gone 5-1 at home so far.
- AU went 2-1 at its own Multi-Team Event (MTE) last week, losing to Siena but beating both Maine and Longwood.
- It's "Black Out" night in Bender Arena, with a Star Wars theme as well, and the first 500 students will get "Dark Side" t-shirts.
- Drexel and AU were conference opponents in the 70s and early 80s, but have not faced each other since 1987.
- Four different players—Wyatt Nausadis, Madden Collins, Kade Sebastian, and Greg Jones—have been leading scorers so far for AU.
- Nine games into the 2025-26 season, American's stats are standing out on the Patriot League leaderboards.
- AU is first in scoring offense (82.8 ppg), first in scoring defense (71.3 ppg), first in scoring margin (11.4 ppg), first in opponent FG pct. (.413), first in turnover margin (2.22), and first in steals (9.00 per game).
- On this year's roster of 19, nine are true freshmen including six scholarship players. Collins is averaging a team-best 13.1 ppg, and Sebastian is averaging 11.8 points over the last six contests. Sebastian was named "Eagle of the Week" on Monday, Dec. 1.
- The Eagles are coming off a 22-13 season and the fourth Patriot League Championship in program history.
What to Know About Drexel
- Drexel sits at 4-4 overall and has won its last two games, a 75-71 win over ODU at home and a 71-66 victory at Morgan State. That was the Dragons' only win away from the Daskalakis Athletic Center so far this season, dropping games at Saint Joseph's and Colgate as well as a neutral site loss to Syracuse.
- Junior guard Shane Blakeney leads the way, scoring 12.4 points per game. Junior guard Kevon Vanderhorst (10.4), sophomore guard Josh Reed (10.2) and senior guard Eli Beard (10.0) are also averaging double figures, while junior guard Villiam Garcia Adsten is grabbing a team-best 7.1 rebounds a contest.
- Zach Spiker is in his 10th season as the head coach at Drexel. He led the Dragons to a CAA title and the NCAA Tournament in 2021, a year which started a run of five consecutive seasons over .500. This year, the Dragons were picked 10th in the preseason CAA poll.
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