Elon MBB Set for First Meeting with Drexel on Thursday

ELON, N.C. – The Elon University men’s basketball team begins a two-game home stretch in Colonial Athletic Association action on Thursday, Jan. 19, against the Drexel Dragons inside Alumni Gym. Tipoff between the Phoenix and the Dragons is slated for 7 p.m.

GAME NOTES

COVERAGE
Watch the action exclusively on Phoenix All-Access and CAA.tv as Matt Krause and Brian Morris will have the call on the broadcast. You can also listen to the action on the Elon IMG Sports Network on 104.5 FM, 1200 AM or on the TuneIn app. Taylor Durham and Ryan Meizinger will have the call from Alumni Gym and the pregame show begins at 6:30 p.m.

NEW BAG POLICY AT ALUMNI GYM
Beginning this season, Elon University has implemented a new policy for bags entering Alumni Gym. All bags entering the arena will be checked before fans reach the ticket booths at the facility. Multiple lines will be available and there will be specific lines for fans entering with no bags.

The following items will be prohibited from Alumni Gym:
• Weapons
• Explosives
* Alcoholic beverages
• Outside food and beverages
• Smoking and tobacco products
• E-cigarettes
• Containers or coolers
• Flags on poles
• Hoverboards
• Pets (except service animals)

BASKETBALL GAME DAY
For more information on ticketing, parking and directions to Alumni Gym, please visit the Basketball Game Day web page.

SERIES HISTORY
Thursday marks the seventh all-time meeting between Elon and Drexel, and third time the foes have faced off inside Alumni Gym. Elon is 1-1 all time at home against the Dragons. The Phoenix has won two of the last three matchups. Last season, Elon swept the regular season series winning 83-78 in Alumni Gym on Jan. 2, 2015 and earning the 81-76 victory at Drexel on Feb. 18, 2015. However, the Dragons got the better of the Phoenix in the CAA Championship First Round with a 57-56 victory on March 4, 2015 at Royal Farms arena. The first-ever meeting between Elon and Drexel took place on Nov. 18, 2013 in Piscataway N.J. as part of the NIT Season Tip-off. The Dragons won 71-64 as the eighth seed in the preseason tournament.

SEIBRING’S PERFORMANCES
During Elon’s last two games, Tyler Seibring averaged 19.5 points and 5.5 rebounds over the two-game stretch, which included a career-high 22 points in a 96-80 victory over Hofstra. He followed it up with 17 points in a narrow loss to James Madison on Saturday. The sophomore currently leads the team in scoring this season at 13.1 points per game.

FREE THROW SUCCESS
In conference games only, Elon is first in the league shooting 73.8% from the line through six games. Elon has made above 80% of its free throws in two of the last three games. The Phoenix had its best shooting performance from the line on Jan. 7 against Towson, finishing 19-of-23 (82.6%) from the stripe. It was the most makes in a game for Elon this season.

LET IT FLY
The Phoenix is averaging 10.1 three pointers a game this season and have made 10 or more triples in 10 contests this season. The maroon and gold currently ranks 14th in the NCAA in that catergory. Elon’s 16 made three pointers at William & Mary was the highest total in a game this season. The last time the Phoenix made 16 or more triples in a game was when Elon made 18 last season against Alabama State on Dec. 16, 2015. The maroon and gold has made 12 or more three pointers in three of the last four games.

Steven Santa Ana tied former Phoenix 1,000-point scorer Sebastian Koch for the Elon single-game Division I record for threes in a game with nine versus William & Mary on Thursday night. Koch also hit nine at #21 Colorado on Dec. 13, 2013. The sophomore guard also tied the single-game record for threes in for game inside Kaplan Arena.

343 AND COUNTING
The Elon men’s basketball program has made at least one three-point field goal in 343 consecutive games (not including exhibition games). The last time Elon did not make a three in a game was Jan. 30, 2006, at Georgia Southern when the team went 0-of-14 from deep. Elon is currently averaging 9.8 triples per game, which is first in the CAA and 18th in the NCAA. The Phoenix averaged 9.5 made three pointers a game last season.

MATT MATHENY MILESTONE
Head coach Matt Matheny won his 116th game at Elon on Wednesday, Dec. 28, against Central Penn. With the win, he passed Robert “Bob” Burton (1986-93) for the fourth most in program history. Matheny currently has 118 career victories and is six wins away from passing D.C. “Peahead” Walker (1927-1937) and moving into third all-time.

LUKE EDDY MILESTONE
Senior point guard Luke Eddy reached 200 assists in his career with three against South Florida on Nov. 17. He currently sits at 252 for his career. He is currently 24 assists away from moving into the top-10 in program history. Tony Chavis ’89 is 10th all-time with 275 career assists.

ROAD TO NORTH CHARLESTON
The 2017 Colonial Athletic Association Men’s Basketball Championship is scheduled for March 3-6 in North Charleston, S.C., at the North Charleston Coliseum. Last year, UNCW topped Hofstra in the championship game to earn the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

UP NEXT
The Phoenix returns to Alumni Gym on Saturday to host William & Mary at 7 p.m.