BUENA VISTA, Va. – Following an 80-71 victory in Knight Arena last Saturday, the Southern Virginia University men's basketball team (3-3) will again play in front of its home fans in a non-conference clash against Ferrum College (3-4) on Saturday, Dec. 3.
This will be the third time the teams will meet on the hardwood with the two playing a home-and-home series that began in the 2015-16 season. The Panthers came away victorious on both occasions and after a five year hiatus the Knights will hope to get their first win over the in-state foe.
Coming off a conference triumph against Lynchburg, Ferrum is now 1-1 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference after dropping its first league game against Virginia Wesleyan. In the game against Lynchburg, Calvin Washington, the Panthers leading scorer, scored 25 points while adding 13 boards, both team highs. This followed a 28-point performance in his previous game, pushing him to 17.4 points per game. Washington is also the teams leading rebounder, grabbing eight boards per contest.
Right behind Washington is recent transfer, Deshone Hicks, who has scored 17 points per game and over six assists in the three games since joining the team. Freshman Alfredo Abel-Rivera is another new addition to the team that has had an immediate impact, averaging over 15 points while being second on the team in rebounding with 6.7 per game.
"Ferrum is a good team," exclaimed head coach
Adam Wardenburg. "They added a transfer that initiates the teams' offense and is a great addition. We will need to contain him and Washington and make others beat us. Rebounding and transition defense will be huge for us in this game."
On the other side of the ball, the Knights will continue to look to freshman
Shaun Kenedy who leads the team in scoring with 15.7 tallies per contest and assists with 27 total on the year.
Malakai Olson picked up right where he left off last year, averaging 13 points and over six boards for the second consecutive campaign.
Koa Baker, another newcomer, is tied for third in all of division three with five double-doubles on the season. The Eagle Mountain, Utah native is averaging 12.8 points and 11.2 rebounds through six games.
"Offensively, we need to be on the front foot and attack while playing connected," continued coach Wardenburg. "If we can get the best shot possible on every possession, we will have a great shot to win the game."
Follow along with the game by visiting knightathletics.com for live stats and streaming options and follow @knight_hoops on Instagram for live updates.
