No. 9 Richard Bland Plays On The Road At Lenoir (N.C.) Wednesday
SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, Va. -- Nationally-ranked Richard Bland College will play its first men's basketball game in nearly a month when it travels to Region X Conference member Lenoir (N.C.) Community College on Wednesday, January 11 at 7 p.m. The Statesmen, ranked No. 9 in the most recent NJCAA Division II Top 20 Poll, have won eight-straight games and feature an overall record of 12-2, while unbeaten at 5-0 in Region X. The Lancers are 5-8 overall, 2-2 in Region X.
GAME INFORMATION
No. 9 Richard Bland (12-2, 5-0) at Lenoir (N.C.) (5-8, 2-2)
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2017
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Kinston, North Carolina
Series History: 9-0
Scouting the Statesmen
No. 9 Richard Bland is 12-2 overall after defeating Region X opponent Vance-Granville (N.C.) Community College 99-68 back on Dec. 14 in Henderson, North Carolina. The Statesmen, who are an outstanding 86-27 (.761) over the past three-plus seasons, are coached by head coach Chuck Moore, who is in his fourth season, and assisted by fourth-year assistant coach Brian Henderson, second-year assistant coach Preston Beverly and first-year graduate assistant coach Mike Wynn.
Through 14 games, Richard Bland has been led in scoring by local 6-3 sophomore guard Gevon Arrington/Petersburg, who is averaging 12.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists. He is followed by 6-9 sophomore center Jaquan Wooten/Kinston, North Carolina, who is averaging 11.6 points (66.3 FG%), 9.1 rebounds and 2.9 blocks with six double-doubles, while 6-4 sophomore guard Deandre Clark/Orange is averaging 11.0 points (31 3FGs), 3.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Richard Bland is averaging 83.1 points per game, while allowing just 67.3 points to opponents for a scoring margin of +15.8.
Scouting Lenoir CC
Lenoir is 5-8 overall, 2-2 in Region X, and coached by head coach Brian Bagwell. The high-scoring Lancers average 88.8 points per game, but yield 91.5 points following their most recent contest ... a 76-59 road loss at Sandhills (N.C.) Community College on Jan. 5. Lenoir has been led in scoring by 6-2 sophomore guard/forward Rasheed Brown (18.1), the team's only double-figure scorer.
Series History
Richard Bland and Lenoir are playing for the 10th time in the sport of men's basketball, and the Statesmen have never lost to the Lancers, leading the series 9-0. Richard Bland has earned three victories past Lenoir in each of the past three seasons, including Region X Tournament wins during each year. Last season, the Statesmen took a thrilling 83-82 double-overtime tourney win against the Lancers in Statesman Hall -- the most recent contest played between the two schools.
Total Team Effort
Richard Bland has three players who are scoring at least 11.0 points per game, and six others who are scoring at least 5.1 points, while four more average between 3.1 and 4.8 points, respectively. The extremely balanced Statesmen feature all 13 players who are averaging at least 10.1 minutes, including four who are playing at least 21.6 minutes, while the other nine are averaging between 10.1 and 14.4 minutes, respectively.
Among the National Leaders
Richard Bland is ranked seventh in NJCAA Division II rebounding (47.6), 15th in blocks (4.9), tied for 20th in steals (11.1), 28th in assists (18.1) and 40th in scoring (83.1). Jaquan Wooten is ranked eighth nationally in blocks (2.9), 11th in field goal percentage (65-98, 66.3%) and 31st in rebounding (9.1). Freshman Ricky Hicks/Bronx, New York is ranked 33rd nationally in assists (5.2) and 37th in steals (2.5).
2015 NJCAA Division II National Champions
Richard Bland won the 2015 NJCAA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship, defeating John Wood (Ill.) Community College 64-53 on March 21, 2015 at the Mary Miller Gymnasium on the campus of Danville Community College in Danville, Illinois. The Statesmen finished their most memorable storybook 2014-15 campaign with a school-record of 32-4, winning the national title in only their second year back in action following a 20-year hiatus from competitive sports at Richard Bland College.
Up Next
Richard Bland will remain on the road for a Region X game at nationally-ranked No. 17 Louisburg (N.C.) College on Saturday, Jan. 14 at 3 p.m. in Louisburg, North Carolina. The Statesmen return home to play Fayetteville Technical (N.C.) Community College next Monday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m. on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in Statesman Hall -- a contest rescheduled from Jan. 7 due to the effects of Winter Storm Helena. Richard Bland remains at home to host Pitt (N.C.) Community College on Thursday, Jan. 19 at 7 p.m.