Scouting the Cavaliers: UVA Wise (13-8, 6-6 SAC) enters tomorrow's matchup winners of four of its last five outings, including a 92-70 victory over Mars Hill Wednesday night. In that game, the Cavs made 57.9% of their shots from the floor, including 15 of 30 from 3-point range. Bradley Dean paced UVA Wise with 25 points, raising his season average to 20.5 points per game, the top mark in the SAC. As a team the Cavs make 40.5% of their 3-point attempts – the best percentage in the conference – while scoring 85.4 points per outing, the second most in the SAC. UVA Wise's biggest weakness? Defense. They allow opponents to score 77 points per game, so the Wolves will have an opportunity to fill it up.
Scouting the Wolves: Newberry (13-8, 6-5 SAC) is riding a wave of momentum heading into tomorrow's game, winning three consecutive games – including two on the road – to get back above .500 in conference play. On Wednesday night, the Wolves battled back in the second half to earn a 77-72 victory over host Anderson.
QuanDaveon McCollum (Clio, S.C.) put together his seventh double-double of the season in that contest, tying a season-high with 22 points while snaring 11 rebounds.
Malakhi Stremlow (Traverse City, Mich.) also contributed a double-double, his fourth of the year, scoring 11 points and grabbing a team-best 12 rebounds. And
Malik Joseph (Eleuthera, Bahamas) chipped in a season-best 17 points for the Wolves. Newberry's smothering defense will be an unwelcome sight for UVA Wise: the Wolves hold teams to just 69.7 points per game, the second fewest in the conference.
