(DAHLONEGA) – With an 89-80 win over Wingate in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Division II Southeast Regional, the No. 14 University of North Georgia men’s basketball team now shifts its attention toward its next opponent in No. 25 Catawba.
The Indians are coming off a marathon victory over UNC Pembroke in their opening game as they were able to pull off a stunning comeback for the 98-94 overtime victory. Catawba trailed by as many as 12 points in the second half and was down by nine with just 1:12 remaining before embarking on a come back run.
UNG is 0-2 all-time against Catawba, but hasn’t faced the Indians in 24 years. The two previous matchups with Catawba are 10 years apart dating back to November of 1980 before a rematch was played again in November of 1990.
For the Nighthawks, sophomore guard AJ White is coming off a much needed high scoring game in which he dropped a team high 20 points on 6-of-15 shooting while going 4-for-6 from deep.
Junior forward Frank Champion will take the floor after 13 points and nine boards against the Bulldogs in the tournament’s opening game. The rebounding performance is Champion’s best since he grabbed 12 boards against Flagler back on Feb. 3.
Sunday’s game is set up to be a block party on paper. Both teams average greater than 4.5 blocks per game and rank in the top 20 nationally in the category.
Catawba also gets after its opponents for steals as well, averaging 12 steals a game ranks the Indians No. 3 in NCAA Division II. With all those steals comes a wide turnover margin that sees the Indians average 6.2 fewer turnover per game than their opponents, the sixth best mark in the country.
Senior point guard Javeon Jones has been the main catalyst for Catawba’s proficiency in the steals column. Jones leads the nation in steals and steals per game, compiling 85 swipes at a clip of 3.3 per game this year.
Jones also leads Catawba in scoring with 13.0 points per game this year. He dropped a game-high 25 in the win over UNC Pembroke on Saturday.
On the glass, Catawba is averaging 13.9 offensive rebounds per game which ranks No. 7 nationally. However, UNG has done a fantastic job keeping opponents off the boards this season, ranking No. 8 nationwide in defensive rebounds per game at 28.8.
The Indians have struggled to defend without fouling this year, which could play right into the hands of the Nighthawks. In Saturday’s game against UNC Pembroke, Catawba committed 26 fouls, leading to 37 free throw attempts from the Braves.
Albeit the Indians got to the line more than UNC Pembroke in the game, going 39-for-51 at the stripe. However, that’s the most Catawba has gotten to the line in a game this season by a wide margin of 14 free throws.
From the UNG perspective, the Indians’ inability to defend without fouling plays to its advantage. The Nighthawks rank No. 6 in the country in free throw attempts per game at a whopping 26.3 foul shots each night. By no surprise, they also rank No. 6 in free throws made per game at an average of 18.6 per contest.
The Indians are led by 13-year head coach Rob Perron who is making his third NCAA Tournament appearance in his career. Perron’s team was selected to appear in the NCAA Tournament in the 2019-20 season, but did not play a game before the tournament was canceled due to COVID-19. Perron holds a 2-2 career NCAA Tournament record after the win Saturday.
Tip off between the Indians and Nighthawks will take place at 7:30 p.m. from Lynn Cottrell Arena at the UNG Convocations Center. The winner will face the winner of the evening’s opening game which takes place at 5 p.m. between sixth-seeded Lander and seventh-seeded Emmanuel who both had upsets in the first round on Saturday.
