LUBBOCK, Texas (December 31, 2023) – As 2023 comes to a close and 2024 arrives at midnight, the University of North Alabama men's basketball team transitions to a new chapter of its season.
 
The Lions will play their final non-conference game of the regular season on Monday, ringing in the new year at Texas Tech. Tipoff is set for Monday at 1 p.m. inside United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas.
 
This game will end a four-game road stretch for the Lions, which began with a win at Charleston Southern on Dec. 13. UNA will look to shake off a pair of tough road losses at Tennessee Tech and Indiana prior to the holiday break. Monday will end an 11-game hiatus from action — the longest stretch of time between games for UNA this season.
 
Fans can tune in via Big 12 Now on ESPN+ or can listen to the local radio broadcast on WLX 98.3 or 103.5 FM in the Shoals. "Voice of the Lions" Benjamin Ray will have the call. Fans can also follow along on StatBroadcast.
 
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Game: North Alabama at Texas Tech
Date: Monday, January 1
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Lubbock, Texas
Venue: United Supermarkets Arena
Capacity: 15,000
TV: Big 12 Now (ESPN+)
Radio: WLX — 98.3 / 103.5 FM or online
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Game Notes: Click here
Tickets: Click here
Social Media: @UNA_Basketball
 
NOTES
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS: North Alabama has a 6-7 overall record and will look to even that at the end of non-conference play. Life has come much easier inside CB&S Bank Arena as the Lions are 5-1 at home this season, compared to 1-6 on the road against tough competitors. UNA averages 77.8 points per game while giving up 74.4 PPG for a positive margin. UNA also ranks among the top free throw shooting teams in the nation at 75.2 percent. KJ Johnson and Jacari Lane lead the Lions with just over 13 PPG apiece.
 
SCOUTING THE RED RAIDERS: Texas Tech has enjoyed immense success the last few seasons, including an NCAA Championship Game appearance in 2019 and a Sweet 16 appearance in 2021. This season, the Red Raiders are 10-2 under new head coach Grant McCasland, who came over from North Texas after six successful seasons that saw 211 wins. Texas Tech scores on pace with UNA at 77.4 PPG, but allow just 65.1 PPG defensively. Leading the charge is sophomore guard Pop Issacs — a 2022 Big 12 All-Freshman selection — with 15.4 PPG.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Monday will mark the second all-time meeting between UNA and Texas Tech, but it will be the first since UNA's jump to NCAA Division I in 2018. The first meeting occurred on Dec. 28, 1989, where Texas Tech won 90-66 in Lubbock. That season, UNA finished 20-8 under Coach Gary Elliott and would go on to a 29-4 record the next season en route to a NCAA Division II National Championship.
 
WELCOME TO TEXAS: Monday will mark UNA's first trip to Texas for men's basketball since moving up to Division I six seasons ago in 2018. Texas is the 22nd unique state that UNA has played in since the jump. UNA has a 5-2 record against the Lone Star State all-time, including wins over Tarleton State, Texas A&M Kingsville, West Texas A&M and Sam Houston State.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Lions played its third of four Power Five games at Indiana last time out, falling 83-66 inside historic Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers had its best shooting night behind the arc, going 50 percent. Despite the loss, UNA had four players finish with double figure scoring totals.
 
LAST TIME AGAINST THE BIG 12: At the start of December, the Lions traveled to Kansas State and led for over 31 minutes against the Wildcats, but fell short in a heartbreaking overtime loss, 75-74. K-State tied the game with eight seconds to go, then UNA's Jacari Lane sprinted down and attempted a final layup, but a controversial no-call sent the game to overtime, where K-State took the lead and held on at the buzzer.
 
POWER FIVE STUNNERS: UNA seeks its second all-time win over a Power Five opponent on Monday. The first win over a Power Five team came just last season against Ole Miss of the SEC, as the Lions won 66-65 in Oxford. KJ Johnson made the winning shot for UNA with 12.6 seconds remaining, while Lane finished with 19 points.
 
NEW YEARS SPECIAL: According to available records, Monday will mark UNA's first time playing on New Year's Day. The Lions have played numerous games on New Year's Eve or the day after New Year's, but have never had a game fall on Jan. 1.
 
NO CASE OF THE MONDAYS: UNA is currently 1-0 in Monday games this season, winning the season opener over Blue Mountain Christian on the first Monday of the regular season, 93-60.    
 
LIFE IN 4K: UNA has four players with over 1,000 career points on its roster, including Johnson, Tim Smith Jr., Marco Foster and Damian Forrest. The latter three each achieved the feat this season, with Forrest doing it the most recently against Morehead State.
 
ADDED DEPTH: A statistic UNA prides itself on is bench scoring, as the Lions rank 38th in the nation and second in the ASUN behind North Florida in bench points per game. The Lions are averaging 29.31 points off the bench with help from guys such as Johnson, Dallas Howell, Josiah Fulcher, Canin Jefferson and Marco Foster. All five are averaging at least 12 minutes per game and four of the five average at least 5.5 PPG.
 
BUILDING ON SUCCESS: North Alabama finished with an 18-15 record last season, representing the most single-season wins since the Lions made the jump to NCAA Division I in 2018-19.
 
HUNTING ANOTHER POSTSEASON RUN: Last season, UNA played in the 2023 College Basketball Invitational (CBI) to mark the first postseason tournament in the program's NCAA Division I history. Prior to that, UNA's last postseason appearance was an NCAA Regional in 2013-14. UNA has participated in 14 NCAA Tournaments (all Division II), including five Final Four appearances and two National Championship wins.
 
PUJOL CONTINUES PROGRAM GROWTH: UNA head coach Tony Pujol enters his sixth season at the helm, serving as the first and only coach of UNA's Division I era. Pujol enters tomorrow's bout with 69 wins over six seasons and led UNA to an 18-15 overall record in its first season out of the four-year Division I transition period.
 
NON-CONFERENCE HOME WINS: Over the last six seasons under Pujol, the Lions are 26-3 in non-conference home games. Prior to the team's loss against Morehead State earlier this month, the Lions had a 15-game winning streak in home non-conference games that spanned exactly three years. Five of those wins came this season.
 
STRENGTH IN STAFF: The UNA men's basketball coaching staff experienced some restructuring this offseason, including the promotion of Ahmad Smith to Associate Head Coach and Sean Foley to Special Assistant to the Head Coach. Additions to the staff include Austin Burnette as an assistant coach, Landon Travis to handle basketball operations and Eric Wagenlander to direct efforts in player development. Assistant Coach Carter Heston and Director of Sport Performance Leo Stern also return from last year's staff.
 
UP NEXT: UNA opens ASUN play at home on Saturday, Jan. 6 against Central Arkansas. The game tips off at 7:15 p.m. inside CB&S Bank Arena and will be Shoals Stars and Little Lions Night. Fans can secure their tickets at this link.
 
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.