FLORENCE, Ala. (January 10, 2023) – The University of North Alabama men's basketball team is ready to let the sparks fly this week inside CB&S Bank Arena, as the Lions host Bellarmine on Thursday, Jan. 11 at 7:45 p.m. in Florence.
 
Thursday's game is "Swiftie Night" and will include Taylor Swift-themed promotions throughout the evening. Fans are encouraged to enter head first, fearless and enjoy a UNA basketball double-header with UNA fans and Swifties alike.
 
Premium Seating at CB&S Bank Arena inside Flowers Hall is sold out for the year, but general admission season tickets and single game tickets are still available. For ticket information, contact bbond@una.edu, call 256-765-5466 or visit online at this link.
 
Parking is available to the general public along the streets of Circular Road and Stewart Avenue, as well as the parking lot in front of Rice and Rivers Hall and the parking garage. Lots A, B and C at the Bill Jones Athletic Complex and below the arena are reserved parking spaces. There is also paid parking below the Science Building off Circular Road.
 
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Game: North Alabama vs. Bellarmine
Date: Thursday, January 11, 2024
Time: 7:45 p.m.
Location: Florence, Alabama
Venue: CB&S Bank Arena at Flowers Hall
Capacity: 2,223
Watch: ESPN+ — "Voice of the Lions" Benjamin Ray (PxP) and Matt Daniels (Analyst)
Radio: WLX 98.3 / 103.5 FM — Bryan Neece (PxP)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets: RoarLions.com
Promotions: Swiftie Night
Game Sponsor: US Army
UNA Game Notes: Click here
Social Media: @UNA_Basketball
 
NOTES
 
LONG LIVE THE LIONS: North Alabama enters with a 6-9 overall record and is coming off an 84-81 loss to Central Arkansas in the Atlantic Sun Conference opener last Saturday. The Lions trailed by 23 points with 15 minutes remaining, but outscored the Bears 43-23 in the final stretch with a chance to tie at the buzzer. UNA averages 76.7 points per game and is led by dynamic backcourt duo Jacari Lane and KJ Johnson with a combined 27.2 PPG.
 
TROUBLE, TROUBLE, TROUBLE: Scouting the opponent, Bellarmine enters with a 4-13 record and are off to an 0-2 start in conference play. The Knights are averaging 68.5 PPG, but have a respectable 42.7 percentage from the field and an 81.3 percentage at the free throw line. Bellarmine is led by four players averaging double-figures, including redshirt sophomore Ben Johnson at 12.7 PPG.
 
BAD BLOOD: Thursday will mark the seventh all-time meeting, with all six previous meetings coming over the last three seasons. Bellarmine won each of the first five meetings and has a 4-0 record in Florence. UNA has the most recent win in the series, defeating the Knights 70-57 last season inside the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville.
 
SHAKE IT OFF: Both teams will seek their first ASUN victories on Thursday, as Bellarmine lost to Austin Peay and Lipscomb last week. Both UNA and Bellarmine had tough schedules to close non-conference play. The Lions have lost their last four with tough non-conference tests at Tennessee Tech, Indiana and Texas Tech. Bellarmine has lost its last six games, including Evansville, Utah, No. 17 BYU and High Point.
 
CAN'T STOP, WON'T STOP MOVING: Fourth-year Lions Will Soucie and Detalian Brown are each approaching 100 career games at UNA. Soucie currently sits at 99, while Brown is just one game behind at 98. This ranks second and third all-time for most UNA games played at the Division I level behind former standout Jamari Blackmon with 113 from 2018-2022.
 
LAST TIME YOU SAW ME: In the last meeting with Bellarmine, UNA used just eight players. Seven of those eight players are returners from last season, including Lane, Johnson and Soucie who all combined for 42 points. Soucie also had nine rebounds to nearly complete the double-double.
 
OUT OF THE WOODS: The Lions have four players on the active roster who have scored 1,000 career points — KJ Johnson, Tim Smith Jr., Marco Foster and Damian Forrest. Johnson accomplished the feat last season, while Smith Jr. did so against Jacksonville State this season. Foster and Forrest hit the marks in each of the last two games against Rust College and Morehead State, respectively.
 
BURNED IN THE BACK OF YOUR MIND: UNA is one of nine known schools in Division I basketball with at least four 1,000 point scorers when factoring in players who scored some of their totals at the JUCO level. The list is led by St. John's (NY) with six, followed by TCU and Missouri with five. North Alabama is joined by Tennessee, Villanova, St. Bonaventure, Memphis and New Mexico with four.
 
SPARKS FLY: KJ Johnson has scored exactly 1,400 points in his five-year career. He ranks first among active ASUN players in career scoring and 61st in the league all-time. Over his career, including three years at Lipscomb and the last two at UNA, Johnson is averaging 10.9 PPG. He has averaged 12.5 PPG over his two seasons at UNA, including 13.3 this season.
 
NEVER MISS A BEAT: The Lions rank 39th in the nation and second in the ASUN with 28.5 bench points per game. Only North Florida ranks ahead of UNA among league teams at 28.9 PPG. Eight different players have started a game for UNA this season, but the Lions have only used four different starting lineups. Eleven players are averaging at least 11 minutes per game.
 
ARE YOU READY FOR IT: Coming up on Saturday, the Lions will host EKU at 7:15 p.m. inside CB&S Bank Arena. This will be a Gold Rush game, as fans are encouraged to wear gold to celebrate UNA's "Shine On, Gold" campaign. Click here for more information.
 
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.