FLORENCE, Ala. (January 5, 2023) – Atlantic Sun Conference play begins for the University of North Alabama men's basketball team on Saturday, as the Lions welcome conference rival Central Arkansas to CB&S Bank Arena in Florence for a 7:15 p.m. tip.
 
Saturday's game will open ASUN play for both teams, as all 12 member schools will be in action. This game will also be part of a home double header between UNA and UCA, as the women's programs tip off at 5 p.m.
 
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. Central Arkansas
Date: Saturday, January 5, 2024
Time: 7:15 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: Shoals Stars / Little Lions Night
UNA Game Notes: Click here
Social Media: @UNA_Basketball
 
NOTES
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS: North Alabama completed non-conference play on New Year's Day at Texas Tech, falling 85-57 in Lubbock to finish with a 6-8 record out of league play. UNA finished the tough 14-game gauntlet with 76.4 points per game and 75.1 allowed. Backcourt duo Jacari Lane and KJ Johnson lead the Lions with 13.7 and 12.7 PPG respectively. Lane and graduate forward Tim Smith Jr. have started all 14 games with Smith Jr. averaging 9.1 PPG.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT: Central Arkansas enters ASUN play with a 4-12 overall record with wins over cross-town rival Hendrix College, Little Rock, Eastern Illinois and Champion Christian. Much like UNA, the Bears had a number of challenging games, including four Power Five trips to Vanderbilt, Kansas State, Oklahoma and Missouri. The Bears average 71.9 PPG and are led by freshman forward Tucker Anderson at 13.5 PPG.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Saturday will mark the 12th all-time meeting. UNA leads the series with an 8-3 record. The series dates back to 1994 while both programs were members of NCAA Division II. The two collided twice in the 2005-06 season as members of the Gulf South Conference before UCA made the jump to NCAA Division I. Over a decade later, UNA also made the jump and the two sides have competed four times as members of the ASUN.
 
SUCCESS IN FLORENCE: The Lions have a 4-1 record over the Bears at home. The only loss came in 2022, while the wins happened in 1994, 1995, 2006 and last season in 2023. UNA won the last meeting by an 82-66 final in CB&S Bank Arena with Lane and Johnson combining for 29 points.
 
BACK AT THE BANK: UNA will play at home for the first time in nearly a month on Saturday. The Lions are 5-1 inside CB&S Bank Arena, opening the season on a five-game home winning streak before OVC contender Morehead State defeated the Lions on Dec. 10. This also ended a 15-game home winning streak over non-conference opponents spanning exactly three years. Overall, UNA has a 523-183 record at CB&S Bank Arena (Flowers Hall).
 
CAREER GUYS: Fourth-year Lions Will Soucie and Detalian Brown are each approaching 100 career games at UNA. Soucie currently sits at 98, while Brown is just one game behind at 97. 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.
 
FOUR THOUSAND: The Lions have four players on the active roster who have scored 1,000 career points — KJ Johnson, Tim Smith Jr., Marco Foster and Damain 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.
 
TEAMS WITH MULTIPLE 1,000 POINTERS: 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.
 
AIMING FOR 80: The team that scores 80 or more points has typically won this season, as UNA is 4-0 in non-overtime games when scoring at least 80 points. On the flipside, UNA is 0-5 when the opponent scores 80 or more in non-overtime games.
 
DEPTH IS KEY: The Lions rank 43rd 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 29.3 PPG. Eight different players have started a game for UNA this season, but the Lions have only used three different starting lineups. Eleven players are averaging at least 11 minutes per game.
 
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: Tony Pujol enters his sixth season as the head coach at North Alabama, serving as the first and only coach of UNA's Division I era. Pujol enters tomorrow's game with 69 wins over six seasons. Under Pujol, the Lions are 45-24 at home.
 
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.
 
PRESEASON POLLS: North Alabama was picked seventh of 12 teams in the preseason coaches and media poll for the ASUN. The Lions received one first place vote in the coaches poll. Saturday's opponent, UCA, was picked 12th in both polls. EKU was picked to win in both polls.
 
ON THE HORIZON: The Lions dive deeper into non-conference play next week with a pair of home ASUN matchups against Bellarmine and EKU. Tipoff times are Thursday, Jan. 11 at 7:45 p.m. and Saturday, Jan. 13 at 7:15 p.m.
 
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.