LOS ANGELES, Calif. (December 18, 2025) – The regular season non-conference slate ends for North Alabama on Friday night in California, as the Lions are in Los Angeles for the second time in as many seasons to play Loyola Marymount. Tipoff is set for 9 p.m. CT.
UNA brings a 5-5 record into the final non-conference play with an opportunity to make another statement against the formidable West Coast Conference. Just over two weeks ago, the Lions defeated San Francisco by a 65-63 final for a marquee road win.
The game will stream on
ESPN+ with Trey Bender and Bill Herenda on the call. UNA will not have a radio stream of this game.
For tickets, fans can
click here or call (310) 338-5466.
GAME INFORMATION
Game: North Alabama vs. Loyola Marymount
Date: Friday, December 19
Time: 9:00 p.m. CT
Location: Los Angeles, California
Venue: Gersten Pavilion
Capacity: 4,156
Watch:
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Live Stats:
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Tickets:
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Game Notes:
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Social Media:
@UNA_Basketball
NOTES
LAST TIME OUT: Foul trouble, turnovers and free throw shooting ultimately ended a three-game winning streak for North Alabama on Monday, as Alabama A&M defeated the Lions 68-60 in a hard-fought road game inside the AAMU Event Center in Huntsville. UNA outshot AAMU from the field and behind the arc, but the Bulldogs made 11 more free throws on 14 more opportunities than UNA. Junior guard
Canin Jefferson led the Lions with a career-high 20 points on 6-13 shooting.
SCOUTING THE LIONS: The Lions have a 5-5 record heading into the non-conference game and rank among the top three teams in the Atlantic Sun Conference overall standings. The Lions lead the ASUN in blocks per game (4.5) and fewest turnovers per game (11.1) and have four players averaging double figures offensively.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT: Much like last season when these teams met, LMU is off to a strong start with a 7-4 overall record. However, the Lions from the West Coast have dropped each of the last three home games with losses to Stony Brook, Saint Louis and UC San Diego. Redshirt senior MJ Amey Jr. leads LMU with 15.0 PPG as the go-to sixth-man. He has scored in double figures in 10 of 11 games despite just one start.
SERIES HISTORY: This will be the second all-time between Loyola Marymount and North Alabama. LMU won last season's meeting by an 85-69 final inside Gersten Pavilion. Last year, LMU shot 13-33 behind the arc and finished over 50 percent from the floor. The only other non-conference opponent to shoot over 50 percent on UNA last season was Auburn, who finished in the Final Four. UNA returns seven players who faced LMU last season. Those seven combined for 26 points.
LIONS VS. LIONS: This will be UNA's only regular season matchup this year against a fellow Lion school. UNA and LMU join Division I schools such as Southeastern Louisiana, Lindenwood, Arkansas Pine-Bluff, Penn State, Columbia and East Texas A&M that use some version of a Lion as a mascot.
UNA VS. WCC SCHOOLS: This will be just the fifth meeting between UNA and a school from the WCC. The Lions are 1-3 against WCC members with two losses to Gonzaga and one to LMU. Two weeks ago, UNA picked up a massive 65-63 win over San Francisco. All five games for UNA against the WCC have been on the road.
LMU VS. ASUN SCHOOLS: LMU has a perfect all-time record against the ASUN at 6-0. This includes wins over North Alabama, Austin Peay, Stetson, Jacksonville and Bellarmine (twice).
WILLIAMS CONTINUES DOMINATION: Redshirt junior
Corneilous Williams currently ranks 12th in the NCAA with 10.2 RPG. That total leads the ASUN by over a rebound. He also has a 61.3 shooting percentage with 46 makes, which would rank him among the top 35 shooters in the nation. He is just a few makes shy of the five-per-game minimum.
DOUBLE TROUBLE: Williams has finished with a double-double in four the five wins for UNA this season. He did not have a double-double in all five losses. He has six double-figure rebound games this season and five double-figure scoring games.
CANIN BALL: In the Alabama A&M game, junior guard
Canin Jefferson scored a career-high 20 points. He has started all 10 games as the team's primary point guard and had 16-point games at Mississippi State and Jacksonville State. He averages 11.8 PPG.
STEPPING UP AND SWATTING OUT: Senior center
Jamal Albritton set a new career high with four blocks in an impressive defensive outing against Alabama A&M, playing 15 minutes as
Corneilous Williams got into foul trouble. The senior now has 17 blocks for his career, including 10 over 10 games this season. He currently ranks 6th in the ASUN and likely has the most blocks per minute with just 8.1 minutes per game.
BACCHUS IS BACKING IT UP: Senior forward
Donte Bacchus was a preseason all-conference selection this year after serving as UNA's primary option off the bench in 2024-25. He led North Alabama to a pair of marquee road wins this month, including a 73-66 win over in-state rival Jacksonville State and a 65-63 win two days later at San Francisco. He averaged 19.5 points per game and 7.0 rebounds per game in the wins and was named ASUN Player of the Week. Bacchus also won a national fan vote for Mid-Major Madness National Player of the Week.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION: Speaking of national recognition, well-known college basketball analyst Rocco Miller recently published an article highlighting his five national teams of the week: Iowa State, Notre Dame, Richmond, Virginia and North Alabama. The Lions were labeled an ASUN contender by Miller, noting the ability to win back-to-back road games with little time to recover — much like a postseason tournament setting.
COMEBACK KIDS: Last season, UNA had an 0-8 record when trailing at the halftime break. This season, UNA is already 3-3 when trailing at the half with wins over Lane College in the home opener and Jacksonville State and San Francisco this month. The Lions had six comeback wins in the 2023-24 season.
TWOS WIN GAMES: This season, UNA has a 5-0 record when outscoring its opponent in the paint. The Lions are 0-4 when the opponent wins the paint. UNA and Alabama A&M tied for points in the paint last time out — a game won by Alabama A&M. However, a surprising trend this season is three-point shooting. The Lions are 0-3 when shooting over 40 percent behind the arc but have a record of 5-2 when shooting under 40 percent.
EPITOME OF BRUTALITY: Over the last three seasons, UNA has won three "buy games" against notable road opponents, including Air Force, East Carolina and San Francisco. UNA also had an impressive win over Ole Miss in 2022. LMU is receiving votes in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 poll and would become another marquee win if the Lions pull another one off on the road.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
