FLORENCE, Ala. (February 12, 2025) – The first place North Alabama men's basketball team returns home to CB&S Bank Arena this week for a pair of important Atlantic Sun Conference games against North Florida and Jacksonville.
 
On Thursday night, the Lions welcome the high-octane offense of North Florida for a 6 p.m. tipoff. UNA will hold its academic night during halftime to honor the academic achievements of its student-athletes. Also, the first 700 fans receive a free reusable grocery bag from Price Less IGA.
 
On Saturday, UNA will tipoff at 1 p.m. against Jacksonville. The Lions and Dolphins are two of the four teams in a four-way tie for first in the ASUN standings entering this week. This will be Greek Day for UNA's sororities and fraternities and will also include a performance from the Kilby Dribblers.

Tickets are available by calling 256-765-5466 (LION) or by visiting this link.

Due to ongoing construction, the basketball parking plan has been revised for the 2024-25 season. Lots A and B will be in the parking lot directly below Flowers Hall. Lot A pass holders will have coned off spots near the staircase. Shuttles will be available to take fans up to the field house lot for entry into CB&S Bank Arena.

Lot C parking will be in the parking lot below the Mitchell Burford Science and Technology Building. Residential Students will have access into Lot C with their hang tags. The public can also park in this lot for $12. Parking at the Bill Jones athletic complex will be unavailable. However, this lot is available as a drop off area near the arena.
 
GAME 1 INFORMATION
Game: North Alabama vs. North Florida
Date: Thursday, February 13
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Florence, Alabama
Venue: CB&S Bank Arena
Capacity: 3,000
Promotions: Academic Night / Grocery Bag Giveaway from Price Less IGA
Game Sponsor: First South Farm Credit
Watch: ESPN+ ("Voice of the Lions" Benjamin Ray, Matt Daniels, Chase Glover)
Radio: WLX 98.3 & 103.5 FM (Bryan Neece)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets: Click Here
Game Notes: Click Here
Social Media: @UNA_Basketball
 
GAME 2 INFORMATION
Game: North Alabama vs. Jacksonville
Date: Saturday, February 15
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Florence, Alabama
Venue: CB&S Bank Arena
Capacity: 3,000
Promotions: Greek Day / Kilby Dribblers
Watch: ESPN+ ("Voice of the Lions" Benjamin Ray, Matt Daniels, Chase Glover)
Radio: WLX 98.3 & 103.5 FM (Bryan Neece)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets: Click Here
Game Notes: Available Friday
Social Media: @UNA_Basketball
 
 
NOTES
LAST TIME OUT: North Alabama clinched an automatic berth into the 2025 ASUN Championship on Saturday with a dominant 78-61 win at West Georgia inside The Coliseum in Carrollton, Georgia. Corneilous Williams tied a Division I school record with 19 rebounds an added 12 points for his seventh double-double of the season. Fifth-year senior Will Soucie led the Lions with 17 points.
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS: North Alabama is 17-8 overall and 9-3 in the ASUN to sit in a four-way tie for first place with Jacksonville, FGCU and Lipscomb with six games remaining. The Lions average 78.9 points per game to rank third in the conference while giving up 70.9 PPG to rank fourth in defense.
 
SCOUTING THE OSPREYS: North Florida enters 13-12 overall and 6-6 in conference play, ending a three-game win streak last week with an 84-70 loss to FGCU at home. UNF is the highest scoring team in the ASUN with 84.4 PPG, but the defense gives up the most points with 85.6 PPG allowed. Sophomore Jasai Miles leads the squad with 15.5 PPG, while freshman Josh Harris averages 14.0 PPG.
 
SERIES HISTORY VS. NORTH FLORIDA: Thursday will be the 13th all-time meeting between UNA and North Florida. All meetings have come since UNA's move to Division I in 2018. The Lions ride a three-game win streak in the series. However, North Florida is 3-1 inside CB&S Bank Arena with wins in 2019, 2020 and 2022. UNA won the most recent meeting in Florence in 2023.
 
SCOUTING THE DOLPHINS: Jacksonville is 15-9 overall and 9-3 in ASUN play, including a seven-game win streak toward the end of Janaury. Since then, JU is 2-2 with losses to FGCU and North Florida and wins last week over Stetson and Bellarmine. JU averages 72.7 PPG and is one of the more sound defenses in the ASUN with 70.8 PPG allowed. Junior Robert McCray is the leading scorer for Jacksonville, ranking fifth in the ASUN with 16.5 PPG.
 
SERIES HISTORY VS. JACKSONVILLE: The Lions are 6-4 against Jacksonville since entering the ASUN in 2019. The Dolphins have won three of the last four games, including a 64-60 win just under a month ago on Jan. 16 inside Swisher Gym. However, UNA won the last meeting in Florence with an 80-62 win in 2023. UNA is 5-1 when playing JU at home.
 
STATE OF BASKETBALL: The state of Alabama has 10 Division I men's basketball teams. Eight of those 10 are currently in the top three of their conferences, including five that are in first place (North Alabama, Auburn and Alabama, Samford, Jacksonville State). Alabama leads all states with teams in first place of their conference with five, followed by California, Tennessee and North Carolina with three. As of Monday, all eight of those teams are ranked among the top 150 of the NCAA NET Rankings which includes 364 teams.  
 
PROTECT THE BALL: UNA ranks fourth in the NCAA with just 9.1 turnovers per game behind Ole Miss, Marquette and Purdue Fort Wayne with 8.8. Only 23 teams in the NCAA can claim less than 10 turnovers per game.
 
WATCH OUT FOR LANE: Junior guard Jacari Lane leads the Lions with 15.9 PPG and ranks second in the ASUN with 5.0 assists per game in ASUN play. The Huntsville native was named to the Lou Henson Award Early Watch List in November and is the only player in the ASUN that earned first team all-conference honors from the league last season.
 
HISTORIC TRIO: UNA has three active 1,000 point scorers on the same team for the first time since 1971. This only includes players with over 1,000 career points in a Lion uniform. Those players are fifth-year senior Will Soucie, junior Jacari Lane and senior Daniel Ortiz. The "Big 3" in 1971 includes Larry Smith, Don Faint and Tommy Ledbetter.
 
NEWCOMER NEIL: Redshirt sophomore Corneilous Williams won ASUN Newcomer of the Week on Monday following a pair of double-doubles against Austin Peay and West Georgia. On Saturday at UWG, Williams grabbed 19 rebounds to tie the Division I school record at UNA last set in 2020.
 
FIELDS OF DREAMS: Senior Taye Fields, a Division II transfer from Missouri Western, has made quite a splash in the ASUN this season as perhaps the most well-rounded player in college basketball. He averages 10.7 PPG with 8.7 RPG to go with 85 assists, 26 blocks and 36 steals. According to NBA Draft analyst Nick Kalinowski, Fields is the highest-graded wing in college basketball at 84.7 percent and is among the top 80 percentile players in inside scoring, playmaking, rebounding (100 percent), defense and advanced metrics. He is one of only five wings above an overall grade of 80. The other four are from Iowa State, UCLA, South Carolina and Oregon State.
 
REBOUND REIGN: Williams and Fields are the top two rebounders in the ASUN this season, as Williams leads with 8.8 RPG and Fields is second with 8.7 RPG.

ON DECK: UNA closes a three-game home stand next Tuesday, Feb. 18 against West Georgia inside CB&S Bank Arena. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.  

For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.