After playing just one game the first week of the season, Florida Southern begins the year in earnest with a total of four games in week two. It begins on Tuesday night, when the Moccasins host the University of Puerto-Rico Bayamon at 7:30 in Jenkins Field House. The Mocs will also be at home Wednesday night against St. Ambrose (IA) before going on the road for two games over Thanksgiving Break.
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GAME SPONSOR
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CATERING FOR SIXTH MAN CLUB PROVIDED BY
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Kazbor's Grille
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Florida Southern Probable Starters:
F, #15, John Thompson (24.0 ppg., 10.0 rebs., 3.0 asts., .733 fg%)
F, #32, A.J. Hawkins (2.0 ppg., 3.0 rebs., 2.0 steals)
G, #1, Brandon Jenkins (9.0 pts., 4.0 rebs., 7.0 asts.)
G, #2, Terry Jenkins (8.0 pts., 1.0 reb., 2.0 asts.)
G, #20, Rion Rayfield (11.0 pts., 1.0 reb., 5.0 asts., .750 3-pt.%)
UPR-Bayamon Probable Starters:
F, #14, Juan Santiago (13.0 pts., 4.0 rebs., .474 fg%)
C, #21, Christian Ocana (6.0 ppg., 1.0 reb., .833 fg%)
G, #3, Javier Ayuso (10.0 pts., 3.5 rebs.)
G, #4, Michael Gonzalez (10.5 pts., 2.0 rebs., 3.0 asts., 2.0 steals)
G, #5, Melvin Rivera (21.5 pts., 1.5 rebs., .421 3-pt.%)
SERIES HISTORY... Florida Southern has won all nine of the previous meetings, including six at home. The Moccasins won last year, 88-65, with five different players scoring in double figures. Leading that group was Preston Fredrick, who had 16 points. The Mocs blew open a close game at halftime by going 6-for-8 on 3-point attempts in the second half, and also forced 24 turnovers in the game. UPR-Bayamon got a big game from Michael Gonzalez, who scored 16 points, and added eight rebounds, five assists and three steals.
ABOUT FLORIDA SOUTHERN... The Moccasins opened the season with a 103-61 win over Puerto-Rico Rio Piedras, their largest opening night win since November of 1984 when they defeated Barry, 93-33. The Mocs scored the first 15 points of the game against Rio Piedras and led 57-26 at halftime. They shot 53 percent from the floor and made 8-of-18 shots behind the 3-point line. They were equally impressive forcing 25 turnovers and converting them into 39 points. John Thompson led the Mocs with 24 points and 10 rebounds, scoring 22 in the first half. The Mocs also got 13 points off the bench from Cameron Wooten, who returned to the court after sitting out last year as a medical redshirt, and went 5-for-7 from the floor. Rion Rayfield added 11 points and was 3-for-4 behind the 3-point arc. Rayfield is now four behind the Florida Southern career record for 3-point field goals, currently held by Mike McManamey, who made 196 from 1996-99.
ABOUT UPR-BAYAMON... The Vaqueros are in the midst of a 6-game trip to Florida, and the game against Florida Southern will be their fourth. The first two games were played in Melbourne, where they lost to West Florida, 83-80, and lost to Florida Tech, 81-54. The loss to the Argonauts was especially painful, as the game was tied at 80 before UWF hit a 3-pointer with four seconds to play; they also trailed Florida Tech by only seven at the half before shooting just 18 percent in the second half. The Vaqueros will also play Saint leo on Monday night before ending their trip with games against Eckerd and Tampa. The Vaqueros are shooting 42 percent from the floor and have made 18 3-point field goals. Baymon was 17-10 last year, and went 12-5 in their conference, making the Vaqueros one of the better teams to come from Puerto Rico.
