LAKELAND - Florida Southern is set to conclude its pre-Christmas schedule here with back-to-back non-conference games on Monday and Tuesday against Tuskegee and Johnson C. Smith in Jenkins Field House.
The Moccasins will open the two-game stretch on Dec. 17 against Tuskegee at 7:30 p.m., before facing Johnson C. Smith on Dec. 18 at 7:30 p.m. The Johnson C. Smith game will the be third of three games on Tuesday at Jenkins Field House as the Moccasin women open its 2012-13 home schedule by hosting two games on the first day of the Terrace Hotel Classic.
Monday's game with Tuskegee will mark the Mocs first game in nine days as they haven't played since extending its win streak to four straight with its 78-71 come-from-behind win on Saturday, Dec. 8 against Benedict. In the win over Benedict, the Mocs trailed by 14 points early in the second half, before rallying to post its second come-from-behind win in its last three outings as FSC also came back from a 14 point deficit to open Sunshine State Conference play with a 61-56 win at Lynn on Dec. 1.
"We are in a challenge our next two games. Tuskegee has played a very difficult schedule and has led at the half in several of its games, while Johnson C. Smith has a really good scorer, a strong winning tradition and has gotten off to a good start this season," Mocs head coach Linc Darner said.
The Mocs, who are sporting a 6-1 overall record this season, enter this week's action second in the SSC and 33rd nationally in scoring as they are averaging 83.0 points per game and have scored 70 or more points in six of its first seven contests this year. Additionally, the Mocs are outscoring its foes by 10.6 points per game and lead the SSC and are sixth nationally in both steals (12.4 per game) and turnover margin (+8.3).
Leading the way for the Mocs through seven games is junior guard Dominic Lane (St. Petersburg, Fla.), who is averaging 16.1 points and 6.4 rebounds per game and has scored in double figures in four straight games and six times this season and is the reigning SSC Player of the Week. In addition to Lane, senior guard Seth Evans (Marseilles, Ill.) is averaging 11.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.6 steals per game and leads the league in assist/turnover ratio (2.8) and senior forward Brett Bailey (Davie, Fla.) is averaging 11.8 points and 3.6 rebounds per game and is shooting 49 percent from the field.
As a team, the Mocs have four players averaging in double figures as junior forward Lamar McKnight (Bedford, Ohio) is the fourth double figure scorer as he averages 11.0 points per game, while sophomore guards Cameron Vines (Columbus, Ohio) and Kevin Capers (Winter Haven, Fla.) are just short of double figures as they each average 9.9 points per game off the bench.
"We have a lot of depth on this team and have gotten a lot of contributions from different players so far this season," said Darner, who is 135-61 at the helm of the Mocs.
Tuskegee, who enters Monday's game sporting a 1-5 overall record, have played one of the most difficult schedules in Division II so far this season as their five opponents have combined for a 30-10 record. Among the Golden Tigers foes this season is Michigan State, who Tuskegee played on ESPNU Saturday night before traveling to Lakeland. Against the Spartans, TU trailed 33-26 at the half, but the Spartans pulled away with a 17-4 run early in the second half to take a 53-35 lead. MSU won the game, 92-56.
The Golden Tigers, who are members of the SIAC, claimed its only win this season at home on Dec. 4 against Montevallo, 68-65. TU's other non-conference foes have been Saint Leo, fourth-ranked Alabama-Huntsville and West Florida. Tuskegee also played a game at Montevallo and will play at Eckerd on Tuesday night.
"Don't be deceived by their (Tuskegee's) record. They have a played a very difficult schedule and have been in all of their games in the second half," Darner added. "They are a very well coached team that will present us with some challenges."
The Golden Tigers, who have posted three consecutive winning seasons, inclduing finishing with a 16-11 record and the SIAC regular season title a year ago, are led by the play of junior guard Javier McKinney and senior guard Calvin Thomas as they have combined to average 36.2 points per game and have accounted for 52 percent of the Golden Tigers' offense. McKinney is averaging 20.2 points per game and is shooting 44 percent from the field and 40 percent from the 3-point line, while Thomas is averaging 16 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. As a team, the Golden Tigers, who are coached by Leon Douglas, who is in his seventh season at TU, are averaging 69.2 points per game and is shooting 37 percent from the field and 30 percent from the 3-point line and is getting outscored by 9.4 points per contest.
Meanwhile, Johnson C. Smith, who is from the CIAA and is located in Charlotte, N.C., enters this week's action sporting a 5-2 record after posting a 74-61 win last Wednesday at Claflin. The Golden Bulls, who play at Eckerd on Monday before traveling to Lakeland, were tabbed to finish third in the Southern Division in the Preseason CIAA poll as they return three starters, including senior All-American guard Trevin Parks, from last year's 12-15 squad. The 12-15 record was just the first losing season for JCSU since the 1996-97 season. JCSU is coached by Stephen Joyner, Sr., who is in his 26th season at his alma mater and he has compiled a 454-272 record and has led the Golden Bulls to seven CIAA Divisional titles, 10 NCAA D-II Tournament appearances, including advancing to the 2001 Elite Eight and has coached 26 All-CIAA performers and five All-Americans.
Leading the way for the Golden Bulls is Parks, who is averaging 26.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game and he is shooting 51 percent from the field and has scored 20 or more points in six games, including two 36 point outings against Queens and Felician. In addition to Parks, sophomore forward/center Emilio Parks is averaging 12.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game and is shooting 68 percent from the floor and has blocked nine shots.
Monday's meeting with Tuskegee is just the third in school history between the two teams as the series is tied at 1-1. TU won the first-ever meeting between the two schools in the 1979 NCAA Tournament in Lakeland, 107-102, while FSC won the most recent meeting (96-78) on Dec. 19, 2010 in Lakeland. In addition, it is also the third game this season for the Mocs against an SIAC foe as they opened the season with an 86-75 win at Stillman and then posted the seven point victory in its last outing against Benedict.
Tuesday's game with Johnson C. Smith will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools and just FSC's seventh-ever game against a team from the CIAA. The Mocs are 6-1 all-time against CIAA foes.
Following this week's action, the Mocs will take 17 days off before returning to the court on Saturday, Jan. 5 as they host Barry in a 7:30 p.m. SSC match-up at Jenkins Field House. Six of those 17 off-days (Dec. 20-26) are mandated by the NCAA as part of its "Life in Balance" initiative that was implemented a few seasons ago.
Complete Tuskegee-Johnson C. Smith Game Notes
