BOSTON, Mass. – The LIU Brooklyn men's basketball team starts a long road swing this weekend, taking part in the Steve Wright Classic hosted by Boston University, Saturday, November 19 to Monday, November 21. The Blackbirds will play three games in three days, on the front end of a ten-game streak away from the Steinberg Wellness Center. LIU will take on Northeastern, the host Terriers, and the University of Maine at Case Gym.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
LIU opens the tournament taking on Northeastern, Saturday, November 19 at 6:30 p.m. The Blackbirds then face off against Boston University, Sunday, November 20 at 4 p.m. The game against the Terriers will be broadcast on the Patriot League Network and Campus Insiders, as well as the Terrier Sports Radio Network, and is the only one of the three games that will be available for fans to watch live. Monday's game is against the University of Maine, and will tip off at 3 p.m. Live stats are available for all games, and you can follow @LIUBasketball on Twitter for in-game updates.
QUICK HITS
- LIU comes into the weekend 2-0, after defeating Loyola in the Barclays Center Wednesday, 65-61. Senior Jerome Frink leads the Blackbirds in scoring, with a 16.5 points per game average, along with a team-high 11.5 rebounds per game clip so far. Senior Iverson Fleming is next, averaging 11.0 points per game.
- The four-day round-robin event is named after BU Hall of Famer Steve Wright, who passed away at the young age of 45 following a lengthy battle with leukemia. He was the Terrier's first ever three-time team MVP, had his jersey (#33) retired, and graduated first in the school record books in made field goals (617) while also finishing second in points (1,679), second in free throws (407) and eighth in rebounds (685).
- Northeastern enters Saturday's match up at 2-1, after falling to the host Terriers in the first game of the Classic, 65-63. The Huskies had beaten BU by ten points in the season opener, 87-77, but couldn't stop a late surge by the home team last night. Northeastern also beat UConn, 64-61 Monday. Senior guard T.J. Williams leads NU in the early season, with a 24.7 points per game average, along with 6.0 assists per game, and 4.3 rebounds per game. 6-8 forward Alex Murphy and sophomore guard Donnell Gresham Jr. also produce for the Huskies: Murphy averages 14.0 points per game and a team-high 8.0 rebounds per game, along with 3.3 assists per game, while Gresham adds 10.3 points per game.
- BU had a big win over local rival Northeastern to open the home tournament, and is 1-1 on the season so far. They will take on Maine, Saturday, in the second game of the tournament. The Terriers have two players averaging double-digits in scoring, led by senior guard Eric Fanning. The 6-5 New Jersey native transferred from Wagner after the 2012-13 season, and is averaging 23.0 points per game, 6.0 rebounds per game, and 3.5 assists per game. Junior guard Cheddi Mosely, a St. Anthony alum like LIU's Jerome Frink, averages 10.5 points per game for BU.
- Maine is 1-1 in the young season, with an 80-67 loss to Virginia Tech, and an 80-58 win over Longwood under their belts. The Black Bears have one main threat, in junior guard and Brooklyn native Wes Myers. Meyers leads the team in points per game (16.5), rebounds per game (8.0) and assists per game (2.5). 6-6 junior guard Ilker Er is the only other player averaging in double digits, with 12.0 points per game.
- Up next, the Blackbirds return to the Bay State to take on UMass Lowell, Saturday, November 26 at 2 p.m.