BROOKLYN, N.Y. - The LIU Brooklyn men's basketball team (6-3) returns to the borough of Brooklyn this weekend, after nearly a month on the road. The Blackbirds will take on local rival St. John's at the Barclays Center, Sunday, December 11, as a part of the BROOKLYN HOOPS Winter Festival. Tip-off is slated for 12 p.m. The game will be televised nationally on FS1, with Dave Sims and Jim Spanarkel on the call, as a part of a double header. Hofstra and No.6/7 Kentucky take part in the second half of the bill, at 3 p.m.
QUICK HITS
• LIU is coming off of two road losses, at Incarnate Word and North Carolina Central. The Blackbirds are now 6-3, after a 6-1 start to the season, which was the best for LIU men's basketball since 1971-72.
• St. John's enters the weekend with a 5-5 record, having beaten Fordham Thursday night at home, 90-62. The Red Storm went 15-for-31 from behind the arc in the win.
• Marcus Lovett leads SJU in scoring, with a 18.8 points per game average. Shamorie Ponds is next, adding 17.3 points per game, and 5.5 rebounds per game.
• Bashir Ahmed is the team's top rebounder, with a 6.1 rebounds per game average, along with 12.2 points per game. Federico Mussini is the fourth member of the squad averaging in double figures, with a 10.3 points per game average.
• Up next, the Blackbirds return to the road once more, heading to Minneapolis to take on the University of Minnesota, Wednesday, December 14 at 8:00 p.m. before returning home to the Steinberg Wellness Center for the first time since mid-November.