SAINT JOSEPH'S HAWKS (5-5) vs. LOYOLA CHICAGO RAMBLERS (7-5)
December 22, 2018 • 5 p.m. • CBS Sports Network
The Palestra (8,722) • Philadelphia, Pa.
TV – CBS Sports Network (Jason Knapp, Debbie Antonelli)
LISTEN – WPHT 1210 AM (Matt Martucci, Joe Lunardi | SJUHawks.com
LIVE STATS | @SJUHawks_MBB | GAME NOTES | MEDIA GUIDE
TICKETS
** Fans should note that there is a 1 p.m. game at the Palestra on Saturday (Temple-Drexel) and a separate ticket is required for that contest. Game-day parking is available near The Palestra including the Penn Museum garage, Penn Park, Walnut 32 garage and Chestnut 34 garage. The cost of parking is $20. For alternate parking options, click here.
THE MATCHUP
Current SJU Streak: 1 loss
Series vs. LC: SJU leads 1-0
Last Meeting: 11/18/16, SJU 71-57
Coaches (years/record at school): Phil Martelli - 24th Year (435-314); Porter Moser - 8th Year (233-117)
Teams' Leading Scorers: Charlie Brown, Jr. - 22.0 ppg; Clayton Custer - 13.9 ppg
THE HAWKS
• Saint Joseph's last game was a 70-58 loss at then-#21 Villanova on Dec. 8. The Hawks have been on a two-week break for final exams, which ended on Dec. 18
• Charlie Brown, Jr., and Pierfrancesco Oliva have both been cleared to return to action. Brown missed the Villanova game with a sprained ankle suffered at Princeton while Oliva sat out two games with a concussion that occurred vs. Temple on Dec. 1
• Taylor Funk suffered a broken nose in practice this week but is expected to play
• Saint Joseph's leads the nation in turnovers per game, with an average of 8.2. Jared Bynum tops the conference and ranks 17th in the nation in assist/turnover ratio with 3.5
• Saint Joseph's begins a stretch of four consecutive games in Philadelphia today
• This a Jesuit Basketball Spotlight game, which aims to raise awareness for Jesuit education (more on page 4)
• The Hawks will take another break for the holiday and return to action on Dec. 29 by hosting Wagner. SJU opens the conference season on Jan. 3 at home against George Mason
BACK IN ACTION
• Leading scorer Charlie Brown, Jr., will return to action after missing the Villanova game with a sprained ankle that occurred in the Princeton win
• Top rebounder Pierfrancesco Oliva was sidelined for the Princeton and Villanova contests after he suffered a concussion in the loss to Temple. He was cleared to return to the court earlier this week
HOME AWAY FROM HOME
• Saint Joseph's has utilized The Palestra as an alternate home venue ever since the beginning of the Philadelphia Big 5 in 1955, and owns an all-time record of 335-166 in the building
• The 2018-19 season marks the 64th consecutive season in which Saint Joseph's will play at least one game at The Palestra, which remains an integral part of SJU basketball history
• This marks the first time since 2012-13 that SJU will play more than one game here. The last time the Hawks faced a non-Big 5 team at The Palestra was in 2010-11 versus Rutgers in the Philly Hoop Group Classic
BYTES ON BYNUM
• Jared Bynum has been impressive at the start of his career and is averaging 13.4 points and leading the team in assists with 3.9
• Phil Martelli said of the freshman, “He might be a freshman academically and socially, but he's a basketball player. He belongs in these games.”
TAKING CARE OF THE BALL
• The Hawks lead the nation in turnovers per game (8.2) and are third in fewest number of turnovers with 83
• SJU has committed less than 11 turnovers in every game this season, with a low of six vs. Monmouth
• The Hawks had an uncharacteristic 10 turnovers at Princeton, with three quick ones at the game's start; it was the most since they had 11 against UCF
• Freshman Jared Bynum leads the A-10 in assist/turnover ratio with 3.55 and is ranked 17th in the nation. He has 39 assists this year to just 11 turnovers
WHAT BROWN CAN DO FOR YOU
• Charlie Brown, Jr., established a new career-high for the third time this year as he poured in 37 points at William & Mary
• Brown is the leading scorer in the A-10 with his 22.0 average. The last Hawk to average 20-plus points in a full season was Jameer Nelson (20.6) in 2003-04. Shavar Newkirk averaged 20.3 ppg in 2016-17, but he played only 12 games after being sidelined an injury
JESUIT VS. JESUIT
• Tonight's contest is a Jesuit Basketball Spotlight game as SJU and Loyola Chicago are both Jesuit universities
• The Jesuit Basketball Spotlight, which is in its eighth year, highlights games between men's and women's teams from the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities across the U.S. Other Jesuit schools on the Hawks' schedule are Saint Louis and Fordham
HAWKS HELPING OTHERS
• The Hawks completed their 24th annual Christmas Charity project where they provided gifts and a Christmas dinner to five needy famiiies in West Philadelphia. The project is aided from donations made by Saint Joseph's fans - PHOTO ALBUM
• The players choose and wrapped the gifts for their assigned families and delivered them on Dec. 21
LOOKING AHEAD
• The Hawks get another week off for Christmas and return to action on Dec. 29 against Wagner in Hagan Arena
• Saint Joseph's will play in the first Atlantic 10 game of the year when it hosts George Mason on Jan. 3
