Game Info: Sunday, December 28, 2025 - 12:00 p.m.
Location: Hagan Arena - Philadelphia, Pa.
Tickets | TV: ESPN+ | Listen: sjuhawks.com | Live Stats: sjuhawks.com | Saint Joseph's Game Notes

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Opening Tip
Saint Joseph's plays its final non-conference game, hosting Arcadia on Sunday, December 28. Tipoff from Hagan Arena is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. with the game to air on ESPN+.

No Post-Holiday Letdown    
In recent seasons, the Hawks have fared well in their first game back after Christmas, winning three of their last four games following the holiday break. In those contests, they have averaged 84.0 points per game with an average scoring margin of +20.3. Even the one loss was competitive with it coming by just five points to Saint Louis on December 31, 2022.

A Familiar Name on Hawk Hill    
Sunday sees a Lynam return to the court on Hawk Hill as Arcadia, with sophomore Jamison Lynam, takes the floor. Jamison is the grandson of Saint Joseph's legend Jim Lynam. Jim scored 1,012 points for SJU and led the Hawks to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances as a player. He remains ninth in all-time assists with 390. He was inducted into the Big 5 Hall of Fame in 1975. He later became the head coach at St. Joe's and amassed a 65-28 record. The .699 winning percentage is second only in program history to the .765 posted by Dr. Jack Ramsey. As a coach, he engineered the upset of No. 1 DePaul in the 1981 NCAA Tournament, part of an Elite Eight run for the Hawks. Jamison is carving out his own legacy in Glenside, starting all 35 possible games in his career. He was the 2024-25 MAC Freedom Rookie of the Year and has already totaled 515 career points.

Defense Delivers    
Despite the end result, Saint Joseph's defense was again solid, as the Coastal Carolina game was the sixth consecutive game holding an opponent under 71 points and the fifth time in those contests a team did not reach 70 points against SJU. In its last six contests, the Hawks are allowing the opposition 63.7 points per game. By contrast, in the first five games of the year, SJU allowed 83.4 PPG with three games above 80 and two teams topping 90. Overall, opponent shooting has dropped from 45.5 percent to 40.9 percent and three-point percentage has gone from 34.9 percent to 28.6 percent. Another big aspect has been the ability to rebound with SJU averaging 39.3 boards per game and holding a +6.3 rebound margin in the four contests. Individually, Justice Ajogbor has 15 blocks in the six games, helping him to move into second in the conference and 29th nationally in total rejections with 26. Additionally, Austin Williford has 12 steals in the span.

Rising To Meet The Moment    
With injuries taking their toll on the Hawks in the past couple of games, St. Joe's has needed players to step up and Khaafiq Myers has answered the call. In the last two games, the redshirt-freshman is averaging 11.5 points and 3.0 assists per game. Through his first 10 games of the season he was tallying 2.1 points and 1.7 dimes per contest. One thing that has remained for Myers throughout the year has been his steady ball handling with 23 assists and just nine turnovers, a 2.55:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.

Scouting Report    

• Arcadia enters play 5-4 overall and is coming off a 73-71 setback against Wilkes on December 14. The Knights were picked atop the MAC Freedom preseason poll, garnering six of the eight first place votes.
• Leading the offense for Arcadia is sophomore Jamison Lynam at 18.1 points per game. Joshua Okocha and Josh Parks also average double figures in scoring at 11.2 and 10.8 an outing, respectively. (Nas Johnson is tallying 13.3 points per game in four contests, but has not played since November 17 against Widener.) Parks and Okocha split high-rebounding honors with Parks at 8.4 boards a night while Okocha hauls in 8.2. Lynam has 36 assists to lead the Knights.
• Rebounding is a big part of what Arcadia does as it ranks 44th nationally with 42.3 boards per game and is 15th in NCAA Division III at 31.0 defensive rebounds a contest. The work on the glass has helped the Knights surrender 65.3 points an outing, 27th in the country.
• Arcadia needs to play well on the defensive side of the ball as it has not fared well in shooting this season beyond the arc or at the line. The Knights are 342nd nationally in free throw percentage at 63.6 and are 345th in three-point percentage at 28.3. The team has also been starter dominant with the bench only accounting for 19.7 percent of its points this season.
• Adam Van Zelst is in his seventh season as the head coach of the Knights with a record of 84-68. He led Arcadia to the 2023 MAC Freedom Championship and the NCAA Tournament.

All-Time Series    
Sunday is the first ever meeting between Saint Joseph's and Arcadia in men's basketball.

Home For The Holidays    
After a greater than normal amount of non-conference travel, Saint Joseph's returns to Hagan Arena for the final three contests of its pre-Atlantic 10 schedule. The Hawks faced Delaware State on December 18 and Coastal Carolina on December 22 before wrapping the stretch with Arcadia on December 28. SJU is 5-0 at Hagan Arena in 2025-26 and 32-8 since the start of the 2023-24 season at home, an .800 winning percentage. St. Joe's traveled 6,021 miles for its road and neutral site games this season, not counting games within the city of Philadelphia, including trips to UNLV and Syracuse. The 6k+ miles Saint Joseph's checks in at for non-conference games this season are more than the past three seasons combined.

Towering Over The Competition...    
With Justice Ajogbor (6'10"), Jaden Smith (6'11") and Steven Solano (7'0"), the Hawks' roster is loaded with height. Only eight of St. Joe's opponents have three or more players who are 6'10" or taller, led by five on Duquesne's roster. Two teams – Princeton and Rutgers-Camden – do not have a player on their squad that is taller than 6'9".

Moving Into Conference Play    
Following the game against Arcadia, the Hawks begin Atlantic 10 play, opening at Saint Louis on December 31. It is a tough schedule early on with the Billikens picked second in the A-10 preseason poll. Also in the first seven conference matchups of the year are preseason No. 1 VCU (Jan. 19), No. 3 Dayton (Jan. 24) and a St. Bonaventure team that has far exceeded expectations thus far with an 11-2 record, coming to Hagan Arena on Jan. 14. The Hawks are also featured on national TV quite a bit to start the year as Davidson (Jan. 3), VCU and Dayton airing on CBS Sports Network and Richmond (Jan. 11) on USA.

Closing In    
A couple of Saint Joseph's players are getting near some career milestones and climbing the charts in the SJU career record book. With two more blocks against Coastal Carolina, Justice Ajogbor is four away from tying Ronald Roberts, Jr. (2010-14) for 10th. Derek Simpson comes into the contest against Arcadia with 951 career points combined between his time at Saint Joseph's (2024-present) and Rutgers (2022-24).

Next Up    
Saint Joseph's opens conference play on the road, traveling to Saint Louis for a New Year's Eve matchup against the Billikens. Tipoff from Chaifetz Arena is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. EST with the game to air on ESPN+.