BG Finishes Road Trip in Miami Against Jacksonville

Yes, it's a little strange.  No, Jacksonville is not near Miami.  And yes...we mean it when we say we will schedule a game in your hometown if you play for us.  The crowd may consist strictly of friends and families, but we promised it and we got it done.  The game will be played at the Watco Center, where the Hurricanes play.

The game is with Jacksonville, not Jacksonville State.  They are the Dolphins.  In 1970, they played UCLA in the national final, spurred on by Hall of Famer Artis Gilmore.  There's an assistant coach who claims now that the Dolphin coaches were told they weren't going to be allowed to win...take that for what it is worth.

Anyway, BG has only played Jacksonville once, and that was in 1989, also on a neutral floor...this one in Providence.  BG won by 12.

The Dolphins play in the Atlantic Sun, the 20th ranked conference.  They were 12-20 last year and are picked to be 6th/7th out of 8 or 9 (depending on how you count N. Alabama) in the Atlantic Sun.

They lost 2 of their 5 starters from last year and five total transfers at all.  They lost more than half of their total offensive production.  For the cherry on the sundae, their leading returning scorer, Tyrese Davis, is out with a knee injury suffered last year and hasn't played this year, though for all I knew he could be back for this game.

They are 1-1 this year.  They lost to Xavier and beat Johnson (in the NCCAA).

They have 2 players scoring in double figures.  Their leading scorer is 5'10: G Aamahne Santos, who is scoring 18 on 61% and 54% shooting.  The big surprise is Bryce Workman, who averaged 1.9 last year, is averaging 15 and 9 rebounds off the bench in 18 minutes a game.  David Bell is averaging 9.5 RPG and JUCO transfer Destin Barnes is scoring 9.5 per game.

Last year, they played the 2nd fastest tempo in A-Sun.  They were #4 in offense and #6 in defense.  They were a decent shooting team, especially on 2FGs and they were good on the offensive boards, but they also lost front court players and might not be as strong.

Anyway, it's an odd one that BG should certainly win.  It isn't 1970.