Men's Basketball | 11/28/2021 4:12:00 PM

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Mississippi Valley State University men's basketball program will look to build off the momentum of taking a halftime lead over Ole Miss on Friday night when it invades Historic Memorial Gymnasium to face the Commodores of Vanderbilt.

What You Need to Know 
 

• Time and Date: Monday, November 29 (7 p.m.)

 

• Video: SEC Network+

 

• Audio: https://vanderbilt.leanplayer.com/

 

• Live Stats: http://www.vandystats.com/

 

• Tickets: https://vucommodores.com/mbb-ticketing/

 

• Records: Mississippi Valley State (0-3, 0-0 SWAC) | Vanderbilt (4-1, 0-0 SEC)

 

• Location: Nashville, Tennessee – Memorial Gymnasium

   
Mississippi Valley State Overview
 
Head Coach Lindsey Hunter and company have committed just 60 fouls and 42 turnovers, ranking fifth and seventh in the NCAA, respectively.
 
Among its SWAC peers, the Delta Devils are tops in the league regarding assist-to-turnover ratio (0.95) while slotting second in the conference for turnover margin (3.0), assists per game (13.3) and offensive rebounds per game (12.33).
 
On the individual side of things, freshman phenom Elijah has been a revelation at point guard, averaging six assists per game (16th in NCAA) with a total of 18 (2nd in SWAC) for an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.00 (2nd in SWAC). He has been the ultimate example of a selfless ballplayer, posting just 4.3 points a night but making up for it by setting up scoring opportunities as well as quality defense by way of five steals.
 
On the scoring front is sharpshooter Caleb Hunter who leads the Southwestern Athletic Conference with a 42.1 three-point percentage while draining the second-most triples per contest (2.67) on top of scoring 14 points a game.
 
In terms of volume scoring, nobody has been better in his two games of action as Robert Carpenter. After missing the opener at St. John's (NY), he has put up videogame-type numbers with an average of 22.0 points and five boards to go along with an absurd 48.6 field goal percentage (17-of-35) and making half of his three-point attempts (6-for-12) plus a perfect 4-for-4 showing from the free throw line.
 
Rebounding-wise, John Aguer has been the top dog in the early going as he's top-35 in the country with 3.33 offensive boards per night and a team-high 5.3 rebounds a game.

Scouting The Opponent: Vanderbilt Commodores
 
VU has taken care of business through five games, easily handling Alabama State 91-72), Texas State (79-60), Winthrop (77-63) and Pittsburgh (68-52) with its lone blemish coming in an unsightly 48-37 home setback to VCU.
 
While the Devils are headed by two-time NBA Champion Lindsey Hunter, Vanderbilt has star-power on its bench as well with two-time NBA All-Star Jerry Stackhouse in charge.
 
Stackhouse, in year three of a six-year deal, has sent two players to the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the form of lottery pick Aaron Nesmith and 37th overall pick Saben Lee.
 
The Black and Gold clad Commodores have relied on defense, defense, and more defense in 2021-22, ranking top-40 nationally in scoring defense (59.0), turnover margin (5.0) and turnovers forced per game (18.40).
 
While the offense has not taken off yet at 70.4 points per game it seems like only a matter of time before All-SEC First Teamer and son of NBA legend Scottie Pippen Jr. gets going.
 
Jordan Wright currently fronts the 'Dores with 16.8 points to slot third in the SEC but Pippen Jr. is not far off the pace at 15.4.
Follow the Delta Devils and Delta Devilettes on Facebook (Mississippi Valley State Athletics), Twitter (@MVSUDevilSports) and Instagram (@MVSUDevilSports).