The Malone University men's basketball team will close out the 2018 portion of its schedule this Wednesday, December 19th with a non-conference matchup at home against the University of Charleston (WV) at 3:00 pm. Wednesday's game is "Christmas at Osborne Hall" and will feature free admission for all fans, Christmas music, and hot chocolate and cookies for just $1.
 
GameDay
12/19 Malone vs. Charleston (WV) – 3:00 pm
Live video/stats: portal.stretchinternet.com/malone
Radio: ESPN 990 AM | www.espn990.com
 
Team Comparison

Category	Malone	UC
Record	6-6	7-3
Points per game	75.2	90.4
Points allowed	69.3	81.9
Scoring margin	+5.9	+8.5
FG%	44.5%	53.9%
3-point%	33.3%	39.5%
Free throw%	65.4%	72.6%
FG% defense	43.4%	46.6%
Rebounds	36.5	34.0
Rebound margin	+1.0	+5.0
Turnover margin	+1.8	+0.6

Series History
In the 60-year history of the program, Malone has never played Charleston.

Malone Notes

• The Pioneers are coming off of a 1-1 week that featured an 80-54 rout at Trevecca Nazarene on Thursday, followed by a 75-63 loss at Kentucky Wesleyan on Saturday.
• Senior guard Nate Sheppard scored a game-high 27 points in the win at Trevecca. Sheppard leads the team in scoring this season (20.4 points per game). He is 14th in Division II in total points (245) and 18th in three-pointers made (34).
• Sheppard, who has 1,406 career points, needs 20 more to crack the top-20 on the Pioneers' all-time scoring list.
• Senior forward Ben Evans scored 20 points in the loss at Kentucky Wesleyan last Saturday, just two points shy of tying a career-high. The 6'10" Evans is averaging 11.4 ppg this season and ranks second on the team with 23 three-pointers. Among all players in NCAA DII, only one player taller than Evans has more three-pointers.
• Junior guard Bryce Butler, Malone's shortest player at 5'10", ranks second on the team in points (14.0 ppg), assists (26), and steals (14). Butler is shooting an impressive 50% (19-for-38) from three-point range, a mark that would rank among the top-20 in DII if he had enough attempts to qualify.
• Junior point guard Daylan Haynie (8.3 ppg) is currently 13th in DII with a 3.33 (60:18) assist-to-turnover ratio. He is also tied for second on the team with 14 steals.
• Sophomore forward Marcus Ernst (6.6 ppg) has been outstanding on the defensive end, leading the team in rebounds (7.3 rpg), blocks (16), and steals (15). Ernst is one of only seven players in DII with at least 15 blocks and 15 steals.
• The Pioneers come into the week having lost four of their last five games while shooting just 40.6% from the field and 29.8% from three. After shooting a season-low 33.8% and 15.6% from three in the loss at Kentucky Wesleyan, the Pioneers will look to bounce back at home where they shoot 48.5% overall and 36.4% from beyond the arc.
• Over the past two seasons, Malone is 17-5 at home and 11-4 in non-conference games. The Pioneers are also 7-1 in their last eight games against teams from West Virginia.

Charleston Notes -  Roster | Schedule | Stats

• The Golden Eagles, members of the Mountain East Conference, enter the week on a three-game win streak. Overall this season, Charleston is 5-0 at home, but just 2-3 away from the West Virginia state capital.
• As a team, Charleston is 12th in the country in scoring average and second overall in field goal percentage. The Golden Eagles have shot better than 50% in seven of their 10 games. By comparison, Malone has done so just once.
• Six different players average at least 10 points, including junior guard and Ohio-native Drew Rackley, who ranks 11th in DII with 23.2 points per game. He scored 23 in an 86-81 victory over Notre Dame (OH) in Charleston's most recent game on December 8th.
• Cleveland native Devon Robinson (14.5 ppg) leads the team in rebounding (7.7 rpg) and steals (22) and ranks 7th in the nation in field goals, converting on 66.3% of his shot attempts.