Jaguar men’s basketball to play two in N.C.
By Nolan Turner | Sports writer
Augusta men’s basketball will be on the road this weekend to face off against University of Mount Olive and Barton College in the 45 Classic Showdown in Wilson NC.
“These should be very competitive games,” said AU coach Dip Metress, whose team is 0-2 after playing in the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame tournament in Lakeland, Fla., two weeks ago.
The Jaguars lost to No. 2 Washburn and No. 25 Lubbock Christian.
The first game of the weekend on Friday, Nov. 14, will have AU playing Mount Olive at 5 p.m. and then on Saturday, Nov. 15, the Jags will play Barton at 1 p.m.
Mount Olive was picked to finish seventh in the Conference Carolinas preseason poll. Mount Olive is coming off a 106-77 loss to NCAA Division I foe UNC-Wilmington.
Some of the key players to watch for Mount Olive will be Alston Jaevian, who put up 14 points in their first game as a freshman. Sophomore Matt Kirby added 13 in the first matchup, and senior Redford Dunton put up 12 points in that first matchup.
Both Mount Olive and Augusta both have young teams.
Barton College has not had a regular-season game yet. The Bulldogs’ first game for them will be on Friday , Nov. 14, against Wingate. Barton was picked to finish fifth in the preseason poll for Conference Carolinas.
The players to look for on the Barton team will be junior Jaylen Faber, senior Trey Fields and senior Nicholas Evans. Barton has a handful of players who are returning and have transfers with previous experience, so the Bulldogs will be a tough team to beat.
Metress used the entire roster in the first two games and in the scrimmage against Emory. But said he plans to find the right combinations in this weekend’s games.
Leading the way is freshman forward Charlie McBeath, who is averaging 19 points per game. Joining him are sophomore guard Elias Palsson, junior guard Tobias Prall, sophomore forward Luis Nonfan and freshman center Matias Zanotto. Freshman guard Camryn Pacheco also will contribute, as will junior center Oliver Lucas.
“We must get the ball inside more,” Metress said.
The Jaguars shot 63 3-pointers in the first two games but made only 24 percent.
Metress will still be playing without guard TJ Baker and forward Evan Joyner. Baker is rehabbing from a kidney laceration, and Joyner has a broken right wrist.
The Augusta men will attempt to even their record in North Carolina this weekend.
Contact Nolan Turner at notunrer@augusta.edu.
AU’s Matias Zanotto makes a pass against Lubbock Tech in a game at Florida Southern. At the top of the page, Charlie McBeath has been the Jaguars’ leading scorer through two games at 19 points per contest while shooting 52 percent from the field. (photos by Paula Toole/AU Athletics)
