First 500 fans receive limited edition ETSU ornament; Free photos with Santa 

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Dec. 20, 2019) -- Fresh off its win over LSU, the ETSU men’s basketball team will look to head into the holiday break with another win on its ledger when the Buccaneers host Horizon League foe Cleveland State on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. inside Freedom Hall.

HOLIDAY HOOPS GAME

Saturday marks the Bucs’ annual Holiday Hoops game as the first 500 fans will receive a limited edition ETSU ornament, while Santa will be inside Freedom Hall for free photo ops … Fans are also encouraged to wear their festive holiday apparel.

TICKETS

Fans can purchase tickets online by clicking here or by calling the ETSU Ticket Office at 423-439-3878… Single-game tickets start at $10.

COVERAGE

Saturday’s game will be streamed live on ESPN3 with Mike Gallagher and Bruce Tranbarger on the call; CLICK HERE FOR LIVE VIDEO

“Voice of the Bucs”Jay Sandos will have the radio call on WXSM-AM 640 beginning with the Atmos Energy Pregame Show at 3:30 p.m.; CLICK HERE FOR LIVE AUDIO

Live stats will also be provided via StatBroadcast… Fans can access live stats on their computers or mobile devices by clicking here

Follow Buccaneer basketball on Twitter @ETSU_MBB and on Instagram @etsubasketball

LAST TIME OUT

• For the third time in the Coach Forbes era, ETSU took down a Power-5 opponent as the Bucs throttled LSU, 74-63, on Wednesday night inside the Maravich Center … ETSU defeated Georgia Tech in 2015-16 and Mississippi State in 2016-17.

• Wednesday marked the first ever meeting between ETSU and LSU, while it was the 17th time the Bucs defeated an SEC opponent in program history ... ETSU has now beaten Ole Miss (5),South Carolina (3), Mississippi State (3), Tennessee (2), Georgia (2), Arkansas (1) and LSU (1).

• The Bucs handed LSU its first non-conference home double-digit loss since Dec. 22, 2010 when North Texas took down the Tigers by 20, 75-55 … ETSU also snapped LSU’s 19-game non-conference home win streak, while the Tigers lost for just the second time in a home non-conference game since the 2016-17 season.

• ETSU’s defense held LSU 22 points below its season average of 85, while it marked the Tigers’ lowest point total since Tennessee limited LSU to 61 points on Jan. 31, 2018 … The 63 points were also the fewest by an LSU team in a non-conference home loss since Virginia defeated the Tigers 57-52 on Jan. 2, 2012. 

• The Blue and Gold outrebounded LSU by 11 (40-29), while holding a plus-12 margin in offensive rebounds where ETSU outscored the Tigers by nine in second-chance points (15-6) and by eight in the paint (40-32).

• ETSU has now posted 23 true road wins since the start of the 2017-18 season, which ranks third-most in the country … The Bucs’ four true road wins this season are tied for the most by a Division I program.

• Following the win, ETSU jumped 34 spots in the NET Rankings – going from 106 to 72 … The Bucs are the top-ranked team in the SoCon with UNCG coming in at 73.

BUCS OFF TO BEST START IN NEARLY 30 YEARS

Sitting at 10-2 on the season, ETSU is off to its best start in nearly 30 years when the 1990-91 squad opened 14-1.

HOME SWEET HOME

ETSU has gone 57-11 (.838) inside Freedom Hall in the Forbes era, including a 13-3 mark last season and 6-0 record this year.

BUCCANEERS AT HOME

In their six home games this season, ETSU is holding the opposition to 57.0 points and limiting them to a 26.2 shooting percentage from beyond the arc (32-122) … The Bucs also have a plus-4.7 turnover margin as the Blue and Gold are only averaging 12.2 turnovers with the opposition turning the ball over 16.8 times per game … ETSU is also averaging 5.8 blocks per game … Individually, Tray Boyd III is averaging 16.0 points, while shooting 53 percent  from the field (32-61), 49 percent from beyond the arc (19-39) and is 13-of-13 at the free throw line … Bo Hodges is posting 14.5 points per game in the six home contests this season, while adding 5.3 rebounds and donning a 60 percent shooting clip (35-58) … Hodges and Boyd make up 38 percent of the Bucs’ scoring at home as they have accounted for 183 of ETSU’s 483 points.

MORE ON THE HOME DOMINANCE

The Bucs never trailed in their game versus Southern Utah on Nov. 24, while ETSU led for 76 minutes and 46 seconds of the possible 80 minutes in the two games that weekend in the Maui Invitational Mainland  …  In the Bucs’ six home games this season, ETSU has led in 225 minutes and 07 seconds of the possible 240 minutes, which equates to 94% of the game.

UNSELFISH PLAY

When it comes to the Bucs’ balanced scoring it’s no surprise the Blue and Gold enjoy sharing the ball … Three players rank in the top 10 among SoCon leaders in assists with Isaiah Tisdale ranking eighth (2.9), Bo Hodges is ninth (2.9) and Daivien Williamson ranks 10th (2.7) … The trio have accounted for 100 of ETSU’s 175 assists on the season. 

BUCS IN THE NATIONAL RANKS

ETSU is among the national Division I leaders in several statistical categories … The Bucs rank 28th in field goal percentage (.485) and total steals (103), 32nd in win percentage (.833), 35th in total blocks (55), 39th in scoring margin (+13.6), 40th in three-pointers made (105), 43rd in three-point field goal defense (.289), 44th in three-point field goal percentage (.374), 47th in blocked shots per game (4.8) and 50th in rebound margin (+6.6). 

ABOUT CLEVELAND STATE

Cleveland State has dropped its last four games as the Vikings are coming off a 72-58 setback against DePaul on Wednesday night … Cleveland State enters Saturday’s with an overall record of 4-8. 

The Vikings are led by junior forward and DePaul transfer Algevon Eichelberger as he’s averaging 11.9 points per game and 7.7 rebounds, while Tre Gomillion is posting 10.3 points and shooting 51 percent (44-86) from the field.  

Cleveland State is in search of its first road win as they have dropped the first five away from home … The road losses include at Minnesota, Missouri State, South Carolina, Kent State and Bowling Green. 

As a team, the Vikings are averaging 61.3 points per game and allowing 72.6.  

Cleveland State is led by first-year head coach Dennis Gates as he took over the program in July. 

SERIES HISTORY

Saturday marks the first ever meeting between ETSU and Cleveland State. 

WHAT’S NEXT

Following the holiday break, ETSU returns to action Sunday, Dec. 29 when the Bucs host Mars Hill at 2 p.m. inside Freedom Hall. 

Follow Buccaneer basketball on Twitter @ETSU_MBB  and on Instagram @etsubasketball

For more information on Buccaneer men’s basketball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men’s basketball tab.