by Mckenzi Harris | Nov 6, 2019 | Galleries, News Slider, Sports
The 2019-2020 season is off to a hot start for the men’s basketball team, which defeated Rhodes College 104-55 Tuesday night. It is a new era for this team, now being led by Lennie Acuff, the 19th coach in program history. “I told the guys after the game that this is my 30th season as a head coach, but tonight was as nervous as I have ever been for an opening game,” Acuff said. “It’s a new place, and I wanted the team to play well.” “I thought we played really hard in the first half, we just didn’t play very well. But in the second half, I felt we slowed the game down a little bit and got in our lane. I am proud of the way the guys played.” Click to read the full story from Kailey Schyler....
by Mckenzi Harris | Jul 23, 2019 | BREAKING NEWS, News Slider
A rule-change by the NCAA has forced Lipscomb to move the three-point lines around the goals at Allen Arena back to the international distance, forcing cosmetic changes to the striping on the floor. The international distance is 22 feet, 1-3/4 inches, quite a bit farther than the old NCAA distance of 20-feet, nine inches from the basket. The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel “also approved resetting the shot clock at 20 seconds after a field goal attempt hits the rim and the offensive team rebounds the ball in the front-court,” according to the NCAA. This new shot-clock rule, as well as an international distance three-point line, were experimental rules in the 2019 NIT, in which Lipscomb’s men made it to the championship game. The NCAA decided a full 30-second shot clock is not needed, since the offensive team has already secured the rebound and is in the front-court. The new three-point striping will mean necessary change to the relatively new Lipscomb court. The court in Allen Arena had to be redone after Liberty University in 2013 claimed sole use of the “LU” logo, eventually forcing Lipscomb to replace the initials on the court with the university’s name. Currently, the only visible change being made to the court is the moving back of the three-point line. Photos by Co-Managing Editor, Erika...
by Mckenzi Harris | Jul 10, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
Lipscomb alum Garrison Mathews successfully found the three-point line during his first NBA Summer League game as a member of the Washington Wizards. His team lost to the Los Angeles Clippers, 90-72, but it was a successful outing for the former Lipscomb star who led the Bisons to the NIT championship game last winter. He also contributed to his team in their July 11 victory over the Atlanta Hawks, and he now has a total of 18 NBA points. His first game on July 9, though, set the stage for his career; and he had a hot start in the losing effort against the Clippers in the game played in the Thomas & Mack Center at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas and broadcast on ESPN3. The former Bison scored the first three of the game for the Wizards and hit three out of his four shots from the field, for a total of seven points in 19 minutes played. Mathews went into this game with something to prove in his bid to make it in the NBA, and he did just that. He continued his campaign for a professional career July 11, when he scored 11 points for the Wizards in their 76-74 squeaker past the Atlanta Hawks. Here is a tweet from the Washington Wizards page of Mathews. (Mathews is wearing number 24). .@gmathews_24 starting ?. #WizSummer | #DCFamily pic.twitter.com/iStHbhjH16 — Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) July 10, 2019 Photo courtesy of the...
by Grant Ledgister | Jun 21, 2019 | BREAKING NEWS, News Slider, Sports
Even though he didn’t hear his name called during the draft, the reigning ASUN Player of the Year is still headed to an NBA team. Garrison Mathews signed a two-way deal with the Washington Wizards. This means that, although he takes up one of the 17 roster spots for Washington, Mathews will spend the majority of his time with the Wizard’s G League affiliate (the NBA’s minor league, previously called the D League) this season. He will only be allowed to spend 45 days per season with the Wizards “big league” franchise itself throughout the duration of the contract. The Wizards were one of the four teams Mathews worked out for prior to the NBA Draft June 20. If Mathews does well enough in the G League to make it onto the primary Wizards squad, he would become the first Bison to play in an NBA game. Washington’s G League team is called the Capital City Go-Go. When at home, they play at St. Elizabeth’s East Entertainment and Sports Arena in Washington, D.C. The next step for Mathews is the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, which takes place from July 5-15 and will be his first chance to go against competition at the NBA level. If he is still on the roster after the Summer League, Mathews will play in the G League regular season that is 50-games long and begins in the fall. Official schedules for when the league begins have not yet been released. This move comes after Mathews’ record-breaking career at Lipscomb. He is the school’s all-time leading scorer (with 2,478 total points) and three-pointers...
by Erika Plunkett | May 27, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
Former Lipscomb forward Eli Pepper has signed with the Glasgow Rocks. Scotland’s only professional basketball team, the Rocks play in the British Basketball League (BBL). Pepper, who graduated this year after a record-breaking career, averaged 6.9 points and 7.6 rebounds during 134 career games. With his 1,016 career rebounds, Pepper this year became Lipscomb’s all-time leading rebounder. Pepper’s record-setting boards are also third all-time in ASUN history. Joining Josh Williams, Malcolm Smith, Khion Sankey and Martin Smith, Pepper becomes the fifth Bison to be playing at the professional level, fulfilling a childhood dream. “Every kid that picks up a basketball dreams of playing at the professional level, and there is no better place to begin my career than with the Glasgow Rocks,” Pepper said in a statement released by the Rocks after his May 23 contract signing. “I look forward to the many wins that will soon come.” Pepper’s paint presence will be an asset to the Rocks who finished at just above .500 in their league last year. Pepper joins four returning players as well as another new addition, Earl Russell, for the 2019-2020 season, with more signees to come, according to the Rocks. “He is a big body, with a good sense for rebounding the ball and with outside shooting qualities,” said Rocks coach Vincent Lavandier. “He adds his determination and IQ basketball to our frontcourt. “I am pleased that he bought into my game philosophy and the Glasgow Rocks project to launch his professional career. Thank you, Eli, and welcome to Glasgow!” ...
