Monmouth Hawks (3-4) vs. UConn Huskies (5-2)
Saturday, December 2, 2017 | 4:00pm ET
XL Center, Hartford, CT
 
MEDIA INFORMATION
TV: SNY
STREAMING: WatchESPN
Play-by-Play: Gary Apple
Analyst: Tim Welsh
Sideline: Taylor Rooks
 
RADIO
Shore Sports Network 1160/1310am
Play-by-Play: Eddy Occhipinti
Analyst: Steve Bazaz

MU VS. THE AAC
-Against current members of the American Athletic Conference, Monmouth is 2-7.
-UConn is the only AAC team Monmouth will play this season.
-King Rice is 1-1 against the American, with a win over Memphis and a loss at SMU.
-The last time MU took on an AAC opponent, the Hawks topped Memphis last December at FedEx Forum.

MONMOUTH AGAINST UCONN HISTORY
-This is the first meeting between the teams in men's basketball competition.

SALNAVE BREAKS OUT
Making his second career start and first since opening night, Ray Salnave had a big role in Monmouth's win over Albany. Not only did he chip in offensively with 18 points, 13 in the second half, but he locked down Albany's David Nichols down the stretch. Nichols was 6-for-11 in the first half for 12 points before Salnave held him to 0-for-7 from the field and two points in the final 20 minutes.

SEABORN RETURNS
Micah Seaborn returned from missing two games with injury on Monday against Albany, finishing wirh 13 points and connecting on all three of his attempts from deep. Seaborn had not played since Sunday, 11/19 at Virginia.

TILGHMAN'S WEEKEND
Austin Tilghman put together a monster homestand for the Blue and White, averaging 13.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and seven assists in the two games. He posted an assist/turnover ratio of 14/3, and played an average of 40.5 minutes per game.

HITTING THE DEFENSIVE GLASS
MU ranks 25th nationally and leads the MAAC with 30.29 defensive rebounds per game, including a whopping 41 in a win at Lehigh. Austin Tilghman is Monmouth's leader in defensive boards with 29, while Mustapha Traore and Melik Martin each have 24.

GET TO THE STRIPE
Monmouth has taken 189 foul shots to this point, the most in the MAAC and 16th most nationally. Ray Salnave has gone to the line 13 more times than any other Hawk, attempting 43 free throws. Salnave has attempted the fourth most shots from the line in the MAAC.

MIXING UP THE STARTING FIVE
Nine Hawks have made starts through seven games, the most Hawks to start in a game over the course of a season in two years. King Rice has started six different lineups through seven games, with Diago Quinn the only Hawk to start all seven contests to this point.

BIG ZAC'S BIG NIGHT
Zac Tillman, a graduate student who redshirted last season, was one point off a career-high and tied a career best with six made field goals in the win over Albany. He was 6-for-8 with 15 points and seven rebounds in just 15 minures, also turning in a block and an assist.