2022-23 Monmouth Basketball Game Nineteen Preview

Monmouth Hawks (1-17, 0-5 CAA) vs. #18/21 College of Charleston Cougars (19-1, 7-0 CAA)
Thursday, January 19, 2022 - 7:00 p.m. ET
OceanFirst Bank Center, West Long Branch, NJ

TV
FloSports
Play-by-Play: Matt Harmon
Analyst: Steve Bazaz

QUICK BULLETS

-MU is returning home after a three-game road trip
-MU is playing at home for the first time since January 5 against Stony Brook
-Charleston is the third ranked team to come to the OceanFirst Bank Center
-Myles Foster has scored in double figures in six consecutive games
-Tahron Allen scored 11 of his 13 in the second half at Hofstra
-Amaan Sandhu had a career-best eight points at Drexel
-Andrew Ball had career highs in points (13) and rebounds (9) vs. Stony Brook
-After Andrew Ball started vs. UNCW, every Hawk has a start this season
-Myles Foster is the only Hawk to start every game this season
-Eight of 10 Hawks that have seen action this season have a double-digit game

A MONMOUTH WIN WOULD...
-be Monmouth's first win as a member of the CAA
-mark MU's first ever win over a ranked opponent at home
-be the second win in program history over a ranked opponent (November 26, 2015, vs. #17 Notre Dame)
-mark MU's first ever win over College of Charleston
-be Monmouth's first home win this season
-snap a nine-game skid for the Hawks
-be the Hawks 22nd program win over a current CAA school
-be Monmouth's first win of the calendar year of 2023
-be the Hawks second win of the season
-register as the 184th win of Rice's career
-even Rice's career record to .500
-move MU to 1-5 in the CAA

NOTES FROM THE LAST TIME OUT...
-Myles Foster scored in double digits for the sixth game in a row and 13th time this season.
-The Hawks did not miss a free throw for the first time this year.
-Jack Collins posted his eighth game this season in double figures.
-Amaan Sandhu recorded his first blocked shot since December 4 at Manhattan.
-Monmouth started its ninth different lineup combination of the season. 
-Monmouth shot 39% to Towson's 37%.
-MU was better in the paint, 26-24.
-Towson won the battle on the glass, 41-28.

MORE INFO ON THE ALL-TIME SERIES
-This is the first ever meeting between the schools
-Monmouth and Charleston will meet just once this season, with the Hawks not making the return trip to South Carolina
-Monmouth is playing its sixth ever CAA contest

HAWKS VS. RANKED OPPONENTS
-This is the first time in program history MU will play three ranked opponents in one season
-This is the fifth time in school history, all under Rice, that Monmouth will play multiple ranked teams in the same season
-Monmouth's lone win in program history came on Thanksgiving Day 2015 over 17th- ranked Notre Dame in the AdvoCare Invitational in Orlando, FL
-Monmouth is 1-19 all-time against ranked opponents
-King Rice has played a ranked opponent in nine of his 12 seasons, with one coming in the 2020-21 COVID shortened season when the Hawks played just one non-league game (Hofstra)

RANKED TEAMS IN WEST LONG BRANCH
Tonight marks the fourth ever ranked opponent to visit West Long Branch and the third to play in the OceanFirst Bank Center, formerly The MAC. 

January 10, 2012 - #25 Harvard - The MAC
Harvard 70, Monmouth 61 (King Rice's first season at MU)

December 22, 2010 - #8 Villanova - The MAC
Villanova 76, Monmouth 36

December 29, 2001 - #22 Gonzaga - Boylan Gymnasium
Gonzaga 79, Monmouth 54 (first ranked team to come to West Long Branch)

FREE THROWS
Monmouth was a perfect 7-7 at the foul line at Towson, marking the third time in program history MU did not miss a foul shot. The prior two came on 12/14/89 when the Hawks were 19-19 in a 72-61 win over Delaware, and on 2/4/20 when MU was 8-8 from the line in a 55-52 loss to Fairfield.

FOSTER SCORING IT
Myles Foster has scored in double figures in six straight games, the longest stretch of his career and longest for any Hawk this season. Overall, he has 13 games in double digits this year.