The Hofstra University men’s basketball team will head to St. Louis, Missouri, marking the second leg of a massive three-game road trip on Saturday, Dec. 9. They will take on an Atlantic 10 foe in the Saint Louis University Billikens.

 Saint Louis comes in on a three-game skid following a tough loss against the Drake University Bulldogs. The Billikens will also head into the game without their leading scorer, junior guard Sincere Parker, due to a broken foot in Saint Louis’ win against the Wyoming University Cowboys. Before his injury, Parker was averaging 17.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.

 Stepping up for Parker’s absence has been redshirt junior Gibson Jimerson, who is averaging 15 points a game and notched a career high 28 points against the Utah State University Aggies on Tuesday, Dec. 5.

 The Billikens will have look to their bench as they have done for majority of the season, leaning on heavy minutes from sophomore and St. Louis local Kellen Thames, who plays over 20 minutes per contest. Freshman Cian Medley is averaging 19.6 minutes a game as well.

 On the other side, the Hofstra Pride will head into the game riding a five-game winning streak after defeating the Iona University Gaels in New Rochelle, New York. The Pride relies on nation-leading scorer guard Tyler Thomas, who is averaging 25 points and shooting 43.9% from the 3-point line on the year.

 The Pride averages 84.9 points per game, ranking 25th in the nation, while the Billikens score 75.2 points on average, ranking 174th. The Pride also ranks in the top 15 in passing, averaging 18.1 assists a contest – which is good for 14th in the country, thanks to point guard Jaquan Carlos’ 6.6 assists per game.

 Tipoff for this mid-major matchup is set for Saturday, Dec. 9, at 3 p.m. at the Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis, Missouri.

Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics/Evan Bernstein