Bulldogs battle Warhawks in Legends Classic Consolation game of Sub-Regional rounds, Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.

GAME NOTES

SMITHFIELD, R.I. -- The Bryant University men's basketball team concludes the Sub-Regional Rounds of the Legends Classic in the consolation game against Louisiana-Monroe, Tuesday at 6:35 p.m. eastern.

THE SERIES
Tuesday's matchup marks the first between the Warhawks and the Bulldogs. It is Bryant's first contest against the Sun Belt Conference 

SCOUTING THE WARHAWKS
Louisiana-Monroe dropped the first game of the Sub-Regional Rounds in the Legends Classic Monday to Seattle University, 81-75, in overtime. Five Warhawks scored in double digures, led by Travis Munnings with 18 and 11 boards. Marcus Washington and Sam McDaniel each had 12 off the bench, while Nick Coppola had 13. Junior guard Jordan Harris leads the team with 14.3 points per game and is shooting nearly 50.0 percent from downtown (15-31). He is one of four Warhawks scoring in double figures, as Munnings nets 13.8 points and is grabbing 10.0 boards per contest, junior guard Marvin Jean-Pierre is scoring 11.5 and Coppola is scoring 11.0 as the senior point guard. Coppola is averaging just over 6.0 assists per game. As a unit, the Warhawks score 75.0 points per game on a .408 clip from the floor. They pull down 41.2 boards per contest and limit opponents to a .337 clip from three-point land.   

YOU NEVER FORGET YOUR FIRST
The Bulldogs have played an opponent for the first time 70 times since becoming a Division I program in 2008-09. In those initial matchups, Bryant is 15-45 against first-time opponents.

LAST TIME OUT
The Bulldogs were on a roller coaster ride at Eastern Washington in the Sub-Regional round of the Legends Classic on Monday. Bryant led seven midway through the first half, trailed by as many as 11 and endured nine lead changes and three ties, as it got to within three points four seperate times in the second half. But the host Eagles did not allow the Bulldogs to complete the comeback and led for the final 25 minutes in an 81-77 victory. Sophomore Nisre Zououa led Bryant with 22 points and freshman Adam Grant tallied 20 and five assists. Classmate Ikenna Ndugba added 11 points, three rebounds and three helpers. The Bulldogs were outdone at the free-throw line, 30-16, and were whistled for 28 fouls. 

QUICK HITS

» Half Way There: Freshman Adam Grant has put together 37 points in his last two outings, scoring 17 at No. 14/14 Gonzaga on Nov. 18 and a new career-high 20 at Eastern Washington on Monday. But Grant has scored in bunches, netting all 17 points in the first half at the Zags and 16 of his 20 points in the second half against the Eagles.  

» Wrong Side of Thirty: Eastern Washington's Bogdan Bliznyuk netted 32 points against the Bulldogs on Monday, marking the first time since Feb. 26, 2015 that an opponent scored 30 points or more against Bryant. 

» Just Let It Go: The 23 turnovers against No. 14/14 Gonzaga on Nov. 18 tied for the second most in a game in Bryant's Division I history. The most was 25 at Robert Morris on Feb. 6, 2012, and the Bulldogs have been forced in more than 20 turnovers in a game just 11 teams at the DI level.  

» Wide Margin: The 27-point victory over Salve Regina on Nov. 15 tied Bryant's Division I record for its largest victory, having done so four times (twice against the Seahawks). The Bulldogs also had 10 steals against Salve, marking the first time they have theft an opponent at least 10 times since Dec. 5, 2015. 

» You Can Tell Everybody, I'm the Dan, I'm the Dan, I'm the Dan: Senior forward Dan Garvin may have had just four points in Bryant's season opener at Notre Dame on Saturday, but he also pulled down a game-best 12 rebounds. The 12 caroms are not only the most by a Bulldog in a season opener in the program's Division I history, but they are the most by a Bulldog in a season opener since 2003. 

PROTECT THE PERIMETER 
The Bulldogs have done a very good job of closing in on shooters and defending against the three, as they currently rank 71st in the country with a .288 three-point field-goal defense. The ability to limit the success of teams beyond the arc is no anomaly, as Bryant has finished in the top-100 nationally in each of the last two years and ended the year ranked 47th in 2014-15 (.315 3-PT FG defense).  

SHOTS FOR CHARITY
The Bulldogs were not blessed by the whistle gods in Friday's loss at No. 14/14 Gonzaga. The Zags went to the line 45 times, marking the first time in Bryant's Division I history that it allowed an opponent to shoot more than 40 free throws. Bryant was then whistled for 28 fouls against Eastern Washington on Monday and surrendered 34 attempts from the line. In the last two games, the Bulldogs have allowed 64 points from the free-throw line. 

DOUBLE THE DIGITS DOUBLE THE FUN
After not having five double-digit scorers in a game since Dec. 9, 2014 against Army, the Bulldogs produced five double-figure scorers three times last season, including three of four games with the last coming at Mount St. Mary's on Jan. 9. Five Bulldogs scored in double-figures against Salve Regina on Nov. 15, marking the 20th time that has happened in the program's Division I history, as Bryant is 18-2 in such games. 

HULK BASH
Sabastian Townes was stellar off the bench in his collegiate debut on Nov. 12 against the Fighting Irish. The rookie had 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting and a 6-for-11 effort at the line. He scored 10 points in the second half and tied sophomore Nisre Zouzoua and Alex Francis ('14) for the most points scored by a Bryant freshman in his debut in the program's Division I history. 

THE PUPPIES GROW UP SO FAST
This year's freshmen have taken little time to make their mark on the team. Following in the footsteps of reigning NEC Rookie of the Year Marcel Pettway and fellow NEC All-Rookie Team selection Nisre Zouzoua, guards Ikenna Ndugba (7.5 ppg),  Adam Grant (16.5 ppg) and Tanner Johnson (1.7 ppg) along with bigman Sebastian Townes (10.0 ppg) have fit into the mix to make up 47.7 percent of the team's point production this year. Townes leads the squad with a 66.7 shooting percentage and he, Ndugba and Grant have combined for eight starts through the first four games. 

BULLDOGS TO PLAY IN THE 10th ANNUAL LEGENDS CLASSIC
For a second-consecutive season, the Bulldogs will compete in a major tournament to kick off the new campaign, as it participates in the 10th annual Legends Classic. With a combined 83 NCAA Tournament appearances and six Final Fours among the four regional hosts, the eight-team tournament is headlined by Notre Dame, Colorado, Texas and Northwestern. The Bulldogs will take on the Wildcats at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Ill. on Nov. 25 in the second regional matchup. Prior to that collision, Bryant will complete the Subregional Rounds, hosted by Eastern Washington. The Bulldogs played the host Eagles on Monday, Nov. 21 and fell, 81-77. The Subregional Consolation Game will pit the Bulldogs against Louisiana-Monroe on Nov. 22 and the championship game will feature Seattle University and the Eagles. In the Championship Rounds held at Brooklyn's Barclays Center, Notre Dame will face Northwestern in the championship game, while Texas takes on Colorado in the consolation contest, also on Nov. 22. 

WARE DID HE GO
Junior wing Hunter Ware was feeling it when the lights shined at their brightest in 2015-16. Of his four 20-point outings last season, two came in TV games. Ware began the season scoring 24 points against then No. 5/4 Duke on an ESPN3 broadcast, then netted a career-high 26 points at Michigan on Dec. 23 as part of a BIG 10 Network telecast. Ware played at Harvard on ESPN3, at then No. 15/18 Providence on Fox Sports 1, at Wagner on CBS Sports Network, against Robert Morris on ESPN3 and against Fairleigh Dickinson on MSG+, scoring 10, 14, 11, 15 and 14 points, respectively. Strangely enough, his zero points at RV/RV Notre Dame on Nov. 12 in an ACC Network/ESPN3 telecast marked the first time in his career that he was held scoreless in a game in which he either played more than 14 minutes or attempted more than four shots (was 0-for-6 in 23 minutes). He was also held scoreless at No. 14/14 Gonzaga on Nov. 18 (0-for-4 in 21 minutes) in a ROOT Sports and ESPN3 game, marking his first three-game stretch playing double-digit minutes in which he has failed to total at least 10 points.    

TICKET TO RIDE
Single-game and season ticket packages are available for the 2016-17 Bryant University men's and women's basketball seasons. Fans can purchase tickets online at bryantbulldogs.com/tickets or by calling the Bryant Athletics Ticket Office at 401-319-TIXX.

ON TAP
The Bulldogs conclude their four-game and nine-day roadtrip and finish Legends Classic play at Northwestern on Friday at 2:00 p.m.