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MBB Game Day: Jacksonville State
1/3/2026 2:32:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Game Day Coverage
- Liberty vs. Jacksonville State (Liberty Arena)
- Tipoff: Sunday at 2:02 p.m. ET
- TV: ESPN+
- Radio: LFSN Radio
- Live Stats
- Liberty (10-3, 2-0 CUSA) and Jacksonville State (7-6, 2-0 CUSA) will meet on Sunday afternoon. The two squads last squared off in the 2025 CUSA title game.
- Liberty and Jacksonville State have split eight all-time meetings, including four all-time matchups at Liberty Arena. Last year, the Flames won two of three games against the Gamecocks, including a 79-67 victory in the CUSA title game as well as a 59-55 triumph at Liberty Arena. Liberty is 2-3 all-time against Jax State since both teams joined Conference USA.
- The Flames have won four straight games and topped Kennesaw State 81-73 on Friday night. The Gamecocks won 67-64 at Delaware for their third straight triumph. Liberty and Jax State are two of four remaining unbeatens in CUSA play.
- Zach Cleveland had a season-high 20 points in the win over KSU and had seven boards, three assists, two blocks and two steals. Cleveland's highlight-reel dunk was the No. 2 play on SportsCenter Top 10.
- Cleveland ranks fifth in the country in assists per game (7.4). Brett Decker Jr. is No. 2 nationally in threes per game (4.08) and No. 3 in three-point percentage (52.5).
- The Flames have shot over 50 percent nine times and are shooting 52.8 percent on the year, the sixth-best percentage nationally. Liberty is 10-0 when outshooting its opponent.
- Liberty is No. 2 in the nation in effective field goal percentage (.628), No. 4 in fewest turnovers per game (9.2), No. 4 in assist/turnover ratio (2.00), No. 6 in three-point percentage (40.6) and No. 8 in threes per game (11.5).
- Liberty is a perfect 7-0 at home. The Flames are shooting 57.5 percent from the field and 46.1 percent from three in their home building and have an average margin of victory of 30.9 points (91.7 ppg-60.9 ppg). Jax State is 2-2 in road games this year.
- The Flames are now 1-2 all-time in CUSA home openers after Friday's 81-73 win over KSU.
- Liberty is 8-0 this year when scoring 81 or more points.
- Kaden Metheny (25 points, six assists at FIU) earned CUSA Player of the Week honors on Monday.
- Colin Porter has 983 career points, needing 17 more to become the 33rd player in school history to reach the 1,000-point mark. Cleveland (952 points) is only 48 points away from 1,000 as well.
- Metheny is No. 10 in the nation and first in CUSA in assist/turnover ratio (4.00).
- Cleveland ranks No. 6 in the country and first in CUSA in defensive rebounds per game (7.75). He is also first in the league and 48th nationally in rebounds per game (8.8) and shares the conference lead in double-doubles (4).
- Brett Decker Jr. is the only Flame to score in double figures in all 13 games this season. He has been Liberty's leading scorer (or tied) six times and has six 20-plus point games.
- Liberty finished 66th in the nation in the NCAA Men's Basketball NET Rankings and No. 64 in the KenPom rankings last year. The Flames are currently No. 105 in the KenPom and No. 107 in the NET. Jacksonville State is No. 220 in the KenPom and No. 242 in the NET.
- This will be Liberty's 12th all-time game on Jan. 4. The Flames are 6-5 all-time on this date, including three straight wins. Last year, Liberty topped Middle Tennessee 73-63 on this date at Liberty Arena for its first CUSA victory. Liberty led by as many as 19 points and was ahead by double digits for much of the night. The Flames secured the victory behind a balanced attack, led by a game-high 19 points from guard Kaden Metheny. Colin Porter contributed 16 points, five assists and three steals, while Zach Cleveland filled the stat sheet with 11 points, eight boards and six assists. The Liberty defense held MTSU to 37.9 percent shooting on the night.
- Liberty has 187 wins since the start of the 2018-19 season, seventh most in the nation during that span.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballCoach McKay Talks About The Win Over Jax St
Sunday, January 04
Kaden Metheny & Colin Porter Talk About The Win Over Jax St
Sunday, January 04
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Saturday, January 03
Zach Cleveland & Colin Porter Talk About The Win Over KSU
Saturday, January 03