URI Men’s Basketball Confident Heading into Atlantic 10 Play

Saint Joseph’s (10-3, 0-0 A-10) at Rhode Island (6-7, 0-0 A-10)
Tip-Off: Wednesday, Jan. 3, 7:02 p.m. EST
Coverage: Watch: ESPN+ | International Stream | Listen: Varsity Network | Live Stats | Game Notes

RHODE ISLAND VS. SAINT JOSEPH’S – SERIES NOTES
Saturday’s game will be the 110th all time between Rhode Island and Saint Joseph’s, with the Hawks holding a 59-50 advantage.
Saint Joseph’s has won the last two games in the series.
Before that, Rhode Island had won six in a row over the Hawks.
The Rams have a 28-23 record at home against Saint Joseph’s, including a 4-1 mark in the last five games played in the Ryan Center.
The last time Rhode Island and Saint Joseph’s met in the league opener for both sides was Jan. 10, 2009. The Hawks won 92-86 in a triple-overtime thriller in Philadelphia.
Both teams have played College of Charleston this season. Rhody fell to the Cougars 85-70 on Dec. 10, while Saint Joseph’s lost 89-82 on Dec. 21.
Saint Joseph’s limits opponents to 37.5 percent on field goal attempts, which is the ninth-lowest field goal percentage defense in the country.
The Hawks allow 64.7 points per game, the second lowest among A-10 teams.
Saint Joseph’s guards Erik Reynolds II and Cameron Brown rank 11th and 30th nationally in 3-point baskets per game, respectively. Reynolds makes 3.46, while Brown is averaging 2.92.
As a team, the Hawks are fifth in the country with 11.4 3-point baskets per game.

RAMS LOOK TO TAKE LEAGUE OPENER

Rhode Island has dropped its Atlantic 10 opener in each of the last five seasons.
The last time the Rams opened league play with a victory was the 2017-18 campaign.
That year, URI won its first 13 A-10 games and went on to go 15-3 in conference, setting a program record for league wins in the process.
DEFENSE RAMPING UP THE PRESSURE

Rhode Island forced a season-high 16 turnovers against Northeastern on Saturday.
The Rams had 10 steals against the Huskies, the second time in double digits this season.
Over the last four games, Rhode Island has forced at least 11 turnovers each time out, as opponents have averaged 12.8 per game.
Over the first nine games, opposing teams had just four games with double-digit turnovers.
Rhode Island was forcing just 8.8 turnovers per game through the first nine contests.