Tournament Central
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WILMINGTON, N.C. - Jacksonville State looks to get back in the win column and snap a two-game losing streak on Friday as the Gamecocks open the 2014 Seahawks Hampton Inn Christmas Invitational, hosted by UNC Wilmington.

JSU will face Charleston Southern at 1 p.m. CST on Friday before closing out the two-day event on Saturday against East Tennessee State.  Live video will be available for both games at JSUGamecockSports.com.

Jax State begins the invitational format with a 6-3 mark after falling at Kennesaw State last Saturday and dropping a 55-52 decision to South Carolina State on Tuesday in Orangeburg, S.C.  The Buccaneers begin the weekend at 3-5 and picked up their third win on Tuesday against Montreat.  ETSU strolls in to Wilmington on a roll by winning its last four games.  The host-Seahawks and ETSU will square off in the first game of the day at 10:30 a.m. CST.

JSU's inclusion in the 2014 Seahawks Hampton Inn Christmas Invitational marks the sixth season in the last seven seasons that it has participated in an in-season tournament format. Last season, the Gamecocks took part in the Georgia State Invitational after Thanksgiving. Jax State traveled to Jacksonville, Florida in 2011-12 and 2012-13 to play in the North Florida Lady Osprey Holiday Classic. The Red and White did not play an in-season tournament during the 2009-10 season.

Friday's matinee contest with Charleston Southern is just the second meeting between the two programs. It was nearly 14 years ago that the two squads went head-to-head in Jacksonville, Alabama. The Buccaneers claimed a 64-48 win over the Gamecocks on Dec. 16, 2000. Jax State will be playing its 29th game against a current school in the Big South Conference. The Gamecocks hold a 16-12 advantage against the five Big South squads it has faced.

The Gamecocks are led by senior Candace Morton's 13.6 points per game.  The guard from Lexington, Kentucky will look to bounce back after posting just six points in the loss at SCSU – which is the first time this season Morton has not reached double figures.  Junior Destany McLin ranks second on the team in scoring with 11.8 points per outing.  Senior Courtney Strain looks for a repeat performance from Tuesday's setback as the Woodland, Alabama-native matched her career high of 18 points against SCSU.  Strain adds 9.9 points per game to the Gamecocks' team average of 64.4 points per game through nine games.

Tatum Jarvis is one of two double figure scorer for CSU. Jarvis averages a team-best 12.1 points per game while Alise Karlsone adds 10.0 points per outing.  The Buccaneers are 0-4 on the road so far in the 2014-15 campaign as they play in their final two contests before the team breaks for the holidays.  Charleston Southern leads the Big South Conference by a wide margin as the Bucs average 13.25 steals per game. All-Time, CSU is 2-21 against the tournament field this weekend.