Game Notes: Jacksonville State | Bellarmine

JACKSONVILLE – Jacksonville State hosts ASUN Conference foe Bellarmine at Pete Mathews Coliseum on Monday night in a battle between the final two unbeaten teams in the west division.
 
The Gamecocks (12-6, 5-0 ASUN) are riding a seven-game overall win streak, aiming to match the program's Division I record on Monday with an eighth-straight. The Knights (11-8) are also 5-0 in league as the two teams square off for the first time in series history.
 
The two were scheduled to originally open the conference slate against one another on Jan. 4, but Covid issues within the Knight program forced the game to be rescheduled. Now, each team has knocked off each of the other four ASUN west division squads, and one cross-division opponent, to start league play. JSU took down Florida Gulf Coast, 79-71, on Saturday, while Bellarmine defeated Jacksonville in overtime on their home court in Louisville.
 
JSU heads into the matchup as one of the hottest teams in the national offensively. Led by junior Demaree King's unprecedented run during JSU's winning streak, the Gamecocks enter as the third-best three-point shooting team in the nation. King also ranks third individually, while senior Jalen Gibbs is 13th shooting just below 50-percent from beyond the arc.
 
Junior Jalen Finch directs the Gamecock offense, the Raleigh, N.C., product, dished four assists on Saturday to become just the third player in JSU's Division I history with 200 career assists. Along with finding King and Gibbs around the perimeter, Finch can hit leading scorer Darian Adams or inside big man Brandon Huffman, who's shooting an efficient 62-percent from the field this season.
 
Saturday's contest tips at 6 p.m. and streams on ESPN+ and over the air on the Gamecock Sports Network. JSU students and all fans ages 18 and under receive free admission.