TAYLORSVILLE, Utah (Tuesday, November 28, 2023) – No. 3 Salt Lake will play a pair of road games this week against Laramie County Community College and Yavapai College. The Bruins look to remain undefeated after opening the season with eight straight wins.
Jordan Battle and Xavier Edmonds lead SLCC in scoring with 15.4 points per game. CJ Luster (14.4 points) and Bruyce Zephir (11 points) also average double-digit scoring.
GAME INFORMATION
GAME ONE
Salt Lake (8-0, 0-0 SWAC) vs. Laramie County CC (5-2)
DATE | TIME: Wednesday, Nov. 29 | 7 p.m. MT
LOCATION: Cheyenne, Wyoming
LIVE STATS: Click Here
LIVE STREAM: Click Here
TWITTER: @SLCCBruins
GAME TWO
Salt Lake (8-0, 0-0 SWAC) vs. Yavapai College (6-3)
DATE | TIME: Friday, Dec. 1 | 7 p.m. MT
LOCATION: Prescott, Arizona
LIVE STATS: Click Here
LIVE STREAM: Click Here
TWITTER: @SLCCBruins
HOW TO TUNE IN
Fans can watch all Salt Lake Community College Athletics events at the ScenicWestNetwork.com/slcc. Listen to Bruins play-by-play analyst Brian Preece. Live stats are on SLCCBruins.com.
LAST TIME
The Bruins are 3-0 all-time against Laramie County CC. Last season, Salt Lake dominated the Golden Eagles, winning 111-84 at Bruin Arena.
SLCC will be facing Yavapia for just the third time. They are 2-0 all-time against Roughriders. SLCC won 94-77 the last time these programs faced each other in 2015.
LAST TIME OUT
The Bruins remained undefeated last week when they dispatched Central Wyoming 101-67 in Bruin Arena on Tuesday, November 28.
Salt Lake was extremely efficient against the Rustlers, shooting 63.6 percent from the field in the second half and 60.3 percent overall.
Xavier Edmonds made 8-of-11 shots, leading the team with 19 points and 12 rebounds. It was the first double-double for Edmonds as a Bruin.
Bryce Zephir added 15 while Michael Folarin and CJ Luster each dropped 14. Mikhail Abdul-Hamid (13 points) and Preston Squire (12 points) also reached double-figure scoring.
THE BRUINS
Head coach Kyle Taylor and company have been integrating an entirely new team from last season's 29-5 squad that came up short at Hutch.
Former Utah Valley Wolverine Jordan Battle leads a team that includes six prep athletes out of Utah. Brady Smith (Green Canyon), Coen Collier (Olympus), Kevin Winsor (Lehi), Preston Squire (Layton), Mason Bendinger (Woods Cross), and Chudi Anosike (Murray), round out the Bruins local talent.
Five Bruins, including Battle, entered the season with previous college experience. Michael Folarin (Nevada), Lukas Gudavicius (Bethune Cookman), CJ Luster (Kilgore College), and Bryce Zephir (North Texas).
IN THE RANKS
Salt Lake jumped up a spot in the NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Rankings third. The Bruins are joined in the top 25 by SWAC opponent No. 8 Snow College. CSI fell out of the rankings after being No. 21 last week.
HEAD COACH KYLE TAYLOR
In just four seasons, Taylor has posted an overall record of 113-16, earning four consecutive trips to the NJCAA Championships in Hutchinson, Kan. SLCC has earned three Region 18 titles in Taylor's tenure, also posting a trio of NJCAA Western District titles. The Bruins have also led the NJCAA in scoring in each of the past two seasons.
ABOUT THE GOLDEN EAGLES
The Golden Eagles are looking to extend their two-game winning streak. Scoring 89.3 points per game on 45.6 percent shooting and 29.7 percent from three, Laramie County limits opponents to 84.4 ppg on 46 percent shooting and 35.8 percent from deep.
Three Golden Eagles average better than ten points per game, led by Jordan Reed (19.3 points) and Brandon Tchouya (19 points). Davion Butler rounds out the group with 13.6 points per game.
ABOUT THE ROUGHRIDERS
Yavapai will face Scottsdale College on November 28 before taking on the Bruins. The Roughriders average 83.1 points per game on 40.6 percent shooting and 32.7 percent from three. They limit opponents to 82.8 points per game on 43.1 percent from the field and 28.3 percent from three-point land.
Ray Glasgow leads Yavapai, averaging 22 points per game on 52 percent shooting and 37.8 percent from deep. Nadir Meyers is the only other player in double-digits, averaging 10.3 points per game.
NEXT UP
The Bruins take on Laramie County Community College (3-2) on Wednesday, November 29. Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m. (MT) in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Find tickets for all Salt Lake Community College events here.
FOLLOW THE BRUINS!
Fans can follow along during the 2023-24 season on social media (Twitter: @slccbruins | Instagram: @slccbruins |Facebook: www.facebook.com/bruin.athletics
