Liberty (18-8, 9-2) vs. North Florida (8-18, 4-8)
Jacksonville, Florida – UNF Arena (Capacity: 5,800)
Tuesday, Feb. 15, 7:00 p.m.
ESPN+

Last Meeting: Liberty defeated UNF, 71-56, in Lynchburg on Jan. 11
Series History: Liberty leads 6-3

Projected LU Starters:

2 Darius McGhee (Sr., 5-9, 150) – 22.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.6 apg
23 Joseph Venzant (Fr., 6-3, 170) – 4.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 0.7 apg
20 Keegan McDowell (R-Sr., 6-6, 180) – 10.1 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 0.8 apg
22 Kyle Rode (Jr., 6-7, 220) – 8.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.9 apg
33 Shiloh Robinson (R-Jr., 6-7, 200) – 10.7 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.1 apg

Projected North Florida Starters:

15 Jose Placer (So., 6-1, 174) – 14.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.9 apg
0 Emmanuel Adedoyin (So., 6-2, 161) –  7.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.5 apg
5 Dorian James (So., 6-7, 202) – 5.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.3 apg
3 Carter Hendricksen (Jr., 6-7, 217) – 12.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 1.8 apg
21 Jonathan Aybar (Fr., 6-9, 183) – 6.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 0.7 apg

PREVIEW

Liberty returns to the site of where it won the 2021 ASUN Tournament as the Flames are back at UNF Arena to take on the North Florida Ospreys. However, Liberty has never beaten North Florida on their home court, losing in both 2019 and 2020.

The Flames will be looking to bounce back from a loss at Jacksonville on Saturday night, and looking to salvage a split on the two-game road trip in Jacksonville, Florida. Liberty has lost back-to-back ASUN games only one time since joining the conference, doing so in late January 2020, when the Flames fell at North Florida and at Stetson in a two day span.

Don’t let North Florida’s record foll you. The Ospreys are playing much better than it’s 4-8 mark in conference play would indicate. After starting the year at 0-6 in the ASUN, they have won four out of six games with their two losses coming by three points each against Lipscomb and Bellarmine. During this stretch, the Ospreys were the first team to defeat Jacksonville State in conference play this season, winning on the road, 88-76, on Feb. 3.

On Saturday night, North Florida overcome a late Kennesaw State rally to hold on for a 74-72 win on the road. They did so without their two leading scorers, Jose Placer and Carter Hendricksen. That duo missed the game due to injury, Placer with a hand injury and Hendricksen with an elbow injury. It was Placer’s first game out of action with the ailment, while Hendricksen has missed the past three games.

KENPOM PREDICTION

Liberty 72, North Florida 66