Men's Basketball | 12/31/23 | 10:16 AM

HELENA, Mont. - The Carroll College Men's Basketball team will put a bow on the 2023 calendar this afternoon with a 1 p.m. exhibition contest against NCAA Division I opponent UNLV at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nev.

The Fighting Saints (6-7) will play their second NCAA Division I opponent of the season this afternoon as they take on the Runnin' Rebels in a New Year's Eve affair.

Carroll comes into the afternoon with a bit of momentum, having won back-to-back games for only the second time this season, following a 97-64 win over Lakeland (Can.) on Friday.

Sunday's afternoon matchup is an exhibition for the Saints, and will not count towards their season record.

In their previous exhibition, Carroll had a strong showing against another NCAA Division I opponent, Utah Valley, in November. The Saints gave the Wolverines a run for their money, pushing the 2022-23 WAC Champions to the wire, ultimately falling by eight points, 81-73.

Carroll will be looking for a similar result this afternoon over a UNLV team that is 5-5 on the season. The Rebels do own a very impressive win over then-ranked No. 8 Creighton earlier this month.

If the Saints hope to win this afternoon, they will need to see a continued strong performance from a backcourt trio that features the top three leading scorers on the season. Andrew Cook (Huntington Beach, Calif. / JR), Kendall Moore (Dayton, Ohio / JR) and James Lang (Portland, Ore. / R-SO) all are averaging double-digit points per game.

The tallest player on the court this afternoon will be wearing purple and gold. Seven footer Zane Foster (Puyallup, Wash. / JR) will have to play at a high-level, and will have his hands full with the Rebels' leading scorer, Kalib Boone, averaging 13.1 points per game.

Sunday's exhibition is the first meeting between the two programs.

The game will be streamed live HERE, and live stats can be followed along HERE.

Visit www.carrollathletics.com this evening for a recap of the action, and to stay up to date with everything going on in Carroll Athletics.