ELON, N.C. – Elon University men's basketball opens conference play on Wednesday, Dec. 29, when it hosts Northeastern in a 7 p.m. matchup at Schar Center.
 
COVERAGE
- Listen to the Elon Sports Network from Learfield's coverage on The Varsity Network app.
- Longtime voice of the Phoenix, Taylor Durham, will be on the call with coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET with the Carter and Smith Group Countdown to tipoff.
- Elon's game against Northeastern will be streamed live on FloSports.
- Live Stats are available and can be found by visiting https://elonstats.com.
 
THE MATCHUP
- Wednesday night marks the 16^th meeting between Elon and Northeastern.
- The Phoenix currently trails in the all-time series 4-11.
- Northeastern defeated Elon, 66-58, in the most recent meeting between the two programs on Jan. 3, 2021. Hunter McIntosh led the way for the Phoenix in the contest, dropping 17 points, five rebounds and two assists. Hunter Woods added 10 points and nine rebounds, while Chuck Hannah and Kris Wooten combined for 12 points, for rebounds and four assists in the loss.
- Elon defeated Northeastern, 74-69, the last time the two teams met at Schar Center on Feb. 1, 2020. McIntosh dropped 24 points, five rebounds and three assists as a freshman to help lead the Phoenix to the win.

SCOUTING ELON
- Former CAA All-Rookie honoree Darius Burford is currently leading the team in scoring (11.1 ppg), assists (3.1 apg) and steals (1.7 spg), while being fourth on the team in rebounding (4.0 rpg). Burford has scored in double figures seven times this season and has nabbed at least two steals in five of his last seven games.
- Junior guard and Preseason All-CAA First Team honoree Hunter McIntosh, ranks second the team in scoring at 10.8 points per game, adding 3.1 assists per contest as well. McIntosh has scored in double figures in 41 career games, including seven times this season.
- Torrence Watson is third on the team in scoring 10.7 points per game, adding 2.8 rebounds per contest as well. Watson has gotten to the charity stripe a team-high 52 times this season, knocking down 45 of his attempts for an 86.5 free throw percentage.
- Junior forward Zac Ervin is fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 9.8 points per game, adding 4.1 rebounds per contest. Ervin has knocked down 28 threes while shooting at a 38.4 percent clip from long distance so far this season.
- Junior forward Hunter Woods is chipping in 7.4 points and 5.0 rebounds in 25.7 minutes through 13 games this season. Woods is also currently second on the team in steals this season with 20 total.
- Sophomore center Michael Graham ranks sixth on the team in scoring (7.3 ppg), while leading the team in rebounding at 6.2 rpg. Graham has registered two double-doubles this season after his 13 point, 15 rebound effort against Winthrop on Dec. 15.
- Senior forward Chuck Hannah is averaging 6.2 points and 3.6 rebounds in 20.4 minutes per game since returning from injury against High Point.
- Freshman center Sam Sherry has gotten his Elon career off to a solid start, averaging 2.6 points and 1.0 rebounds in just over eight minutes of action per game.
- The Phoenix's win over Winthrop snapped its seven-game losing streak and moved Elon to 3-2 in games played at Schar Center this season.
- Elon set a program record for points at Schar Center (107), threes made (20) and assists (27) in its home opener against Randolph.
- Seniors Chuck Hannah and Kris Wooten will serve as the team captains for the 2021-22 season.
- This season marks the third for Head Coach Mike Schrage at the helm of the Elon program.
 
SCOUTING NORTHEASTERN
- Northeastern enters the contest with a 6-5 overall record after falling to Davidson, 79-69, in its most recent contest. Tyreek Scott-Grayson led the Huskies in the contest, dropping 20 points, six rebounds and five assists. Nikola Djogo added 15 points and five rebounds, while Chris Doherty and Jason Strong finished with 10 points apiece.
- Bill Coen is in the midst of his 16^th season at the helm of the Northeastern program. Coen is the winningest coach in the Huskies program history, having compiled a 257-227 overall record in his career.
- The Huskies are led by Shaquille Walters who leads the team in scoring at 12.9 ppg, adding 5.1 rpg. Northeastern has also gotten contributions from Chris Doherty (11.5 ppg and 9.6 rpg) and Nikola Djogo (11.3 ppg and 5.3 rpg) early on this season.
 
LAST TIME OUT
- Elon fell to Arkansas, 81-55, in its non-conference finale on Tuesday, Dec. 21 at Bud Walton Arena.
- Michael Graham led the way for the Phoenix, dropping 14 points, six rebounds and two assists in 27 minutes. Graham finished the night 7-of-9 shooting from the floor and has now scored at least 10 points in five games this season.
- Darius Burford added 12 points, four rebounds and three steals on the night, knocking down a season-high two triples along the way.
- Hunter McIntosh and Hunter Woods combined for 10 points, 10 rebounds and six assists on the night.
- Torrence Watson and Kris Wooten each finished the night with five points, while Chuck Hannah, Jerald Gillens-Butler and Zac Ervin had three points apiece.
- Elon scored 22 points in the paint, 18 points off the bench, 12 points off turnovers and eight second chance points.
- The Phoenix held Arkansas to a season-low 2-of-12 shooting from distance in the second half (16.7 percent).
 
THE FACES OF 2021-22
- Elon returns four starters in Chuck Hannah, Hunter Woods, All-CAA Second Team honoree Hunter McIntosh and CAA All-Rookie selection Darius Burford.
- Other returnees for the Phoenix includes seniors Jerald Gillens-Butler, Kris Wooten and Charlie Mendys, juniors Ben Daugherty and Zac Ervin, and sophomores Michael Graham and JaDun Michael.
-Additionally, the maroon and gold welcomes five newcomers to the squad in Mizzou transfer Torrence Watson, Mississippi State transfer Andrew Junkin and freshmen RJ Noord, Sam Sherry and Reece Clark.
 
CAA PRESEASON POLL
- The Colonial Athletic Association announced its preseason poll on Thursday, Oct. 28, with Elon tabbed to finish sixth.
- The Phoenix had two student-athletes earn preseason all-conference honors in Hunter McIntosh (1st Team) and Jerald Gillens-Butler (Honorable Mention).
- Elon earned a total of 202 points in the poll, including one first-place vote.
- Delaware was chosen as the preseason favorite with 296 points and 19 first-place votes, followed by Northeastern with 246 points and seven first-place votes. Drexel (234 points; five first-place votes), James Madison (224 points, three first-place votes) and Hofstra (211 points; one first-place vote) rounded out the top five.
 
COMING SOON
- Elon begins CAA play on Wednesday, Dec. 29, when it hosts Northeastern in a 7 p.m. contest at Schar Center.
- The Phoenix will then remain at home for matchups with Hofstra (Dec. 31) and William & Mary (Jan. 5) respectively.
- Elon's hits the road for the first time in conference play when it travels to Charleston, S.C. for a Jan. 9 matchup with Charleston.