LIVINGSTON, Ala. - The University of West Alabama Men's Basketball team is set for their Tennessee road trip with a matchup against Union on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and a contest against Christian Brothers on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
No. 14 West Alabama enters the week winners of their last two while Union (9-13, 5-11 GSC) enters after a Double Overtime loss to Delta State. As for Christian Brothers (4-16, 3-13 GSC), they come into the week on a three-game losing streak.
The Tigers ascended back up to No. 14 in the top-25 after bouncing back with wins over Mississippi College and Delta State. BJ Brown Jr. shined on the week, averaging 18.5 points, 6.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.5 steals on 61 percent shooting. West Alabama's Point Guard is now averaging 10.8 points, 5.5 assists, and 1.8 steals per game.
UWA's leading scorer continues to be Rasean Frederick as he's pouring in 12.3 points per night. Elliot Tulip has been a consistent scoring presence, averaging 11.4 points per game on superb shooting splits. Caleb Parr has struggled offensively through the last three games but is still averaging 10.7 points per game and give the Tigers' consistency on the defensive end. Christian Thompson is the anchor of a West Alabama defense that's only allowing 64.4 points per game. Thompson is an elite shot disruptor and is equally as good as a rebounder. The Forward is averaging 10.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game along with 9.8 points.
As a team, UWA holds a 14.3 scoring margin and are out rebounding teams by an average of 9.5 boards. Those are two statistics that highlights just how dominant West Alabama has been in 2025-26.
The Union Bulldogs began the season with an overall record of 7-4 but something flipped as the calendar turned to 2026. In the new year of 2026, Union is 2-9 with their lone wins coming against Mississippi College and AUM. As a team, the Bulldogs are averaging 76.9 points while allowing 79.5.
Despite the struggles as a team, Union still possesses one of the top players in the conference on their roster in Terrance Ringo Jr. Ringo Jr. is currently averaging a double-double with 18.4 points and 10.3 rebounds on 58 percent shooting. The 6'6" Forward has recorded 11 double-doubles on the year, including four in a row coming against Christian Brothers, Montevallo, AUM, and Delta State. In the first matchup between UU and UWA, the Tigers held Ringo Jr. to 12 points and four rebounds.
Alongside Ringo Jr. is Will Lovings-Watts. Lovings-Watts is another high volume scorer for the Bulldogs. The 6'5" Guard is averaging 16.3 points and 5.9 rebounds per game on 44 percent shooting. The junior saw a significant decrease in minutes in three of the last four contests as he's averaging 9.8 points in 22 minutes per game.
Union will need Lovings-Watts to return to form on Thursday if the Bulldogs want to upset the Tigers.
As for Christian Brothers, they've struggled mightily this season. The Bucs are only averaging 66.1 points per game which ranks last in the GSC. Marquis Gill and Iman Kheirati are the only two players that are averaging double digit points for CBU. Gill is third in the GSC in scoring with 18.0 points along with 3.3 assists per game. In West Alabama's win over Christian Brothers in January, Gill only scored five points on seven shot attempts.
Kheirati is averaging 15.0 points and is one of the best shooters in the league. The 6'5" junior is shooting 39 percent from beyond the arc and made three threes on four attempts in CBU's first meeting against UWA.
Tip-off between West Alabama and Union is set for 7:30 p.m. on Thursday while the Tigers' contest against the Bucs is slated for 4:00 p.m. on Saturday.
