Four teams tied atop ASUN standings with undefeated records

Three-time defending champion Liberty leads a quartet of undefeated teams into the second half of January.

Most recently they defeated FGCU and Jacksonville.

The Flames are led by reigning conference Player of the Year Darius McGhee, who dropped 48 points in their victory over FGCU. It was the highest point total by any ASUN player ever in a conference game.

He is averaging 23.0 points and 3.7 rebounds per game. He is shooting 48% from the field.

Bellarmine is undefeated in conference play thanks to hot shooting. The Knights are shooting 49.1% from beyond the arc – the best mark in the conference and good for 17^th nationally.

A relatively new team to Division I, Bellarmine is just in its second season playing at the highest level. With the four victories this season, it has won 14 of its last 15 regular season games against ASUN opponents.

Dylan Penn leads the Knights with 17.2 points and 5.2 assists per game.

With Jacksonville State’s four wins to begin ASUN play, the Gamecocks have matched their best conference start. The last time they accomplished that feat was back in 2002-03.

JSU is even better than Bellarmine from downtown. The Gamecocks rank third in country in 3-point field goal percentage at 41.5% (behind South Dakota State and Davidson).

Demaree King leads the conference at 50.5% from 3, which stands fourth in Division I. He helped power Jacksonville State to an 86-81 win over Central Arkansas in its most recent game with 20 points.

Meanwhile, Kennesaw State is the surprise team so far this season and is currently 3-0. The Owls were picked 11^th out of 12 by the conference coaches in the preseason poll and dead last in the media poll.

They have been powered by their defense. They rank first in the conference in scoring defense by holding opponents to 54.0 points per game and 29.6% shooting.

The Owls have victories over FGCU, Stetson and North Florida.

Right on the heels of these undefeated teams is Jacksonville, who is 3-1 in conference play. The Dolphins dropped their most recent game, a 39-point loss at Liberty. They have a chance to stake their claim as one of the ASUN’s elite with games at Bellarmine and at Kennesaw State on Saturday and Monday, respectively.

Central Arkansas and FCGU are around .500 in conference. Four teams are tied at 1-4 in the standings, and North Florida is still searching for its first ASUN win of the year.

For more on the conference, read the individual team breakdowns so far this season.