After back-to-back road games last weekend, the Cavs are back in town Saturday to face a good Catawba program. Five of UVA Wise's next six games will be played at home at the Prior Center.

UVA WISE NEWS AND NOTES

>> The Cavs enter Saturday's game against Catawba after benefiting from their second-largest break this season after having seven days off in between games. UVA Wise needed the break after a difficult weekend on the road at Carson-Newman and Coker.

The Cavs gave up 109 points in back-to-back games on the three day road trip, suffering losses in both games. 218 points allowed in consecutive games is the most for UVA Wise since February 2022. The Cavs have now lost four of their last five contests and look to end the slide against a very talented Catawba team.

Despite the team struggles, UVA Wise has had some major individual performances in the last few games. On Saturday against Coker, freshman guard Carmelo Pacheco had an eye-popping performance with a career-high 28 points. Pacheco made a career best 11 shots from the floor and went 4-for-8 from downtown while adding four assists and four rebounds in his contributions.

In the same game, redshirt sophomore Joe'l Pettiford had one of his best games of the season, putting up 19 points on a perfect 7-for-7 outing from the floor. Pettiford added eight rebounds and a career-high four assists in the loss. The Greensboro, N.C. native has been uber efficient since December for UVA Wise. In the last 11 games, Pettiford is shooting 72.1 percent (44-for-61) from the floor and has scored in double figures seven times.

Sophomore guard Calen Lightford had back-to-back big performances over the weekend. On Wednesday against Carson-Newman, Lightford scored 12 of UVA Wise's fir 14 points in the game by knocking down a quartet of triples. He finished the game with a career high 5-for-7 mark from downtown for a season-high 15 points. Lightford followed that up with 13 points and another 4-for-7 outing from downtown while adding two steals against Coker. Prior to Jan. 13, Lightford had scored in double figures only three times this season. He's reached that feat in all three games from Jan. 13 - Jan. 20.
 

ABOUT THE CATAWBA INDIANS

>> Catawba makes the near four-hour trip to Wise on Saturday buzzing after arguably its biggest win of the season on Wednesday. After losing to first-place Wingate in overtime, 93-90, on Jan. 10, the Indians exacted revenge Wednesday handing Wingate its first conference loss of the season with a 91-80 win at home.

Junior guard Kris Robinson led the way for Catawba with a game high 22 points on 8-of-16 shooting including a 4-for-9 mark from deep. Robinson is the second highest scorer for the Indians this season with an average of 13.2 points per game. He was named the SAC Men's Basketball Player of the Week on Nov. 27 after dropping 27 and 19 points in back-to-back games against Belmont Abbey and No. 25 Florida Southern. Robinson is a lethal threat from downtown, making an average of 2.9 triples per game which ranks fourth in the league.

Catawba's leading scorer is senior point guard and Preseason All-SAC First Team member Javeon Jones. Jones is averaging 13.8 points each outing while leading the conference with a whopping 42 steals. His average of 3.5 steals per game not only leads the SAC but is first in the entire nation.

As a team, Catawba boasts one of the best defenses in the conference. The Indians lead the SAC and rank in the top 15 nationally in both blocks per game (4.9) and steals per game (11.9). This is thanks in part to Jones' contributions swiping the ball and sophomore forward Justin Banks' prowess protecting the rim. Banks has totaled 23 rejections on the year for an average of 1.8 per night. He ranks second in the conference in total blocks while leading the per game category.

Catawba opened the year winning seven of its first eight games but since then the Indians have dropped three of their last five. They are 4-2 in road games this year.