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PENSACOLA, Fla. – The UWF Men's Basketball Team will travel to Montevallo, Alabama, looking to continue making their way up the Gulf South Conference East Standings as they take on the University of Montevallo.  Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. from Trustmark Arena on Tuesday night.
 
West Florida (6-10), sits just behind UM (6-7) in the East Division as both teams look to crack the top four of the division, and qualify for the conference tournament in early March.
 
The Argos are coming off a weekend split at Auburn Montgomery, with AUM taking the first game 74-65, while UWF was victorious in game two, 71-59.  It was the first road win of the season for UWF.
 
Sophomore Daniel Sofield led the team in scoring in both contests, with 16 and 20 points, respectively.  Sofield also connected on 4-8 shooting from beyond the arc in game two.  Tarik Mckelphin continued his strong season, registering two double-doubles while Wendell Matthews and Kendall Bynum provided help as well.  Matthews had double-figures in scoring both games, with Bynum playing a season-high 34 minutes to go along with eight points, three assists and two rebounds in Saturday's win.  Bynum also notched his first-career start on Saturday.
 
Swiss Army Knife, Tarik Mckelphin: A native of Plant City, Florida, Mckelphin has been a dominant force for UWF this season.  The senior is currently leading the team in minutes per game (35.5), field goals made (94), free throw percentage (.804), total rebounds (141), rebounds per contest (8.8), and steals (22).  Mckelphin is also tied for first in blocks with 18. 
 
Mckelphin is also in the top 10 of the GSC in points per game, rebounds per game, field goal percentage, blocks and minutes per contest.  The senior is also tied for the most points in a game by a GSC player this season with 33, tied for most rebounds in a contest (14) and tied for most field goals made (14).  Tarik was also named the GSC Player of the Week twice this season.
 
Sofield A Weapon From The Outside: Daniel Sofield has been the most consistent shooter for the Argonauts this season.  While leading the team in points per game this year (15.6), Sofield is also first on the team in field three point-percentage (.429) and has 42 made three-pointers in 2020-21, 13 more than any other Argo.  Sofield is also third in the GSC in three-point percentage and second in three-point field goals per game (2.6).
 
His 6-7 three-point percentage in a win against AUM on January 9^th, put him with the second-highest three-point percentage in program history, only trailing Sean Flynn who went 8-9 in a game against Valdosta State on February 24^th, 1996.
 
Inside-Outside Post Presence: On January 23^rd, UWF Head Coach Jeff Burkhamer inserted Matthews alongside Conor Flanagan, looking for a boost along the interior.  The decision has paid off.  Matthews has tallied double-figures in scoring in seven of the 10 games that he has started, which includes 18, 12 and 14 points in previous games against Montevallo.  The junior also leads the team in field goal percentage (.505) and is third in point per game with 11.1.
 
Flanagan has also benefitted from the change, scoring in double-figures in three of the ten games, which includes a 28-point performance, coincidentally a career-high.  The 28 points came on February 12^th, in a home game against Montevallo when Flangan was scorching from the field, shooting 10-14 overall and connecting on 8-10 three-point shots.  The red-shirt from Auckland, New Zealand collected a season-high 12 rebounds the next day in the previous meeting between the two squads.
Scouting Montevallo: UM is second in the league in scoring with 76.7 points per game.  The Falcons also have the fourth most points (97) scored in a GSC contest this season.  Montevallo has a balanced attack on offense, with three players scoring 11.7 points or more per game, with James McNeil leading the charge at 13.8.  The junior had 21 points in a game against UWF earlier in February.  Fellow guard, Xavier Malcolm, is first on the team in minutes played with 34.8 and just trails McNeil with 13.6 points per game.
 
Series History: With the Falcons taking two of three from UWF this season, UM has improved their advantage in the all-time series between the two teams, 20-7.  The Argos are 1-14 in Montevallo, with their lone victory coming on February 23^rd, 2019.

For the latest on the UWF Men's Basketball Team, please visit GoArgos.com or follow the team on Twitter @UWFMensBBall.