By james art 
WILMINGTON, NC – The fifth season of Takayo Siddle era begins Monday night when the UNCW men’s basketball program hosts Mount Olive for a season-opening contest at Trask Coliseum at 7:00 p.m.
GAME COVERAGE
• UNCW Seahawks vs. Mount Olive Trojans
• Live Stream: FloCollege
• Radio: 95.9 The Breeze
• Live Stats: UNCWStats.com
• Tickets: UNCWSports.com/BuyTickets
• Gates open: 5:30 p.m
• Special food item: Fried Pickles with Chipotle Mayo
INFO ABOUT THE SERIES
The Seahawks are a perfect 5-0 against Mount Olive and are meeting for the fourth straight year. The Seahawks posted a 105-66 victory against Mount Olive in last year’s season opener at Trask Coliseum and are 21-7 in home openers.
The game is considered a showcase for Division II Mount Olive.
LAST TIME OUT
UNCW picked up a 77-71 exhibition win against Fayetteville State last Wednesday.
UNCW built a double-digit lead with an 18-4 stretch in the second half and withstood a late surge by Broncos guard Ezekiel Kennedy, who had 16 of his game-high 20 points with less than 5:33 remaining to won the victory.
EXPLORATION OF THE TROJANS
Mount Olive went 7-22 last season under head coach Zach Grant, who is entering his second year in Pickletown in 2024-25.
The Trojans were picked to finish 11th in the Carolina Conference preseason poll and return three of their top four scorers from a year ago, including redshirt junior Redford Dunton (13.9 ppg, 5.0 to play)
LOOKING AHEAD
UNCW remains at home for a Friday, Nov. 8 contest against Georgia Southern at 7 p.m
The Seahawks will play their first two regular season games at home for the first time in five seasons that they have started with three straight home games.