FACTS & STATS: North Charleston Coliseum (13,600) -- Charleston, South Carolina. Television: ESPN2. Home Record: Elon 8-6, Davidson 12-2. Away Record: Elon 3-12, Davidson 11-3. Neutral Record: Elon 3-0, Davidson 2-1. Conference Record: Elon 9-11, Davidson 20-0. Series Record: Davidson leads, 27-11.

GAME NOTES: The 25th-ranked and top-seeded Davidson Wildcats go for the three- peat tonight, as they take on the seventh-seeded Elon Phoenix in the championship game of the Southern Conference Tournament at North Charleston Coliseum. The Wildcats have simply owned the SoCon this season and they earned the top seed in this event by completing their undefeated campaign at 20-0. Davidson has had no trouble carrying its success over into this tourney, pounding eighth-seeded Wofford (82-49) in the quarterfinal round and fifth- seeded UNC Greensboro (82-52) in the semifinals on Sunday. With the back-to- back triumphs, the Wildcats have now won a nation-high 21 straight games and 35 in a row in conference action. Davidson is gunning for its league record 10th title in this tourney and it is trying to become the first team since Chattanooga (1993-95) to capture the championship three straight times. As for Elon, it has had a remarkable run in this tourney, becoming the lowest seed to reach the finals since VMI made it as a seven seed in 1988. The Phoenix have a losing overall record at 14-18, but they got hot at the right time and defeated 10th-seeded Furman (52-37), second-seeded Chattanooga (60-57) and most recently sixth-seeded College of Charleston (75-61) to earn their spot in tonight's game. This is Elon's first title game in just its fifth appearance in the SoCon Tournament. With respect to the all-time series, Davidson holds a 27-11 lead over the Phoenix and it captured both encounters during the regular season.

The Phoenix shot 49.1 percent from the field and converted 16-of-20 free-throw attempts, as they handled the CofC in the semifinals last night. The team also went a decent 7-of-18 from long range and committed just seven turnovers. Montell Watson led the way with 15 points, while Brett James had 13 points and five boards. Chris Long and Ola Atoyebi also got into the mix, posting 12 points apiece. For the season, James and Atoyebi are tied for the squad-lead in scoring at 12.4 ppg apiece, with James snaring 5.4 rpg and Atoyebi ripping down a team-high 6.4 rpg. Watson contributes 11.0 ppg and 3.5 apg and he is also the team's top defender with 49 steals to his credit. Overall, Elon isn't a big time scoring team, averaging just 63.3 ppg, but it has done a good job on defense, holding its foes to 65.3 ppg.

Davidson knocked down 55.7 percent of its attempts from the floor and dominated the boards, 38-21, in a rout of UNCG on Sunday. The Wildcats also held a decisive 44-8 advantage in points in the paint. After scoring 19 points to lead the charge in the quarterfinals, Stephen Curry dropped in 26 points to pace Davidson last night. Boris Meno chipped in with 12 points, and Jason Richards logged 11 points and six helpers. Curry, the SoCon Player of the Year, leads the Wildcats as well as the conference in scoring at 25.2 ppg and he is shooting a solid 44.1 percent from beyond the arc. Richards has been in charge of setting up Curry with a nation-high 7.9 apg to his credit and he also puts forth 12.9 ppg. As a team, the Wildcats are posting a hardy 79.1 ppg, in addition to outrebounding their opponents by 4.4 rpg.

The Wildcats have simply dominated SoCon competition this season and there is no reason to believe that will change tonight. Behind another big effort from Curry and his support cast, expect Davidson to claim its third straight title.

Predicted Outcome

Davidson 74, Elon 54