LIONS TRAVEL TO INCARNATE WORD BEFORE HOSTING TEXAS A&M-KINGSVILLE
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| A&M-Commerce (13-10, 6-7) | 36 | 50 | 86 |
| Incarnate Word (12-9, 8-5) | 36 | 48 | 84 |
| San Antonio, TX - McDermott Center | |||
| A&M-Commerce | Incarnate Word |
|---|---|
| Pts: Tyrie Wooten - 18 | Pts: RUCKER, Dionelle - 19 |
| Reb: Andrew Davis - 7 | Reb: RUCKER, Dionelle - 9 |
| Ast: Stefon Carson - 5 | Ast: BROWN, Lyn'Dale - 7 |
| Team Statistics | A&M-Commerce | Incarnate Word |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goal % | 52.5% (32-61 ) | 44.8% (30-67 ) |
| Rebounds | 43 | 32 |
| Assists | 19 | 21 |
| Turnovers | 20 | 12 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 10 | 23 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 14 | 13 |
| Pts in the Paint | 38 | 28 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 10 | 10 |
| Bench Pts | 36 | 7 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas A&M-Kingsville (10-10, 6-7 LSC) | 33 | 37 | 70 |
| A&M-Commerce (13-10, 6-7 LSC) | 37 | 40 | 77 |
| Commerce, TX (The Field House) | |||
| Texas A&M-Kingsville | A&M-Commerce |
|---|---|
| Pts: BROWN, Jamahl - 24 | Pts: Preston Whitley - 17 |
| Reb: BASEY, Rashad - 7 | Reb: Andrew Davis - 8 |
| Ast: BRACEY, Dytrel - 4 | Ast: 2 Players (#03, #20 - 4) |
| Team Statistics | Texas A&M-Kingsville | A&M-Commerce |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goal % | 43.9% (29-66 ) | 44.0% (22-50 ) |
| Rebounds | 40 | 38 |
| Assists | 14 | 16 |
| Turnovers | 12 | 9 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 9 | 17 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 14 | 9 |
| Pts in the Paint | 32 | 20 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 9 | 12 |
| Bench Pts | 31 | 25 |
A&M-Commerce Lions at Incarnate Word Cardinals
Wednesday, February 13 • 7:30 p.m.
McDermott Center • San Antonio, Texas
Records: A&M-Commerce (12-10, 5-7 LSC); Incarnate Word (12-8, 8-4 LSC)
A&M-Commerce Lions vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville Javelinas
Saturday, February 16 • 4:00 p.m.
The Field House • Commerce, Texas
Records: A&M-Commerce (12-10, 5-7 LSC); A&M-Kingsville (9-10, 5-7 LSC)
Audio: KETR 88.9 FM (listen online at KETR.org)
Live Video: Incarnate Word • A&M-Kingsville
Live Stats: LionAthletics.com
Twitter Updates: @Lion_Athletics
A&M-Commerce Weekly Game Notes (PDF)
Opening Tip
Three weeks remain in the 2012-13 regular season as A&M-Commerce faces two more crucial Lone Star Conference matches. The Lions remain on the road Wednesday, traveling to San Antonio for perhaps the final meeting ever against Incarnate Word, tipping off at 7:30 p.m. A&M-Commerce then welcomes rival Texas A&M-Kingsville to the Field House for a 4 p.m. tipoff on Saturday, February 13th.
Lions on the Web
Lion fans can keep up to date with every A&M-Commerce basket this week as the Lions face a pair of crucial LSC games against Incarnate Word and Texas A&M-Kingsville. Both games will be broadcast live on KETR 88.9 FM with Charlie Chitwood on the call, while also streaming live online at KETR.org. Live video of Saturday's game against the Javelinas will be available at LionAthletics.com, powered by Stretch Internet. Live stats of both games will be available by following the Live Stats link at LionAthletics.com while Twitter users can receive in-game updates by following @Lion_Athletics.
Break Out The Pink For the Lions on Saturday
A&M-Commerce's game against Texas A&M-Kingsville marks the Lions' 2013 Pink Zone game, helping to raise funds for the fight against breast cancer. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to the Saturday's game at the Field House as a handful of activities will be available to participate in. Fans can make pink breast cancer bracelets or enjoy some pink cotton candy, with the proceeds being donated to the American Cancer Society. In addition, survivors will be recognized during halftime with prizes to be raffled off as well. Admission is free to anyone wearing pink to the game Saturday as well. For more information, or if you are a cancer survivor and would like to take part in the festivities, please contact the A&M-Commerce Athletic Department at (903) 886-5558.
LSC Race Continues to Tighten Down the Stretch
With three weeks remaining in the 2012-13 regular season, the race for Allen and the 2013 Lone Star Conference Basketball Championships continues to heat up. A&M-Commerce enters this week tied with Texas A&M-Kingsville for seventh-place in the standings at 5-7, leading ninth-place Abilene Christian by percentage points. Both the Lions and Javelinas trail sixth-place West Texas A&M (6-8) by percentage points as well while sitting one game back of fifth-place Eastern New Mexico (7-7). Midwestern State sits atop the standings at 12-2, leading Incarnate Word (8-4) by two games and is three ahead of Cameron (9-5). Tarleton State is currently fourth with a 7-5 record as each team has between four and six games remaining in the season.
Scouting the Cardinals
2012-13: 12-8 overall, 8-4 Lone Star Conference (2nd), 7-3 home
Last Three Games: L at Cameron (69-60), L at Midwestern State (67-54), W vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville (75-67)
Head Coach: Ken Burmeiseter (St. Mary's, 1970). Seventh season at UIW (125-65, .658)
Key Players:
• #23 Dionelle Rucker (Sr., F): 336 pts. (16.8 ppg), 55.0 FG%, 67.0 FT%, 129 reb., 21 stl., 19 blk.
• #30 Andre Corley (Jr., G): 122 pts. (13.6 ppg), 56.5 FG%, 46.9 3FG%, 93.5 FT%, 21 reb.
• #11 Denzel Livingston (So., G): 243 pts. (12.2 ppg), 49.1 FG%, 64.8 FT%, 89 reb., 51 ast., 25 blk., 41 stl.
• #33 Anthony Horton (Jr., F): 210 pts. (10.5 ppg), 40.0 FG%, 31.9 3FG%, 79.7 FT%, 78 reb., 17 blk.
• #4 Kyle Hittle (Fr., G): 206 pts. (10.3 ppg), 48.9 FG%, 38.6 3FG%, 66.1 FT%, 71 reb., 34 ast.
Synopsis: Incarnate Word returns to the court after a nine-day hiatus after dropping its last two LSC games at Midwestern State (67-54) and at Cameron (69-60). The Cardinals still sit in second place in the conference standings at 8-4 after stringing together a 7-1 stretch to start 2013, which included the 86-75 win over A&M-Commerce. Wednesday's game should be a high scoring affair as the Cardinals (74.7) and Lions (74.4) rank one-two in scoring offense.
Series Information: A&M-Commerce and Incarnate Word meet for the 13th and possibly final time Wednesday with the Cardinals holding an 8-4 edge in the all-time series having won three-straight over the Lions. Head coach Sam Walker has posted a 2-7 record against Incarnate Word, including a 1-3 mark in San Antonio as the last A&M-Commerce victory was a 94-74 decision at the Field House in 2010-11.
Scouting the Javelinas
2012-13: 9-10 overall, 5-7 Lone Star Conference (T-7th), 1-6 home
Last Three Games: L at Midwestern State (79-59), L at Cameron (82-79, OT), L at Incarnate Word (75-67)
Head Coach: Pete Peterson (Southwestern, 1978). 16th season at TAMUK (229-204, .517)
Key Players:
• #5 Rashad Basey (Jr., G): 288 pts. (15.2 ppg), 49.1 FG%, 36.8 3FG%, 65.7 FT%, 67 reb., 70 ast., 32 stl.
• #1 Jamahl Brown (Jr., G): 159 pts. (9.4 ppg), 44.4 FG%, 27.1 3FG%, 72.2 FT%, 54 reb., 20 ast.
• #11 Adonis Bailey (So., G): 93 pts. (9.3 ppg), 43.1 FG%, 39.1 3FG%, 68.8 FT%, 26 reb., 15 ast.
• #10 Dwight Taylor (Jr., G): 138 pts. (7.3 ppg), 47.1 FG%, 42.6 3FG%, 54.8 FT%, 38 reb., 28 ast., 15 stl.
• #45 Reid Wallace (Sr., F): 124 pts. (6.5 ppg), 50.6 FG%, 44.7 3FG%, 71.4 FT%, 56 reb., 16 ast., 11 stl.
Synopsis: Texas A&M-Kingsville enters the week having lost four-straight, hosting Tarleton State Wednesday evening before making the trek to Commerce. After starting the LSC season with a 5-3 mark, the Javelinas have dropped into a seventh-place time with the Lions, sitting at 5-7 in conference play. A&M-Kingsville has been tough defensively, leading the conference in field goal defense (39.8%) and second in three-point field goal defense (41.5%).
Series Information: The long-time Lone Star Conference rivals meet for the 116th time in the series history Saturday, marking the longest current streak in A&M-Commerce program history. The Lions hold a 62-53 edge in the all-time series but the Javelinas have had the upper hand in recent years, winning three-straight over A&M-Commerce including a 75-69 decision in Kingsville on January 5th, and have won nine of the last 11 meetings. Head coach Sam Walker is 7-13 all-time against A&M-Kingsville and has fared well against the Javelinas at the Field House, posting a 6-3 record.
The Week That Was
The Lions split a pair of crucial games this past week, falling to Abilene Christian 60-57 at the Field House Wednesday before notching a 96-90 road victory at Angelo State. Against the Wildcats, the Lions found themselves trailing by double digits midway through the second half before staging a furious rally to pull to within three in the waning seconds. But a game-tying three-pointer was off the mark as A&M-Commerce dropped the crucial home contest to ACU. Preston Whitley led the way with 11 points while Devondrick Walker and Tyrie Wooten each added 10. In San Angelo, the Lions used a three-point barrage from Whitley to build a commanding 17-point lead in the second half, then held off a late rally from the Rams to secure the much-needed victory. Whitley led the way with 24 points, including going 5-of-7 from three-point range, while Stefon Carson added 18 and Walker chipped in 17 in the victory.
Lions Snap Texas Winless Streak
The victory for A&M-Commerce over Angelo State Saturday snapped a four-game losing skid over schools from the state of Texas spanning a full month, dating back to the Lions' 74-66 victory over Midwestern State on January 9th. With the victory over the Rams, A&M-Commerce upped its record against teams from the Lone Star state to 8-7 (.533) in 2012-13, a far cry from the 2-15 (.118) record against Texas schools in 2011-12 as A&M-Commerce opened up the season losing its first 13 games against Lone Star state schools. The Lions are 3-1 against teams from Arkansas this season, snapping a 14-game winning streak against Natural state opponents, while earning a win over Eastern New Mexico with a loss to Cameron (Oklahoma).
Whitley Surpasses 20 Points For Fifth Time in 2012-13
With his 24-point performance in the win at Angelo State, Preston Whitley notched his fifth 20-point performance of the season, the most among the Lions. He leads the team with a career-best 28 points against Midwestern State with Stefon Carson's 26 points at Southern Arkansas checking in at second. In all, five Lions have combined for nine 20-point performances on the year, with Devondrick Walker, Jason Smith and Andrew Davis each making an appearance.
Lions Among Lone Star Conference Top-10
With the 2012-13 season starting to wind down, a number of Lions continue to make their marks on the Lone Star Conference leaderboard. As a team, A&M-Commerce ranks among the top three in seven different statistical categories, including leading the LSC in assists per game (15.4) while sitting second in scoring offense (74.4), three point percentage (38.3%), rebounds (37.6) and steals (7.2). Individually, five Lions rank among the LSC leaders in nine categories, highlighted by Andrew Davis ranking second in both defensive rebounds (5.0) and field goal percentage (57.4) and Devondrick Walker sitting second in free throw percentage (83.6%).
Looking Ahead
The Lions head back on the road for another tough week in Lone Star Conference action, taking on the first and third seeds as they currently sit in the standings. A&M-Commerce heads to Wichita Falls to take on LSC-leading Midwestern State on Wednesday, February 20, tipping off against the Mustangs at 7:30 p.m. The Lions then return to the Field House to welcome third-place Cameron for a 7 p.m. start on Saturday, February 23rd.
For the complete weekly release, click on the PDF link above.