February 19, 2013
A&M-COMMERCE TAKES ON CONFERENCE'S BEST IN CHALLENGING WEEK
A&M-Commerce Lions at Midwestern State Mustangs
Wednesday, February 20 • 7:30 p.m.
D.L. Ligon Coliseum • Wichita Falls
Records: A&M-Commerce (14-10, 7-7 LSC); Midwestern State (17-6, 13-3 LSC)
A&M-Commerce Lions vs. Cameron Aggies
Saturday, February 23 • 7:00 p.m.
The Field House • Commerce
Records: A&M-Commerce (14-10, 7-7 LSC); Cameron (15-7, 11-5 LSC)
Radio: KETR 88.9 FM (listen online at KETR.org)
Live Video: Midwestern State • Cameron
Live Statistics: LionAthletics.com
Twitter Updates: @Lion_Athletics
A&M-Commerce Weekly Game Notes (PDF)
Opening Tip
Two weeks remain in the 2012-13 season as A&M-Commerce faces a challenging week heading into the home stretch, facing the top-two teams in the Lone Star Conference. The Lions open up the week in Wichita Falls, facing top-seeded Midwestern State Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. A&M-Commerce then returns to the Field House to face second-seeded Cameron at 7 p.m. Saturday as the two hottest teams in the LSC go head-to-head in what could have a handful of postseason implications.
Lions Tipping Later Saturday
Fans heading to the Field House this Saturday to watch their Lions should keep in mind the later starting time. A&M-Commerce will tip off at 7 p.m., as opposed the normal 4 p.m. Saturday start time, due to the UIL Region II-3A girls basketball finals earlier that afternoon.
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 Midwestern State and Cameron. 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 Aggies 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.
Lions Magic Number is One For LSC Tourney Berth
Two weeks remain in the regular season with A&M-Commerce sitting on the verge of another trip to the postseason thanks to its recent three-game winning streak. Heading into this week, the Lions sit tied for fifth in the standings with Eastern New Mexico at 7-7, holding a one-game lead on both Texas A&M-Kingsville and West Texas (6-8) and currently hold a three-game lead over ninth place Abilene Christian. The Lions' current magic number is one to clinch a berth as A&M-Commerce needs just one more win or one more loss from the Wildcats to secure a spot in the tournament. Should the Lions and Wildcats need a tiebreaker, the first set in place by the LSC would be both teams' record against descending opponents, a tiebreaker A&M-Commerce currently owns thanks to its 74-66 victory over top-seeded Midwestern State on January 9th.
A&M-Commerce Looking To Extend Postseason Streak
One more victory would give A&M-Commerce its 34th appearance in the postseason tournament and it's ninth-straight trip, both of which are tops among all Lone Star Conference schools. Head coach Sam Walker has guided A&M-Commerce to the tournament 10 times in his previous 12 seasons, compiling a 5-9 record (.357), including the 2005 Lone Star Conference championship.
Scouting the Mustangs
2012-13: 17-6 overall, 13-3 Lone Star Conference (1st), 8-2 home
Last Three Games: L vs. Angelo State (53-50), W vs. Abilene Christian (60-55), W vs. Eastern New Mexico (83-72)
Head Coach: Nelson Haggerty (Baylor, 2000). Second season at MSU (46-10, .821)
Key Players:
• #34 Corbin Thomas (Sr., F): 297 pts. (12.9 ppg), 54.5 FG%, 64.8 FT%, 184 reb., 29 blk.
• #3 Kevin Grayer (Sr., G): 271 pts. (11.8 ppg), 45.8 FG%, 34.4 3FG%, 76.0 FT%, 90 reb., 73 ast., 31 stl.
• #5 Keith Spellman (So., G): 190 pts. (10.0 ppg), 33.8 FG%, 31.0 3FG%, 66.7 FT%, 48 reb., 21 ast., 15 stl.
• #24 Cam Adderley (Jr., G): 205 pts. (8.9 ppg), 45.6 FG%, 33.3 3FG%, 61.9 FT%, 110 reb., 24 stl.
• #1 Eddie D'Haiti (Jr., F): 102 pts. (4.6 ppg), 49.4 FG%, 51.5 FT%, 96 reb., 22 ast., 20 blk.
Synopsis: Midwestern State leads the Lone Star Conference with a 13-3 mark, but is coming off a 53-50 loss at home to last place Angelo State, snapping a six-game winning streak. The Mustangs are one of the top defensive teams in the LSC, ranking first in field goal defense (39.5%) and three-point field goal defense (31.4%) while also sitting tops in rebounds per game (40.9).
Series Information: A&M-Commerce and Midwestern State meet for the 79th time Wednesday as the Mustangs hold a 46-32 edge in the all-time series. The Lions upset MSU 74-66 at the Field House back on January 9th, snapping a 10-game skid to the Mustangs as head coach Sam Walker recorded his 202nd career victory. Walker has compiled a 5-15 mark all-time against Midwestern State, including a 2-7 record at D.L. Ligon Coliseum with the last A&M-Commerce victory in Wichita Falls coming in a 57-46 win in 2003-04.
Scouting the Aggies
2012-13: 15-7 overall, 11-5 Lone Star Conference (2nd), 3-5 road
Last Three Games: W vs. Abilene Christian (67-62, OT), W at Angelo State (76-72, OT), W vs. West Texas A&M (73-62)
Head Coach: Wade Alexander (East Central, 2001). Fifth season at CU (71-59, .546)
Key Players:
• #3 Craig Foster (Jr., G): 366 pts. (16.6 ppg), 43.3 FG%, 39.1 3FG%, 79.6 FT%, 61 reb., 127 ast., 21 stl.
• #2 Tim Johnson (Jr., G): 216 pts. (9.8 ppg), 48.6 FG%, 35.0 3FG%, 73.0 FT%, 96 reb., 68 ast., 12 stl.
• #40 Andrew Thomas (Sr., F): 206 pts. (9.4 ppg), 45.0 FG%, 76.9 FT%, 104 reb., 15 blk.
• #25 Rudy Harrell (Sr., F): 139 pts. (6.3 ppg), 61.5 FG%, 51.9 FT%, 109 reb.
• #24 Aaron Thompson (Jr., F): 131 pts. (6.0 ppg), 41.5 FG%, 39.1 3FG%, 57.1 FT%, 65 reb., 22 blk.
Synopsis: Cameron enters the week tied with A&M-Commerce as the hottest team in the LSC, winners of three-straight before facing Tarleton State Wednesday. The Aggies have emerged as one of the most consistent teams in the conference, sitting in the top-five in nearly every statistical category on the season while leading the LSC in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.2).
Series Information: Saturday marks the 43rd meeting between A&M-Commerce and Cameron as the Lions hold a 23-18 lead in the all-time series. The Aggies won the first meeting between the two earlier this year, taking a 65-51 decision in Lawton, Okla. on January 12th as the two have split the last 10 meetings. Head coach Sam Walker has posted a 14-6 mark all-time against Cameron with an impressive 8-2 mark against the Aggies at the Field House.
Lions Against The Lone Star State
The victory for A&M-Commerce over Texas A&M-Kingsville was its third-straight over a Texas opponent as A&M-Commerce upped its record against teams from the Lone Star state to 10-7 (.588) 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 while earning a win over Eastern New Mexico with a loss to Cameron (Oklahoma).
The Numbers Don't Lie
With four games remaining in the regular season A&M-Commerce has retaken the top spot as the the highest scoring team in the Lone Star Conference, averaging 75.0 points per game. 74 points has truly been the breaking point for the Lions this season as A&M-Commerce is 13-2 in games where it scores 74 or more, while sitting just 1-8 when it scores less. The one victory that came shy of the 74-point plateau was the 69-59 win over Ouachita Baptist on November 20th.
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 points per game (75.0), assists (15.6) and defensive rebounds (26.3) while sitting second in three point field goal percentage (38.8%), rebounding (37.9) and steals (7.2). Individually, five Lions rank among the LSC leaders in eight categories, highlighted by Andrew Davis sitting tied for first in defensive rebounds per game (5.2) and second in field goal percentage (56.8%) with Devondrick Walker sitting second in free throw percentage (82.0%).
Looking Ahead
A&M-Commerce closes out the regular season with a pair of games against teams it is looking to overcome as the quest for Allen enters the final sprint. The Lions host West Texas A&M in the 2012-13 home finale on Wednesday, February 27th, tipping at 7:30 p.m. A&M-Commerce then heads west to Eastern New Mexico for the regular season finale, squaring off against the Greyhounds at 3 p.m. CT.
