Men's Basketball Head to Division Opponents West Texas A&M, Eastern New Mexico

Men's Basketball 1/29/2020 5:44:00 PM

Men's Basketball Head to Division Opponents West Texas A&M, Eastern New Mexico

Canyon, TX / Portales, N.M. – For the second time in as many weeks, Men's Basketball will embark on their shortest road trip of the season to Canyon, Texas for a rematch against the Buffs of West Texas A&M. West will meet East Saturday in Portales to continue the rivalry. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CST Thursday, and 4 p.m. MST Saturday.

MUSTANGS TO WATCH:
Though the record may not show, the Mustangs rank ninth in the league's top offenses averaging 74.8 points per game. Senior, Elijah Holifield (Atlanta, GA/Pace Academy) has proven to be an offensive threat averaging 14.6 points per game, with over a hundred field goals made for a .468 clip. His efficiency extends beyond the arc as well leading the team with 51 three pointers at a .432 clip. The Atlanta native adds an average of 4.6 rebounds, 11 steals, 20 assists and a team high 12 blocks to his season stat line.
Malik Sanders (Durham, NC/Smithfield-Selma ) assists in the Mustangs offense, literally, tallying 63 so far this season with a season high of 8 twice, once against West Texas A&M the first time around. Sanders averages just over ten points a game, going 62-of-146 (42%) from the hardwood, 22-of-59 (37%) from deep and 29-of-39 (74%) at the stripe.

LAST TIME OUT:
On the comfort of Drag's Court, the Mustangs finished last weekend's home stand 1-1 to snap an 8 game slump. In a tale of two halves, WNMU put together 41 points in the first half to go up by four at the break. Though they led for most of the second, the Lions of Texas A&M Commerce strung together a series of points, most from beyond the arc to come from behind and secure a 77-73 lead in the final minutes. Elijah Holifield (Atlanta, GA/Pace Academy) tied the game's leading scorer with 22 points.
Looking to make a statement against newcomer UT Tyler Saturday, WNMU put together 50 points in the second half for a 77-60 victory over the Patriots. Credit the Mustang defense with six blocks, and seven steals to limit UTT to just 39.6% shooting on the night. WNMU hit over fifty percent of their shots Saturday, along with ten more boards than their opponent.

NO.3 WEST TEXAS A&M BUFFS (19-1, 11-1 LSC)
Moving up two spots since the two teams last met, the Buffs have sine extended their win streak to 10, going 2-0 on the road at Texas A&M Kingsville, and International. For a team that leads the league in offense output at 93.0 points per game, the Buffs were a quiet 23-of-61 from the field, and 9-of-30 beyond the arc against TAMIU scoring a season low 64 points.
Just a sophomore, Qua Grant does it all for the Buffs. The guard from Waxahachie, Texas shells out 22.6 points per contest, second most in the LSC, behind Brian Halums of UAFS (25.7 ppg), and has yet to score less than ten points this season. He leads the team in rebounds (7.0) and steals (57), and is amongst the teams top three in assists with 62. His efforts have earned him defensive player of the week twice this season

EASTERN NEW MEXICO GREYHOUNDS (5-12, 5-7 LSC)
Since their last meeting on Jan. 9, the Greyhounds have been on the downhill. After defeating UT Permian Basin in the same road trip, ENMU have suffered four straight losses. The rivalry remains hot between the two teams, as Western will look to split the season series on the road. Eastern took home an 81-71 win last time around, behind a 22-point performance from Deng Kuany. The Greyhounds leading scorer, Devin Pullum was held to just 11 points, three less than his season average of 14.
Pullum remains the only player in double-figures for ENMU, while also leading in assists (31) and steals (22).
The last time the Mustangs beat the Greyhounds was in 2018 on Drag's Court.

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Players Mentioned

#12 Elijah Holifield: G; 6' 3"; Fifth Year

#3 Malik Sanders: G; 6' 1"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#12 Elijah Holifield
: 6' 3"; Fifth Year
: G

#3 Malik Sanders
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: G

Players Mentioned

#12 Elijah Holifield

#3 Malik Sanders

Players Mentioned

#12 Elijah Holifield

#3 Malik Sanders