Men's Basketball Return Home to Face UAFS and Oklahoma Christian

Men's Basketball 2/5/2020 1:00:00 PM

Men's Basketball Return Home to Face UAFS and Oklahoma Christian

SILVER CITY, N.M. – With just a few weekends left in conference play the Mustang men's basketball team return to Drag's Court this weekend for a pair of contests to make a final push for the postseason. Thursday's matchup will feature the Lions of UAFS at 7:30 p.m., before the Eagles of Oklahoma Christian make their way to Silver City Saturday a 4 p.m. to close out the weekend.
Live stats and video will be available at wnmumustangs.com

LAST TIME OUT:
After securing a win over UT Tyler the weekend prior, the Mustangs took to the road for big matches against top-ranked West Texas A&M and rival Eastern New Mexico for the second time in as many weeks.

Up against the top-offense in the Lone Star Conference, the Mustangs looked to respond to their previous loss and steal a win over the Buffs on the road. Turnovers, proved to be a weakness for the Mustangs as they committed 27 in a 105-81 loss. Malik Sanders (Durham, NC/Smithfield-Selma ) led all scorers with 18 points, behind 7-of-16 field shooting and 4-of-8 behind the arc.

Just as the Greyhounds stole a win on Drag's Court the first time around, the Mustangs looked to split the series and take one on the road in Portales. With 11 lead changes, the only one that mattered was the one at the 2:14 mark in the second half. Elijah Holifield (Atlanta, GA/Pace Academy) contributed four points to the Mustangs total, giving them a slight edge in the final minutes of play. ENMU threatened to come back but committed a couple of fouls in the final seconds, in which WNMU's Malik Sanders (Durham, NC/Smithfield-Selma ) secured the 81-76 win, going 4-4 at the charity stripe.

UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS FORT SMITH LIONS (13-2, 7-2 LSC)
Led by first year head coach, Jim Boone, the Lions enter this weekend with a 9-11 record, 5-9 in league play. After a successful weekend at home, UAFS will travel to Silver City in an effort to improve their 2-5 road record.

As a team the Lions sit in the bottom half of the LSC in offense, but make up for it on the defensive end, holding their opponents to just 68.5 points per game, and a shooting percentage of .427. Senior guard, Bryan Hallums does it all for the Lions leading the team and the LSC in scoring averaging 25.9 points per game, having yet to be held under double figures this season.

Thursday will mark the first ever meeting between the Mustangs and the Lions in program history, making it an interesting matchup.

OKLAHOMA CHRISTIAN EAGLES (11-4, 5-4 LSC)
Sporting a similar record to UAFS, the Eagles of Oklahoma Christian have found some success in their first year competing in the LSC. With a 7-11 record overall, 6-8 in conference play, OCU is in a three way tie with Cameron and UAFS in their division after claiming wins over MSU Texas and Cameron before falling to UAFS last weekend.

Senior, Dedrian Parmer Jr. is the go to for OCU, shooting at a .482 clip from the field, and .435 from deep to average 15.9 points per game. The Eagles fall on complete opposites of the LSC, ranking last in offense averaging just 62.3 points per game. However, on the opposite side of the ball OCU sports the top defense in the LSC, holding their opponents to 65.6. Senior and two-time defensive player of the week Will Leinhard plays a large part in the defensive efforts, averaging 9.5 rebounds per game. His 42 blocks (2.8 per game) ranks first in the LSC.

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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