| gobuffsgo.com |
|
GAME NOTES: WTAMU Faces MSU Saturday In LSC South Match-Up
Feb. 5, 2004
The West Texas A&M University men's basketball team hits the road for a Lone Star Conference South division match-up with Midwestern State University on Saturday, Feb. 7 at Wichita Falls, Texas, in an 8 p.m. contest at MSU's Stockton Court.
The Buffs are currently in third-place in the LSC South, while MSU is a half-game behind Eastern New Mexico for the division lead, entering Thursday's showdown with ENMU.
Fans can tune into the Buffalo Sports Network, on KGNC 710 AM or streamed on the Internet at www.gobuffsgo.com.
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format
About The Teams
The Buffs bring a 13-7 overall and a 3-2 LSC South ledger into Saturday's game, making their debut at No. 9 in the latest NCAA-II South Central Regional Rankings {Complete Regional Rankings}. WTAMU lost its last outing, an 89-74 decision to Eastern New Mexico on Monday at Portales, N.M. It was WTAMU's third-straight loss to ENMU at Greyhound Arena, the very site that they won last year's LSC Tournament Championship. ENMU outscored WTAMU, 59-47 in the second half, pulling away from a 30-27 halftime lead.
Midwestern State has a 13-6 overall and 3-1 LSC South record entering Thursday's showdown with ENMU. The Indians trounced Texas A&M-Kingsville, 93-65, on Saturday, for their fifth win in their last seven games. MSU is ranked No. 8 in the South Central Regional Rankings.
The Coaches
WTAMU head coach Rick Cooper (Wayland Baptist, 1981), who is in his 10th year at the helm of the Buffs, is WTAMU's all-time winningest head coach. Cooper became WTAMU's all-time winningest coach with in the Buffs' win at Southwestern Oklahoma on Jan. 8. Cooper currently has 212 wins, passing Sam Burton's 206 wins from 1921-1933. With a 212-97 (.686) overall record, Cooper currently is fourth on WTAMU's Best Winning Percentage list.
Cooper is a three-time LSC Coach of the Year (1993-'94, 1997-'98, 1998-'99), as well as NABC South Central Regional Coach of the Year (1997-'98).
The Buffs have won three LSC titles under Cooper and been to the NCAA Regional Tournament five times, including three in the last four years.
Midwestern State is coached by Jeff Ray (Midwestern State, 1984), who is in his second stint with the Indians, as he led them from 1995-2000, and returning to the bench this season. Ray has a 131-66 (.665) career record in his seven seasons leading the MSU program.
About WTAMU
The Buffs bring a 13-7 overall and a 3-2 LSC South ledger into Saturday's game, making their debut at No. 9 in the latest NCAA-II South Central Regional Rankings. WTAMU lost its last outing, an 89-74 decision to Eastern New Mexico on Monday at Portales, N.M. It was WTAMU's third-straight loss to ENMU at Greyhound Arena, the very site that they won last year's LSC Tournament Championship. ENMU outscored WTAMU, 59-47 in the second half.
Monday night, 6-1 senior guard Rod Prater tallied a game-high 22 points, with 11 points in each half, finishing the night with five 3-pointers, while 6-2 junior guard Carl Lamb netted 20 points, including 18 in the second half, to go with a team-high five assists. Jason Campbell, a 6-4 senior forward, maintained his scoring streak, registering 17 points to go with a team-high eight rebounds.
As a team, WTAMU leads the conference statistics in 3-point FG pct. (.401), and rank second in free throw pct. (.719), 3-point FG made (163, 8.15 pg) and blocked shots (72, 3.6 bpg), as well as third in field goal pct. (.482).
The Buffs rank 25th in the NCAA-II statistics in 3-point FG pct., as well as 43rd in 3-point FG made and 25th in field goal pct.
Taking care of the ball is an attribute for victory for WTAMU, who is 9-0 when committing fewer turnovers than the opposition, but is 4-7 when committing the same or more turnovers.
On the season, 6-1 senior guard Rod Prater leads the Buffs with a 20.3 points per game average, which ranks second in the LSC and 37th in the nation in scoring. He also is fifth in the conference in 3-point FG made (49, 2.7 pg), as well as seventh in free throw percentage (.761), eighth in steals (1.89 spg) and ninth in assists (3.39 apg).
Eduardo Caviglia, a 6-4 senior guard, nets 10.3 ppg. Caviglia is third in the conference and 23rd in the country in 3-point FG pct (.447), as well as third in the conference in 3-pointers per game (51, 2.7 pg).
The third member of the Buffs' three-guard attack and WTAMU's sixth-man is 6-1 junior guard Carl Lamb, who is 22nd in the LSC in scoring with 12.6 ppg. Lamb also ranks fourth is 3-point FG pct. (.444), as well as fifth in both free throw percentage (.781) and assists (4.05 apg).
Inside, Richard Higginbotham, a 6-7 junior forward, pulls down a team-high 6.1 rebounds per contest, which ranks tied for 12th in the conference. Higginbotham would lead the conference in FT pct (.889), but he doesn't meet the required minimum of 2.0 FT per game.
Carlos Silva, a 6-8 junior forward, leads the LSC and is 19th in the country in blocked shots (42, 2,10 bpg). Silva would lead the conference in field goal percentage (.629), but he also doesn't meet the minimum of 3.0 FG per game.
The third post player for WTAMU is 6-4 senior forward Jason Campbell, is 17th in the league in rebounding with 5.6 rpg and is 30th in scoring with 11.3 ppg.
Campbell's Average Climbing
Jason Campbell has nearly doubled his scoring average in the last 13 games. The 6-4 senior forward was averaging just 5.4 ppg through the Buffs' first seven games. In WTAMU's last 13 games since that time, Campbell is averaging 15.0 ppg, including 18.0 in WTAMU's last five games, to up his average to 11.3 ppg on the season. He has also averaged 6.2 rebounds per contest in those last 13 games. As far as helping the team, the Buffs have won 10 of those 13 games, after losing the previous three contests.
WTAMU On The Road
The Buffs are 5-5 on the road this season, having won four of their last six road contests, after losing the previous three.
WTAMU won last year's meeting at Wichita Falls, snapping a three-game losing streak.
About MSU
Midwestern State has a 13-6 overall and 3-1 LSC South record entering Thursday's showdown with ENMU. The Indians trounced Texas A&M-Kingsville, 93-65, on Saturday, for their fifth win in their last seven games.
Lechon Trammer, a 6-2 junior guard, led five MSU players in double-figures, tallying 19 points off the bench to go with six rebounds. Justin James, a 6-6 junior forward, netted 14 points off the bench, along with tying a game-high with nine rebounds, while 5-11 senior guard Marquette Wilkins added 13 points to go with a game-high six assists. Jovani Allen, a 6-4 senior guard, chipped in with 11 points, while 6-5 senior forward Josh Drumgole, added 10 points, along with tying a game-high nine rebounds and blocked three shots.
MSU had a whopping 54.4 shooting percentage (37-68) from the field, including 61.3 percent (19-31) in the first half, taking a 47-29 halftime lead. The Indians drained 11-19 3-pointers (57.9 percent). Meanwhile, the MSU defense limited TAMU-Kingsville to 11-34 (32.4 percent) in the first half. The Indians outrebounded the Javelinas, 42-29.
On the season, MSU leads the LSC in scoring offense (79.9 ppg), but is 10th in scoring defense (71.5 ppg). The Indians the also lead the conference in blocked shots (77, 4.05 bpg). MSU is second in both steals (10.26 spg) and turnover margin (+3.11), as well as third in both 3-point FG pct. (.377) and assists (14.89 apg).
Individually, Wilkins leads MSU and is 12th in the conference in scoring (15.4 ppg). Wilkins also is third in the league in both assists (4.53 apg) and assist/turnover ratio (1.69), as well as ranking eighth in 3-point FG pct (.417) and 10th in free throw percentage (.743). James leads the Indians and is eighth in the LSC in rebounding (6.8 rpg), adding 8.9 ppg. Trammer averages 11.1 ppg and ranks 11th in the conference in steals (1.79 spg).
Buffs-Indians Series History
WTAMU leads the all-time series, 20-15, with the Buffs winning the last four match-ups.
Last year, WTAMU won, 67-64, at Wichita Falls, on Feb. 8. Rod Prater tallied 16 points, while David Rhone added 12 for the Buffs. Marquette Wilkins led MSU with a game-high 23 points, followed by Josh Drumgole's 12 points.
It was a neck-and-neck result in the statistics, as MSU and WTAMU had 30 rebounds apiece, an each team committed 17 turnovers. The Buffs shot 51.0 percent (25-49) from the field, while the Indians shot 48.1 percent (25-52).
The Buffs won on their home court, 89-83, five days later on Feb. 13 at the WTAMU Event Center. WTAMU outscored MSU, 27-15 from the free throw line and shot 60.0 percent (27-45) from the field, including 11-16 (68.8 percent) in the second half, overcoming a small 42-41 halftime deficit.
WTAMU had four players in double-figures, led by Prater's 20 points, followed by 13 apiece from Kyle Caldwell and Eduardo Caviglia, and Chris Bracey tallied 11 points. MSU was led by Jovani Allen and Marquette Wilkins with 23 points apiece.
Last Action: Buffs Run Over By Greyhounds, 89-74, Monday (Feb. 2, 2004)
PORTALES, N.M. - West Texas A&M University was run over by a Greyhound, actually a whole team of them, as the Buffs lost to Eastern New Mexico, 89-74, Monday at ENMU's Greyhound Arena at Portales, N.M. in a Lone Star Conference South division showdown for the divisional lead.
WTAMU dropped its third-straight to ENMU at Greyhound Arena, the site where the Buffs captured the LSC Tournament Championship last season. The Buffs are now 13-7 overall and 3-2 in LSC South action.
ENMU improves to 14-6 overall and 4-1 in the LSC South, having won three in a row.
WTAMU falls out of the four-way tie for first-place in the division, while ENMU takes the divisional lead, a half-game ahead of Midwestern State, which the Greyhounds play Thursday and the Buffs face Saturday. The other team in the four-way tie, Texas A&M-Kingsville, suffered a 62-61 loss to Texas A&M-Commerce.
Monday night, senior guard Rod Prater tallied a game-high 22 points, with 11 points in each half, finishing the night with five 3-pointers, while junior guard Carl Lamb netted 20 points, including 18 in the second half, to go with a team-high five assists. Senior forward Jason Campbell maintained his scoring streak, registering 17 points to go with a team-high eight rebounds.
ENMU, which lit up the scoreboard for 59 second-half points, had three players in double figures, led by Jamaal Hunnicutt's double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds, as well as a game-high seven assists, while Kennis Green came off the bench to score 17 points. Garland Coleman netted 14 points, followed by Travazz Buckley with 11 points.
The Greyhounds outrebounded the Buffs, 33-27, and forced 21 WTAMU turnovers.
ENMU shot a blistering 61.1 percent (36-63) from the field, including 6-10 (60.0 percent) from 3-point land. The Greyhounds came into the game 11th in the conference statistics in 3-point percentage (33.0 percent) and last in 3-point FG made (4.0 pg).
WTAMU had a 47.4 shooting percentage (27-57), including 7-17 (41.2 percent) from behind the arc.
ENMU led 30-27 at the half. WTAMU took a 23-22 lead with 6:18 to play, the sixth lead change of the first half, on a pair of free throws from junior forward Carlos Silva.
The Buffs didn't score again for the next 5:26, meanwhile ENMU reeled off six unanswered points to take a 28-23 lead with 3:35 left in the half on a bucket by Irshaun Pinckney. Lamb scored with 52 seconds left, to end the Buffs' drought. Campbell hit a two free throws to pull WTAMU to within 28-27 with 32.8 seconds remaining in the half.
However, ENMU's Garland Coleman hit a running layup with eight seconds left to give the Greyhounds their 30-27 halftime lead.
Coleman tallied 10 points in the first half, offsetting Prater, who led all scorers with 11 points at the break.
The Buffs' Achilles heel in the first half was turnovers, as they committed 14 miscues, compared to 13 for the Greyhounds. ENMU also outrebounded WTAMU, 16-13 in the first half.
After the Buffs cut the lead to one, the Greyhounds erupted for nine unanswered points to take a 39-29 lead with 17:54 left and forcing at WTAMU timeout.
The Buffs chipped away, whittling the deficit to 45-40 with 14:04 to play on a bucket by Lamb.
However, from there, the Greyhounds were off to the races, running away with a 21-5 streak to take a 66-45 lead, capped by a 3-pointer by Edmound Elzy at the 8:57 mark.
The Buffs cut the score to 76-65 with 3:06 to play on a pair of charity shots from Lamb. Prater netted three treys down the stretch to keep the Greyhounds from leaving the Buffs in the dust.
Buffs' Next Action
WTAMU returns home for a four-game homestand, opening on Feb. 9 against Eastern New Mexico, in a 7 p.m. tip.
Fans can catch the action on the Buffalo Sports Network on KGNC 710 AM and www.gobuffsgo.com.
|
