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ASU (12-4, 2-2 LSC) is 8-0 at home this season and is coming off a week where it earned a 71-59 win over West Texas A&M last Wednesday before falling, 72-68, in overtime against Eastern New Mexico last Saturday on the road. MSU (11-5, 3-1) is coming off an 83-81 loss at home to No. 4 Tarleton State after starting LSC play with wins over A&M-Commerce, WT and ENMU. The Rams are unblemished at home through the first eight games of the season for the first time since the 2000-01 season. During that season, the Rams finished 10-0 at home and advanced to the NCAA Division II tournament. ASU has only five more home this season.

Both Angelo State and Midwestern State have been ranked in the NABC Coaches Poll this season, but are currently unranked. MSU was ranked as high as No. 6 in the nation, while the Rams were No. 22 after starting the season with a program-best 10-0 record. The Mustangs are currently tied with Cameron for second in the LSC standings with 3-1 LSC records, while the Rams are in fourth with ENMU through four games. Tarleton State (15-0) leads the conference race with a 4-0 LSC record.

ASU will continue LSC play this weekend against Cameron (9-6, 3-1 LSC) at 4 p.m. on Saturday in Lawton, Okla. before taking a week break where it will resume play on Saturday, Feb. 1 against Texas A&M-Kingsville (5-11, 0-4 LSC) at the Junell Center.


QUOTES: Angelo State head coach Chris Beard

On playing against Midwestern State at 8 p.m. on Wednesday at the Junell Center:
"We have a lot of respect for the Midwestern State program. Their success speaks for itself; back to back conference championships and five consecutive NCAA tournaments.  Their success has been built with and continues with good coaching and talented players. Nelson (Coach Nelson Haggerty) could win at any level.  Some guys can recruit and some guys can coach.  Nelson and his staff do both.  The success at Midwestern did not come overnight.  It was built over time.  We are working hard daily to do the same here at ASU."
 
On the challenges MSU presents that the Rams will need to overcome:
"Midwestern is very good in transition offense and with offensive rebounding. Monzaigo Williams (MSU's PG) is having as good an individual season as anyone in our conference. We are faced with several challenges in this game both offensively and defensively. We will have to play well and execute well to have a chance."
 
On where the team is at with 10 regular-season games remaining on the schedule:
"Our team continues to be a work in progress. We want to be playing our best basketball of the season in February and March.  To do so, we need to keep trying to improve each day, with every practice and game. One of our biggest weaknesses now is too many unforced turnovers. We must cut down on turnovers as individual players and as a team to be able to compete with the teams we have left on our schedule. We are emphasizing it in practice and in the film room.  Hopefully we can get some carry-over to the games. Our players are trying very hard.  Effort is not the problem."
 
 
ANGELO STATE RAM REPORT
 
The Rams enter Wednesday's game ranked second in the Lone Star Conference in field goal percentage (48 percent) and defensive field goal percentage (39.5). Their defensive presence ranks 17th in the nation, while the team's assist total (234) is first in the LSC and 70th nationally. ASU is averaging 74.5 points per game this season, including scoring 80.2 points per game at home. The Rams are limiting opponents to 69.0 points per game throughout the season and to 65.2 points in games inside the Junell Center.
 
The Rams are shooting 48 percent from the field, 33 percent on 3-pointers (79 of 233) and 65 on free throws (269 of 413). At home, ASU is shooting 52 percent from the field and has limited opponents to 37 percent shooting.
 
ASU topped Midwestern State in the last meeting between the two teams with the Rams earning a 53-50 win in Wichita Falls. The victory snapped a six-game losing streak to the Mustangs along with breaking a 20-game losing streak in Wichita Falls and a 24-game overall road losing streak. MSU has a 43-22 all-time advantage over the Rams.
 

RAM RUNDOWN
 
Kenny Williams recorded his seventh double-double of the season with a 23 point, 15 rebound game against ENMU last Saturday and enters this week leading the Rams with 18.9 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Williams, a senior forward from St. Louis, leads the Lone Star Conference in scoring and is second in rebounding. His 15 rebounds against the Greyhounds established a new career-high and he has now scored 20 or more points in the past four games and in nine games this season. Williams, who is averaging 19.5 points per game at home, has scored in double figures in all but one of the Rams' first 16 games of the season. He scored a season-high 28 points in the season opener against East Central and secured 13 rebounds in a neutral-court win over Arkansas-Fort Smith. Williams was named the LSC Offensive Player of the Week on Nov. 3 and the LSC Defensive Player of the Week on Dec. 7. He is the only player to win a conference weekly honor on both sides of the court this season and is averaging 22.3 points and 9.8 rebounds per game in the first four LSC games (25/10 at Tarleton, 21/8 against A&M-Commerce, 20/6 against WT). Against the Lions, Williams had a highlight-reel dunk which created a YouTube video which has received over 6,400 views. His double-doubles have come against ECU (28/10), York (27/11), Western New Mexico (12/10), McMurry (16/12), Arkansas-Fort Smith (22/13), Tarleton State (25/10) and ENMU (23/15).
 
Bryan Hammond leads the Rams with 64 assists and is averaging 10.3 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. Hammond, a senior guard from New Orleans, is averaging 12 points and 3.3 rebounds through the first four games of LSC play. He has scored in double figures in the past three games and in eight games throughout the season. He scored a season-high 19 points against Western New Mexico and York College and had a season-high eight assists against McMurry at the Junell Center. He has scored 11.6 points per game at home and has shot 50 percent (57 of 112) from the field through 16 games. His 53 percent shooting in LSC play leads the Rams.
 
Daniel Skinner is third on the team with 9.1 points per game and second with 5.5 rebounds per game. A junior forward, Skinner transferred from Jacksonville College after playing his high school basketball at Lancaster. He recorded a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds against York College and has scored in double figures in eight games this season. He is averaging 5.8 rebounds per game in LSC play. Tommy Woolridge is adding 7.4 points per game with Chris Talkington scoring 6.4 points. Woolridge, a junior from Chicago, has contributed 24 assists and 15 steals and is second on the team with 18 made 3-pointers. Talkington leads the Rams with 20 3-pointers this season and has scored in double figures in six games this season. He scored a season-high 17 points at Arkansas-Monticello when he went 5-for-5 from beyond the arc.
 
Omari Gudul has started 14 games this season and is providing 4.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game in his sophomore season. A native of the Congo, Gudul played at Ranger College last season before transferring to ASU. He recorded a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds against York College and has four blocked shots on the season.
 
Ryan Marsh is providing a strong defensive presence for the Rams in LSC play with nine blocked shots through the first four games. Marsh, who started his collegiate career at Dallas Baptist, had a season-high four blocks against Commerce and followed up with three blocks against WT. He is averaging 2.1 points and 2.2 rebounds per game for the Rams in his senior season and ranks sixth in the LSC in blocked shots.
 
Reggie Sutton has played all 16 games as a reserve and is averaging 5.3 points per game in his sophomore season. A San Angelo native, scored a season-high 12 points last Wednesday in ASU's win over WT. Sutton has scored in double figures four times and is shooting 57 percent from the field. Against the Buffs, he went 7 of 8 from the free-throw line. Fellow sophomore Thomas Brandsma is also adding depth as a reserve, scoring 3.3 points and grabbing 2.3 rebounds per game. Brandsma scored a season-high 11 points against A&M-Commerce when he scored 11 points on the back of going 3-for-3 on 3-pointers. Freshman Chantz Chambers is also providing a spark for the Rams as a reserve and is scoring 4.6 points per game. Chambers has scored in double figures three times this season – including a season-high 13 points against Northern New Mexico.  
 
 
MIDWESTERN STATE MUSTANG REPORT
The Midwestern State men's basketball team has been one of the most consistent programs in the nation over the last decade, having advanced to the NCAA Division II tournament the past five seasons and also claiming a LSC title in five of the last seven seasons. MSU advance to the NCAA DII Elite Eight in 2010, 2011 and 2012. The Mustangs started this season ranked No. 13 in the nation before jumping to No. 6 by starting the season with a 5-0 record. A pair of losses to Harding and Arkansas Tech pushed them to No. 19 and losses to CSU San Bernardino and Oklahoma Wesleyan dropped them from the national rankings.

Despite not being ranked, the Mustangs find themselves second in the LSC standings along with Cameron with their 3-1 conference record. MSU started conference play with a 3-0 record with wins over Texas A&M-Commerce (84-73), West Texas A&M (76-70) and Eastern New Mexico (66-41). The Mustangs suffered their first conference loss with an 83-81 home loss to No. 4 Tarleton State last Saturday. The team ranks first in the conference with a plus-7.3 rebounding advantage per game and is second in scoring defense (67.1), scoring margin (7.1), and assist-turnover ratio (1.14). They are 7-3 away from Wichita Falls (4-1 road, 3-2 neutral) and are 2-0 in LSC road games.
MSU is averaging 74.1 points and 41.8 rebounds per game and are shooting 43.5 percent from the field.

Monzaigo Williams leads the Mustangs with 17.3 points, 72 assists and 31 steals this season. A senior from Palmdale, Calif., Williams started his collegiate career at Western Texas College before transferring to MSU. He is also averaging 3.7 rebounds per game and ranks first in the conference and 58th in the nation with his steals total. He is third in the conference in scoring, assists and is also third in 3-pointers made with 35. Williams is shooting 46 percent from beyond the arc on 76 attempts. He is shooting 47 percent from the field and 74 percent from the free-throw line (55 of 74).

DeJuan Plummer is averaging 12.2 points per game and has contributed 36 assists in his senior season. A Detroit native, Plummer played at Frank Phillips College before his time in Wichita Falls. Plummer has made 24 3-pointers (35 percent) coming off the bench as a reserve throughout the season. Xavier Blackburn is third on the team with 9.9 points per game and leads the team with 6.6 rebounds per game. He ranks fifth in the LSC in rebounding per game and fourth in total rebounds (106).

Eddie D'Haiti is adding 8.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game as a senior starter, while Cam Adderly starts at guard and is averaging 7.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Adderly, who is from Nassau in the Bahamas, has also contributed 19 assists and 16 steals this season. Derrell Gibbs has started all 16 games along with D'Haiti and Adderly. Gibbs, a junior from Wichita Falls, is averaging 4.4 points per game and has 35 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game.
The Mustangs will host Texas A&M-Kingsville on Saturday in their next game.

MEDIA COVERAGE: The game will be carried locally on 1260AM KKSA with Jeremy Bryant on the call. A simulcast of the radio broadcast is also available on AngeloSports.com with the link at the top of this release and on the men's basketball schedule page. ASU Athletic Communications will also provide live stats and video ($5.95) of the game and AngeloSports.com will have in-game updates at www.twitter.com/AngeloSports.