ALLEN – Championship Saturday is here and for the first time since 2001, so are the Angelo State Rams.

ASU (26-4) is making its first Lone Star Conference Championship finals appearance since 2001 and is eyeing its first tournament championship since 1989. The Rams will meet Texas A&M-Commerce (23-7) at 5:30 p.m. for the title at the Allen Events Center. ASU advanced to the finals with a 76-53 semifinal win over Cameron, while the Lions upset top-seeded Tarleton State 53-51 in the semifinals on Friday.

The Rams and Lions split their regular-season series with ASU earning a 79-63 win on Jan. 28 at the Junell Center before A&M-Commerce secured a 71-68 win in Commerce on Feb. 25 at The Field House. Game reports for each game are below in this release. This will be the third time Angelo State and A&M-Commerce have met in the LSC tournament with the teams splitting the prior two meetings. The Rams won the 1984 tournament championship with an 83-80 win over the Lions, while Commerce took a 68-66 quarterfinal matchup in 1978.

ASU is making its seventh tournament finals appearance and is 3-3 all-time in the title game. The Rams won the 1989, 1988 and 1984 tournaments and are now 18-24 all-time in LSC tournament action. A&M-Commerce has won four tournament championships in its history with its last title coming in 2005. The Lions are 27-32 all-time in the tournament.
 
REGIONAL RANKINGS
The Rams remain ranked No. 4 in this week's NCAA Division II South Central rankings for the third straight week. ASU, which has a 24-4 in-region record, is behind No. 1 Tarleton State, No. 2 Metro State and No. 3 Colorado School of Mines. The NCAA Selection show will air at 9:30 p.m. on Sunday at ncaa.com where the bids will announced along with locations and matchups. The winners of this week's LSC, Heartland and Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournaments will earn an automatic bid to next week's tournament, while the highest five ranked team will earn at-large bids. The tournament will be hosted by the top-ranked team. ASU is eyeing its first trip to the NCAA tournament since 2009 and it fifth all-time trip.  ASU has made the NCAA tournament in 1988, 1989, 2001 and 2009.
 
NATIONAL/CONFERENCE REPORT
The Rams lead the nation with a 53. field-goal percentage and a 22.5 scoring margin advantage. ASU shot 62.0 percent against the Aggies in the semifinals which was their seventh time shooting over 60 percent in a game this season. ASU is sixth in Division II by limiting opponents to a 39.2 field-goal percentage and with 547 total assists, seventh in assists per game (17.9) and ninth with a 1.51 assist-to-turnover ratio and a 39.2 3-point field-goal percentage defense. The Rams limited CU to 39.2 percent shooting which was the 16th time this season they have held an opponent under 40 percent from the field. ASU led the Lone Star Conference in assist-to-turnover ratio, assists per game, fewest turnovers (349), field-goal percentage, field-goal percentage defense, scoring margin, scoring offense (86.5 ppg.), steals per game (8.5), total assists, total steals (246), turnover margin (4.3) and turnovers per game (12.1). The Rams were second in the conference in rebound margin (7.5), scoring defense (63.7) and won-lost percentage.

ASU comes into the tournament finals with 24 double-digit wins, including a 56-point win over McMurry at home and then 53-point wins over York College and McMurry on the road. The Rams won 11 games by 30 or more points this season and shot over 50 percent in 22 games. ASU also limited its opponents to under 40-percent shooting in 16 games. ASU's 23-point win over Cameron was their second straight double-digit win after they beat Texas A&M-Kingsville by 10 on Wednesday.

ANGELO STATE ROSTER REPORT
Chris Jones earned LSC first-team honors along with being named to the LSC All-Defensive Team and leads the conference 144 assists, 69 steals and a 60.4 field-goal percentage. He is averaging 21.5 points per game in the conference tournament after scoring 21 against Kingsville and then 22 against the Aggies where he also had five assists and seven rebounds. Jones is averaging 15.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 4.8 assists per game. Jones, who is 14th in the nation in steals, has four or more assists in 21 games this season and has scored in double digits in 28 of 30 games. He is second all-time in ASU history with his 69 steals and is only behind James Gray (2000-01) who had 81 steals which is the single-season program record. A senior from Dallas, Jones is a three-time LSC Defensive Player of the Week and has also earned one LSC Offensive Player of the Week honor. Jones scored a career-high with 25 points in a win over West Texas A&M. He established a career-high with 12 assists in a game against York College and has scored 20 or more points in six games this season. Jones is 194 of 321 (60.2 percent) from the field and owns a 2.6 assist-to-turnover ratio which ranks 24th in the nation. Jones is a senior who transferred to ASU this season after playing his first three seasons at North Texas.

Demario Mayfield comes into the finals of the conference tournament leading the Rams with 15.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per game and has 11 double-doubles and one triple-double. He recorded his 11th double-double of the season on Wednesday after scoring 19 points and adding 14 rebounds. He went for 15 points, six rebounds and four steal against the Aggies. Mayfield, who was named to the LSC first team, is fourth in the LSC in scoring and is second in rebounding and assists (123). Mayfield, a senior from Royston, Georgia, has scored in double digits in 27 of 30 games and has 20 or more points in nine games this season. He recorded his triple-double with 14 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds in a win over Arlington Baptist and went 5-for-5 on 3-pointers two weeks against MSU for a season-best. Mayfield is second in the conference – behind only Jones – with his 123 assists (4.2 per game) and is shooting 50.6 percent from the field this season. He shot 5-for-6 from the field and went 4-for-4 from the free-throw line on Friday. He also added four assists to his double-double on Wednesday in the quarterfinals. Mayfield is a two-time LSC Offensive Player of the Week selection and also has one LSC Defensive Player of the Week honor on his season's resume. He is in his first season at ASU after playing his freshman season at Georgia and then two seasons at Charlotte.

Marsell Holden leads the Rams and is second in the conference with 89 3-pointers this season after hitting five 3-pointers and scoring 20 points against the Javelinas in the quarterfinals and making one 3-pointer in the semifinal game against CU. Holden is shooting 43.0 percent from beyond the arc and established a new single-season record by passing Kenny Smith (84; 2004-05) on Wednesday. A senior from Farrell, Pennsylvania, Holden is third on the team with 14.1 points per game and has also added 37 assist and 31 steals. He scored seven points on Friday in the semifinal game. He is 23rd in the nation with his 89 3-pointers. Holden has three or more 3-pointers in 18 of the 30 games this season. He scored a season-high 26 points in a win over Eastern New Mexico. Holden, who was an LSC honorable mention selection, has scored in double digits in 25 games this season and has scored 20 or more points in five games. He is in his first season at ASU after playing two seasons at San Jacinto College and one year at Morehead State. Holden is averaging 2.96 3-pointers per game.

Raijon Kelly is averaging 10.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game for the Rams in his senior season after going for 10 points in the semifinal win over Cameron. He is shooting 54.0 percent from the field and leads ASU at the free-throw line by hitting 38 of 42 (90.5 percent) of his attempts. He led the Rams with six assists on Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the LSC tournament and had two more assists against the Aggies on Friday. Kelly, who is a Minnesota native, has scored in double digits in 17 games this season including a season-high 22 points in a win over ENMU where he went 7-for-7 from the field and also went 6-for-6 from the free-throw line. His free-throw percentage currently ranks second all-time in ASU history behind only Vernon Ragsdale (93.5; 1990-91) and ahead of LaMarshall Corbett (90.3; 2009-10). He currently has 101 assists which ranks eighth in the conference. Kelly is in his first season at Angelo State after playing his first three seasons at Samford University.

Tommy Woolridge is a senior who is in his second season with the Rams and is averaging 4.9 points per game. He has hit 27 3-pointers this season after going 5-for-8 from beyond the arc and scoring 15 points in the regular-season finale against Kingsville last Saturday. Woolridge had two steals and one point on Friday against the Aggies. He had three points against Kingsville on Wednesday in the tournament. A Chicago native, Woolridge led ASU with 37 3-pointers last season and is hitting 43.5 percent of his 3-point attempts this year. Woolridge had previously scored a season-best 14 points earlier this year after hitting three 3-pointers at West Texas A&M and also had 11 points on three 3-pointers against South Dakota School of Mines & Technology. Woolridge has also added 24 steals and 29 assists for the Rams this season.  

Omari Gudul is adding 7.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game in his junior season and has started the past seven of the past eight games for the Rams. Gudul is coming off a quarterfinal where he scored 10 points and had seven rebounds for the Rams before scoring two points on Friday against the Aggies. The tallest player on ASU's roster at 6-foot-10, Gudul leads the Rams with 21 blocked shots this season and has pulled down five or more rebounds in 16 games this season. He now has 37 blocked shots in his career at ASU after transferring from Ranger College. He scored a career-high with 15 points at McMurry and is shooting 64.9 percent (96 of 148) from the field. 

Bilal Richardson and Brentine Taylor have been strong inside throughout the season along with Gudul in their junior seasons. Richardson has started 10 games this season and is averaging 4.5 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. An Atlanta native in his first season at ASU, Richardson has scored in double digits in five games this season including recording a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds against Arkansas-Monticello and is second on the team with 18 blocked shots. Richardson scored six points on Friday in the semifinal win over the Aggies. Taylor, who is also from Georgia and is also averaging 4.8 points per game and is adding 2.5 rebounds per game. Taylor scored a career-best with 13 points at McMurry and had four points for the Rams on Friday. He is shooting 57.6 percent from the field.

DeQuavious Wagner is adding 3.3 points and 1.3 assists per game for the Rams in his junior season. Wagner, who was Mr. Louisiana Basketball in his high school days, transferred to ASU this season after playing two years at the University of Arkansas. He scored a career-high 10 points at Western New Mexico has three or more assists in five games this season. Thomas Brandsma is a junior in his second season at ASU after playing his first year at McMurry. A Colleyville native, Brandsma is averaging 2.6 points and 2.3 rebounds per game after scoring four points in the semifinal win. He has played in all 30 games this season and has 69 total rebounds for the Rams and is shooting 51.6 percent from the field. Brandsma, who is a finance major at ASU, earned LSC All-Academic honors.

Brandsma and Woolridge are the only two Rams who had prior Lone Star Conference Championship experience after playing in last year's tournament.

COACHING REPORT
The Rams are led by Chris Beard who is in his second season at Angelo State and was named the Lone Star Conference Coach of the Year on Tuesday. Beard is 45-13 at ASU after leading the Rams to their 24-4 regular-season record this year and a 19-9 record in his first season. He is currently 3-1 in LSC tournament play after leading the Rams to the Wednesday's quarterfinal win over Texas A&M-Kingsville and a 76-53 semifinal win over Cameron on Friday. A veteran coach with head coaching experience at McMurry, Seminole State and Fort Scott, Beard also worked as an assistant coach at Texas Tech under Bob Knight and Pat Knight. Beard and associate head coach Cinco Boone have led the Rams to a 28-2 record on their home court in their two seasons at ASU. The Rams are making their second trip to the conference tournament under Beard after going 1-1 in last year's tournament, including a quarterfinal win over Cameron which was the program's first postseason win since 2002.
 
PREVIOUS ASU-COMMERCE GAME REPORTS
 
No. 8 Rams extend winning streak to 13 with 16-point win over No. 25 Lions (Jan. 28)
SAN ANGELO –  Demario Mayfield recorded his eighth double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds to help lead No. 8/7-ranked Angelo State to a 79-63 Lone Star Conference win over No. 25 Texas A&M-Commerce on Wednesday at the Junell Center.

The Rams (18-1, 6-0 LSC) extended their program-record winning streak to 13 and also improved to 13-0 at home this season by knocking off the Lions (15-4, 4-2 LSC) in a game where they never trailed. ASU, which led 35-32 at halftime, shot 54.5 percent in the second half and owned a 41-34 rebounding-margin advantage in the game. Commerce saw its six-game winning streak end with the loss to ASU which has not dropped a game since Nov. 28. The Rams had a 28-24 advantage in scoring in the paint, including getting 12 points and six rebounds from  Omari Gudul along with  Bilal Richardson going for eight points, five rebounds and a career-best three blocked shots. Brentine Taylor added seven points inside and the Rams remain the only unbeaten team in LSC play.

"I thought our team defense was good tonight to hold an explosive Commerce team in the 60s," ASU head coach  Chris Beard said. "I thought Bilal, Omari and Brentine all played great as a unit. They prepared all week with graduate assistant coach  Peter Kiganya and talked about dealing with Commerce's size. It was a team effort and we don't win that game if our bigs don't play like they did tonight."
 
Lions edge No. 15 Rams in LSC battle in Commerce (Feb. 25)
COMMERCE – The No. 15-ranked Angelo State Rams fell for the second time in a row for the first time this season after taking a 71-68 Lone Star Conference loss to Texas A&M-Commerce on Wednesday at The Field House.

Tied at 68-68, Christian Macauley took a pass from LaDon Carnegie and had the game-winning dunk which was followed by a free throw with two seconds remaining in the game. A half-court attempt from Raijon Kelly fell short for the Rams (23-4, 10-3 LSC) who had a seven-point lead with seven minutes remaining. Kelly had tied the game at 68 with a 3-pointer with 20 seconds remaining off an assist from  Demario Mayfield . The Lions (21-6, 9-4 LSC) evened the season-series with the Rams after ASU had taken a 79-63 win on Jan. 28 over Commerce at the Junell Center.

Chris Jones led the Rams with 19 points on a 7-for-14 shooting performance and added two assists and two steals, while  Marsell Holden hit four 3-pointers and went for 16 points.  Raijon Kelly hit three 3-pointers and finished with 13 points and  Omari Gudul had 11 points and led the Rams with nine rebounds. Demario Mayfield was held to four points, but had eight rebounds and six assists.

The Rams, who were coming off an 81-78 loss at Cameron, finished the game shooting 50 percent (25 of 52), including going 7-for-18 on 3-pointers. ASU did not shoot a free throw in the first half but went 9-for-15 from the line in the second half. The Lions, who owned a 38-28 rebounding advantage, shot 43.6 percent from the field and hit five 3-pointers to go along with shooting 18-for-24 (75 percent) from the free-throw line.
 
Angelo State Postseason Awards
LSC First Team. . . . . . . . Demario Mayfield 
LSC First Team. . . . . . . . Chris Jones 
LSC Honorable Mention. . .Marsell Holden
LSC All-Academic. . . . . . .Thomas Brandsma
LSC Coach of the Year. . . Chris Beard
 
Angelo State In-Season Awards
LSC Defensive Player of the Week . . . . . . . . . . .Chris Jones (11.18.2014)
LSC Offensive Player of the Week. . . . . . . . Demario Mayfield (12.1.2014)
LSC Offensive Player of the Week. . . . . . . . . . . . .Chris Jones (12.8.2014)
LSC Offensive Player of the Week. . . . . . . . . Marsell Holden (12.22/2014)
LSC Defensive Player of the Week . . . . . . . . . . . . .Chris Jones (1.6.2015)
LSC Defensive Player of the Week . . . . . . . . . . . .Chris Jones (1.12.2015)
LSC Defensive Player of the Week . . . . . . . Demario Mayfield (1.26.2015)
LSC Offensive Player of the Week. . . . . . . . Demario Mayfield (2.09.2015)

 
Most Wins in Program History Reached
26-4       (Current)
22-7       (1983-84)
22-11     (1987-88)
22-8       (2000-01)
20-9       (2008-09)
 
Longest Program Winning Streak Obtained
16           2014-15
10           2013-14
9              1986-87
 
Angelo State Program Records Within Sight

Scoring Average
1967-68                87.6 ppg.
Current                 86.1
1993-94                86.0
1971-72                85.3
1974-75                84.3
1965-66                82.7
 
Field-Goal Percentage
Current                  .534
1987-88                .527
1983-84                .506
1976-77                .492
1974-75                .491
1993-94                .489
2013-14                .464
 
Total Points
2,693                     1987-88
2,596                     1984-85
2,584                     Current
2,474                     2000-01
2,398                     2001-02
2,323                     1993-94
 
3-point Field-Goal Percentage
.417                        1989-90
.393                        Current
.379                        1990-91
.378                        1992-93
 
 
RAMS IN THE ALL-TIME NATIONAL RANKINGS
In the NABC National Rankings: 21 (No. 14, Jan. 2, 1984; No. 17, Jan. 9, 1984; No. 13, Jan. 16, 1984; No. 15, Jan. 23, 1984; No. 17, Jan. 30, 1984; No. 25, Feb. 26, 2001; No. 25, Jan. 28, 2002; No. 25, Dec. 16, 2008; No. 23, Feb. 24, 2009; No. 22, Dec. 10, 2013; No. 23, Nov. 25, 2014; No. 22, Dec. 27, 2014; No. 19, Jan. 6, 2015; No. 14, Jan. 13, 2015; No. 11, Jan. 20, 2015; No. 8, Jan. 27, 2015; No. 7, Feb. 3, 2015; No. 4, Feb. 10, 2015; No. 10, Feb. 17, 2015; No. 15, Feb. 24, 2015; No. 17, March 3, 2015)
In the D2SIDA Media Poll National Rankings: 10 (No. 16, Dec. 2, 2014, No. 19, Dec. 30, 2014; No. 15, Jan. 6, 2015; No. 10, Jan. 13, 2015; No. 8, Jan. 20, 2015; No. 6, Feb. 3, 2015; No. 4, Feb. 10, 2015; No. 9, Feb. 17, 2015; No. 13, Feb. 24, 2015; No. 15, March 3, 2015)
 


Angelo State Reaching the Tournament Finals
7th Appearance (3-3 record)
 
2000-01
Quarterfinals: Angelo State 80, East Central 75
Semifinals: Angelo State 104, Midwestern State 90
Championship: West Texas A&M 75, Angelo State 73
 
1988-89
Championship Angelo State 84, Texas A&M-Kingsville 66
 
1987-88
Semifinals Angelo State 74, Texas A&M-Kingsville 70
Championship Angelo State 94, West Texas A&M 73
 
1984-85
Quarterfinals: Angelo State, 91, Howard Payne 79
Semifinals: Angelo State 88, Texas A&M-Kingsville 74
Championship: Abilene Christian 99, Angelo State 81
 
1983-84
Quarterfinals: Angelo State 76, Texas A&M-Kingsville 65
Semifinals: Angelo State 71, Abilene Christian 57
Championship: Angelo State 83, Texas A&M-Commerce 80
 
1975-76
Semifinals: Angelo State 59, Southwest Texas State 57
Championship: Howard Payne 74, Angelo State 68