The Angelo State men's basketball team returns home to continue through the Lone Star gauntlet, as they host first-ranked Lubbock Christian and Eastern New Mexico.
 
LAST TIME OUT:
The Rams went 2-0 on the road last week, defeating eighth-ranked West Texas A&M 82-79 and Cameron 89-83. ASU handed the Buffs their first home loss of the season behind five double digit scorers led by Tyrell Carroll's 17 points. Against the Aggies, both Carroll and Paul Williams eclipsed the 20-point mark en route to a perfect week on the road.
 
ANGELO STATE RAMS (13-4, 3-2 LSC) vs. #1 LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (17-0, 5-0 LSC)
Thursday, Jan. 27, 7:30 p.m. CST – San Angelo, Texas – Stephens Arena at the Junell Center
Live Video: lonestarconferencenetwork.com/asu
Live Stats: angelostats.com
SERIES HISTORY:
All-Time Series: ASU leads the all-time series 23-7.
Last Meeting: Jan. 16, 2021: LCU, 69-66  – Lubbock, Texas
The Chaps bested the Rams twice in the 2020-21, beating them in Lubbock and San Angelo. The Rams swept a three game series in the 2019-20 season, including a 97-92 victory in the LSC tournament in Frisco.
 
SCOUTING LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN:
The Chaps enter the week as the first-ranked team in the NBCA Division II Top 25 poll. LCU is 17-0 overall on the season and has started conference play going 5-0, picking up wins over UAFS, Oklahoma Christian, Texas A&M – Commerce, UT Tyler, and most recently St. Edward's. LCU is 3-0 against ranked opponents, defeating fifth-ranked Colorado School of Mines in the RMAC/LSC Challenge, WT in a non-conference game Nov. 18^th, and the eighteenth-ranked University of Hawai at Hilo in the Malika Sports Thanksgiving Classic. LCU's last game was on Jan. 20 after Saturday's matchup with St. Mary's was postponed.
 
The Chaps currently hold the third highest-scoring offense in the Lone Star, averaging 78.4 points per game. On the other side of the ball, the Chaps are number one defensively, allowing only 59.1 points per game, which ranks fourth in all of DII, while outscoring opponents by 19.3 points, also tops in the conference. They top the LSC in field goal percentage (52.3), opponent field goal percentage (37.4), free throw percentage (80.7), and assist-turnover ratio (1.61).
 
Parker Hicks leads the Chaps with 16.9 points per game which ranks fourth in the conference, shooting 55.8 percent which is best in the LSC. Lloyd Daniels is adding 15.5 points per game of his own on 54.9 percent shooting, second in the conference. Hicks also leads the team in rebounds with 140, a clip of 8.2 per game, second most in conference. Daniels ranks first in the LSC averaging 35.1 minutes per game, also dishing out 5.1 assists, second in conference.
 
ANGELO STATE RAMS (13-4, 3-2 LSC) vs. EASTERN NEW MEXICO (6-9, 2-4 LSC)
Saturday, Jan. 29, 4 p.m. CST – Stephens Arena at the Junell Center
Live Video: lonestarconferencenetwork.com/asu
Live Stats: angelostats.com
SERIES HISTORY:
All-Time Series: The Rams lead the all-time series against the Greyhounds, 40-39.
Last Meeting:Feb. 6, 2019: ASU, 80-77 – San Angelo, Texas
The Rams and Greyhounds did not meet during the shortened 2020-21 season, last facing each other in 2019. ASU has won 10 of the last 13 games including the last two meetings.
 
SCOUTING EASTERN NEW MEXICO:
The Greyhounds are currently 6-9 on the season, holding a 2-4 record in Lone Star games, having beaten UAFS and Oklahoma Christian in overtime. Eastern is 1-1 against ranked opponents on the year, beating the 24^th ranked Oklahoma Baptist Bison 70-66 in November.
 
ENMU is middle of the pack in points per game, scoring 72.0 points per game while allowing the most points in the LSC at 79.1. The Greyhounds are shooting 43.2 percent on the season from the field and have averaged 35.7 rebounds per game, seventh in the Lone Star.
 
Kentrell Pullian is the leading scoring for the Greyhounds with 12.1 points per game, while Adam Hess adds 11.2 of his own. Pullian also leads the team in rebounds, grabbing 4.8 per contest, and assists, dishing out three a game.
 
QUICK HITS:
-This will be the first time ASU has faced a number one ranked team in the country, the previous highest was vs the third-ranked West Texas A&M Buffs in 2019.
-The highest ranked seed the Rams have beaten was the third-ranked Tarleton State Texans 78-60 in the 2014-15 season.
-The Rams are the highest-scoring offense in the Lone Star, averaging 80.5 points per game.
-ASU leads the LSC in steals with 9.47 per game while Carroll leads the conference with 2.4 steals per game.
-The Rams are the second-highest rebounding team in the Lone Star with 38.7 rebounds per game with Lathaniel Bastian ranking third with 7.9 rebounds per game.
-Carroll is leading the Rams in points per game with 13.6, followed by Paul Williams with 12.9 points per game and Dante Moses with 12.7 per game.