Four Lone Star Conference men's basketball teams completed perfect weeks, highlighted by DBU’s road upset of No. 1 Lubbock Christian. The Patriots were one of two teams to pick up wins versus top 25 opponents as St. Mary’s picked up an OT win against No. 20 West Texas A&M. Texas A&M-Commerce, UT Permian Basin and UT Tyler were the other teams to complete the week unbeaten. LCU remains atop the league standings at 8-1 followed by DBU at 8-2 and StMU at 7-2.
LSC men’s basketball teams are 199-142 overall and 20-12 against the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the other conference in the South Central Region.
LSC schedule and results are available here:
https://lonestarconference.org/calendar.aspx?path=mbball
2022 LSC BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
The LSC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships are set for March 1-3-4-5-6, 2022, with first round games on-campus on Tuesday, March 1. The final eight teams will advance to the Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas, for the quarterfinal, semifinal and championship rounds March 3-6. The top 12 men’s and women’s teams will qualify and be seeded based on the league standings following a single-round robin conference schedule (16 games).
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSIVE
Julian Miranda, DBU, SR, Sports Management, G, Dallas, Texas, DeSoto HS
Miranda spearheaded a DBU offense that went undefeated on the road against Eastern New Mexico and No. 1 Lubbock Christian last week. The redshirt senior totaled 35 points and 17 assists, shooting a blistering 50 percent the field, including 6-of-10 from 3-point range to lead the Patriots to their ninth win in 10 games and their fifth straight win on the road. In a 17-point comeback win against the Greyhounds on Thursday, Miranda stuffed the box score with 20 points, seven assists, three triples (3-of-6), and a 5-of-6 effort from the charity triple. The Patriots' veteran guard cranked the efficiency up even higher versus the previously undefeated Chaps, posting 15 points and a game-high eight assists on 75 percent (3-of-4) perimeter shooting to help DBU overrun an LCU defense ranked fifth in the nation and snap its 20-game win streak. DBU’s 75 points against LCU were the most scored against the Chaps in a regulation game this season.
DEFENSIVE
Ryan Leonard, St. Mary’s, JR, Sociology, G, Kerry, Ireland, Tralee HS
Leonard led the team with seven steals and six blocked shots over the busy four-game week while tying for second on the Rattlers with his 17 rebounds. The Ireland native’s defense came up huge throughout the week and was highlighted in StMU’s upset over No. 20 West Texas A&M when he came away with a career-high five steals, two blocks and five rebounds. Both blocks came in overtime, his last coming with just 33 seconds remaining to keep the Rattlers in front by two possessions. For the week, Leonard anchored a defense that held opponents to just 39.1 percent shooting from the field, including a 26.5 percent (26-of-98) from beyond the arc. The junior also led the team in scoring with 12.5 points per game, headlining a group of five different players in double figures for StMU.
WEEKLY AWARDS
Offensive
N-15 Devaughn Thomas, Angelo State
N-22 Matthew Wilson, UAFS
N-29 Zach Toussaint, West Texas A&M
D-6 Larry Wise, West Texas A&M
D-13 DaJuan Jones, UT Permian Basin
D-21 Lloyd Daniels, Lubbock Christian
J-3 Augustine Ene, Texas A&M-Commerce
J-10 Larry Wise, West Texas A&M (2)
J-17 Cameron Kahn, DBU
J-24 Tyrell Carroll, Angelo State
J-31 Jermane Carter, Midwestern State
F-7 Julian Miranda, DBU
Defensive
N-15 Kavon Booker, West Texas A&M
N-22 Parker Hicks, Lubbock Christian
N-29 Parker Hicks, Lubbock Christian (2)
D-6 Kavon Booker, West Texas A&M (2)
D-13 Clashon Gaffney, Texas A&M-Commerce
D-21 Parker Hicks, Lubbock Christian (3)
J-3 Evan Anderson, UAFS
J-10 Parker Hicks, Lubbock Christian (4)
J-17 Parker Hicks, Lubbock Christian (5)
J-24 Will Chayer, Texas A&M-Kingsville
J-31 Carson Hughes, DBU
F-7 Ryan Leonard, St. Mary’s
SELECTED NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
Julius Brown, West Texas A&M, led the Buffs to a pair of victories against St. Edward's and Cameron while averaging 21.0 points through three games. The Westerville, Ohio product posted a season-high 23 against Cameron along with three steals, six assists and four rebounds. In three games, Brown went 23-of-50 from the floor, 3-of-11 from the deep and 14-17 at the line while collecting 11 rebounds, 13 assists and 11 steals, totaling 63 points. He now has a team-high 39 steals on the season which is the second-most in the LSC.
Parker Hicks, Lubbock Christian, had an incredible weekend on the offensive end of the floor, scoring 25 points in each game as the Chaps went 1-1 on the week. He shot 51.5 percent from the field, including 46.7 percent from behind the arc to lead the team with 25.0 points per game. He also chipped in seven assists and was the team's leading rebounder with 8.5 boards per game.
Josh Brewer, St. Mary’s, shot .529 from the field, including .571 in the Rattlers' upset win over West Texas A&M on Tuesday. He scored a career-high 22 points in that win and was one of five players to average in double-figure scoring for the team. Brewer also sank half of his three-point attempts, making 6-of-12, and was 6-for-8 at the free throw line, helping lift the Rattlers to a 7-1 start in conference play - the best start since 2004-05.
Soloman Thomas, UT Tyler, scored a career-high 25 points in UT Tyler's 73-65 win over Oklahoma Christian in the team's lone game of the week. Thomas went 10-for-19 for the game from the field and scored 18 of his 25 in the first half of action against the Eagles. Thomas knocked down five three-point shots and has scored in double-digits in five straight games for the Patriots.
Demarcus Demonia, Texas A&M-Commerce, totaled 20 points and eight rebounds in the 87-66 win at Oklahoma Christian. Demonia shot 7 for 8 from the field and made three three pointers. He also had four assists, a steal, and a block. He is averaging 10.4 points and 6.4 rebounds on the season, which is seventh in the LSC.
C.J. Smith, Texas A&M-Kingsville, scored in double figures in both Javelina games last weekend and passed out seven assists compared to only two turnovers. On Thursday night, he logged 12 points with three assists, then shot 5-of-11 from the field for 13 points during TAMUK's Saturday victory over St. Mary's, adding four assists and two steals. Smith has now scored in double figures in five straight games and averaged 13.5 points per game for the week.
Jalen White, DBU, led the charge for a defense that went 2-0 on the road last week in a 17-point comeback against Eastern New Mexico and an upset win over No. 1 Lubbock Christian. Against the Greyhounds, White recorded two defensive rebounds and a pair of steals for a Patriots squad that forced 19 turnovers. Then, on Saturday, the senior posted a game-high nine defensive rebounds, a block, and a steal to help hold LCU's top-five offense to just 73 points. The Wichita Falls native also posted 11 points and four assists as the Patriots won their fifth straight game on the road.
Kavon Booker, West Texas A&M, led the Buffs defense that went 2-1 in week 12 with a pair of victories over St. Edward's and Cameron. He registered a double-double against St. Edward's with 10 rebounds and 13 points before collecting his third against St. Mary's with 14 rebounds and 15 points. The Schertz, Texas product went 9-of-26 from the field and 15-of-19 at the line, totaling 33 points. Booker averaged 10.7 rebounds and 11.0 points per game to go along with two blocks, four steals and an assist.
Dayante McClellan, Texas A&M-Kingsville, continued to be a rebounding machine for a Javelina team that limited its two opponents to a 37.6 shooting percentage. On Thursday night, he set a season-high with a season-high 11 rebounds, a blocked shot and also added six points. Two days later, McClellan snatched up eight more boards and tallied seven points to go with a pair of blocks and a steal as the Hogs held St. Mary's to 28 percent from the floor and a season-low 55 points. McClellan averaged 9.5 rebounds per game for the week and 6.5 points per game.
Alphonso Willis, Texas A&M-Commerce, made his mark in all facets on Saturday at Oklahoma Christian in the Lions’ 87-66 win. He tallied 14 points, eight assists, four rebounds, four steals, and a block. He shot 6 for 10 from the field and helped the Lions to restrict the Eagles to shoot 3 for 16 from outside the three-point arc. He is 14th in the conference with an average of 3.4 assists per game and is seventh in the LSC with an average of 6.4 rebounds per game.