Jackson’s 35 leads No. 12 Eastern New Mexico past No. 8 Lubbock Christian in semifinals - Lone Star Conference Skip To Main Content

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Jackson’s 35 leads No. 12 Eastern New Mexico past No. 8 Lubbock Christian in semifinals

Championship Central
 
By NICK EATMAN

FRISCO, Texas –  With a trip to the LSC Championship Tournament finals on the line, Cooper Jackson scorched the nets from start to finish, scoring a career-high 35 points in a 101-85 semifinal round win over Lubbock Christian Saturday afternoon.

Jackson started out strong with several first half shots, but he was even better in the second half, scoring 20 to lead the No. 2 seeded Greyhounds (26-4) into the finals where they will face top-seed DBU Sunday afternoon at Comerica Center (1 p.m.)

Jackson’s historic performance makes him one of 13 players in LSC Tournament history with 35 or more points scored. He was 12 of 15 from the floor and 6 of 8 from three-point land.

But he wasn’t the only Greyhound standout as ENMU got an all-around effort with all five starters scoring in double figures. Not to be overshadowed by Jackson, Mo Austin was in the neighborhood of a triple-double with 19 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Austin Abrams scored 20 with six boards and Jose Murillo scored 12 with five assists. Treyvon Byrd scored nine of his 11 in the second half and he also had seven rebounds.

LCU (27-5) had four starters in double figures, led by LSC Player of the Year Amondo Miller Jr., who had 23 points. Antonio Pustateri added 21 and assists. Kendall Dow chipped in with 17 and Lucas Mercandino scored 13.

ENMU led by just four at the half 47-43. The Greyhounds never lost the lead and just gradually pushed the lead to double-digits by the 13-minute mark. For the rest of the game, LCU kept it relatively close, but never could get the lead to single-digits.

The Greyhounds used timely baskets, especially from three-point range, making a season-high 11 and 61.1 percent, also a season-best.

The Chaps, who entered the game as the No. 1 seed in the latest South Central Regional rankings, will wait to see where they end up in next week’s regional. LCU, along with DBU and ENMU each have a shot to be No. 1 and host the regional.
           
Eastern New Mexico Notes: 
  • ENMU advances to its third LSC Championship Tournament final appearance in school history. The Greyhounds are 2-0 in the final round, with the last win in 2024.
  • The Greyhounds lead the LSC and rank second in the country in field goal percentage at 51.3 percent. They bested that on Saturday, making 59.4 (38 of 64).
  • The 11 three-point makes is the most by ENMU this year.
  • With Jackson pouring in 35 points, it surpassed his season high of 25 this year and is his sixth 20-point game since joining ENMU last year.
  • Austin Abrams recorded his fourth 20-point game of the season with 20 points.
  • Listed at 5-10, Mo Austin is no stranger to pulling down rebounds. With 10 on Saturday, Austin had his third game with double-digit rebounds.
  • With ENMU facing DBU in the finals on Sunday, it’s a rematch of a February game in which the Greyhounds won 76-73 on a last-second three-pointer by Jackson.
Lubbock Christian Notes:
  • LCU fell short of a third straight appearance in the LSC Championship Tournament finals. The Chaps are now 8-7 all-time in tournament games.
  • Antonio Pusateri led the conference and ranked sixth in the NCAA in rebounds at 10.8 per game but had just four boards on Saturday.
  • The Chaps finished the regular season as the top three-point shooting team in the LSC at 39.4 percent. But Saturday was not their best effort, hitting only 5-of-22 for 22.7 percent, the lowest of the season.
  • Protecting the ball has served LCU well this year. However, the Chaps are now 24-2 in game with 15 or less turnovers after committing just 11 on Saturday.