This week marks Lone Star Conference Rivalry Week, during which teams will play each other twice in a home-and-home series. It also signifies the middle point of the league season with only 42 days until the LSC Basketball Championship.
This week’s games between Cameron and Midwestern State will affect the men’s and women’s standings, with the Aggie men amid an eight-game win streak, while the CU women have reeled off 10 straight wins.
Tarleton State boasts the only men’s and women’s programs that are still undefeated in league action.
The top eight men’s and eight women’s teams will qualify for the championship to be played Feb. 29 - March 4 in Allen, Texas. The postseason tournament will decide the tournament champion and the LSC’s automatic qualification to the NCAA tournament.
The LSC men have a 95-58 overall record so far this season, with MSU and Tarleton each having just one loss. In the NCAA South Central Region, the men’s teams are currently 28-13 overall including 16-11 combined versus Heartland Conference teams, 8-1 opposed to the Great American Conference and 4-1 against the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA).
The LSC women are 82-81 overall, with Cameron at 12-2 with the best record. In the NCAA South Central Region, the women’s teams are currently 27-19 overall including 17-11 combined versus Heartland teams, 9-5 opposed to the Great American and 1-3 against the MIAA.
NCAA BASKETBALL STATISTICS (through games 01/12)
Tarleton State paces the nation in scoring defense (51.9) and field-goal percentage defense (35.1).
Midwestern State tops the nation in three-point field goal defense (24.7).
Texas A&M-Kingsville’s Ashton Brown is shooting 96.5 percent from the free throw line (83-86), which is tops in the nation.
Texas Woman’s Cambria Smith leads the nation in assists with 7.7 per game.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
MEN’S OFFENSIVE
Milton Garner, Cameron University, SR, Guard, Kansas City, Mo., State Fair CC
Garner, who leads Cameron in nearly every offensive category this season, had two impressive performances during the week against conference enemies Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M. Garner averaged 22 points per game with a near perfect free throw percentage of .889. He put up 28 points against ENMU and 16 points against West Texas A&M. Additionally, Garner had seven assists and three steals. The CU senior’s excellent play all season has helped lead the Aggies to an overall record of 10-3 and a conference record of 7-1.
MEN’S DEFENSIVE
Brian Word, Tarleton State University, JR, Guard, Baltimore, Md., Millford Mille Academy
Word was productive on both ends of the floor for the Texans, but he was nearly unstoppable on the defensive end, giving up just six total points over a two-game stretch to opposing players. The Baltimore native had four steals, a block and six defensive rebounds in Tarleton’s wins over Angelo State and Abilene Christian. He also dished out a team-high nine assists and averaged 10.0 points a game last week. Besides taking the No. 1 spot in the LSC standings, Word and the Texans continue to lead the nation in scoring defense.
WOMEN’S OFFENSIVE
Peyton Adamson, Tarleton State University, SO, Guard, Rockwall, Texas, Rockwall HS
Adamson exploded on the offensive side of the ball for the Tarleton TexAnns this week with a pair of 20-point plus efforts against Angelo State and Abilene Christian, while shooting .680 from the field. The sophomore was 7-11 from the 3-point line against ASU before going 7-9 from downtown on the road at ACU. In addition to the big scoring, Adamson added a pair of assists and a pair of steals.
WOMEN’S DEFENSIVE
Julie Paunovic, Cameron University, SR, Forward, Cairns, Queensland, Australia
Paunovic’s stellar defense was critical for Cameron in their contests against conference opponents Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M. Paunovic had a total of 18 rebounds between the two match-ups, in addition to her two assists, three blocks, and two steals. The CU senior stood out offensively as well, as she averaged 16.5 points per game. With the help of Paunovic’s excellent play, the Aggies limited opponents to 51.5 points and a .378 field goal percentage to better their overall record to 13-3 and their conference record to 8-1.