UT Arlington Visits for Senior Night 2011

Wednesday, March 2 • 7 p.m. CT

American Bank Center (8,100) • Corpus Christi, Texas
RADIO: 1230 AM, 103.3 and 96.1 FM (Steven King)
LIVE VIDEO/STATS: GoIslanders.com

THE OPENING TIP
The Texas A&M - Corpus Christi men's basketball team will play its final home game of the 2010-11 season on Wednesday, March 2, as UT Arlington comes to town for a matchup with the Islanders. The game will also be Senior Night 2011, as the team will pay tribute to Horace Bond, Justin Reynolds, Antonio Topps and Demond Watt as the quartet plays its final home game in an Islanders uniform.

The Islanders most recently fell at the hands of Stephen F. Austin in a hotly-contested game on Sunday at the American Bank Center. The Islanders placed four players in double figures, led by Terence Jones' 15, but the Lumberjacks were able to counter with an impressive offensive performance of their own to hold off the home squad.

UT Arlington currently sits at 13-14 overall and 7-7 in league play after a 78-71 overtime loss to Northwestern State on Saturday. Jordan Reves had 19 points and 13 boards off the bench for the Mavs, while Darius Richardson scored 16 as well.

QUICK HITS
• Senior Demond Watt is just six rebounds away from tying Corey Lamkin (2001-05) for the school record in that category. Watt also moved his way into fifth on the Islanders' career scoring list on Sunday, passing former teammate Kevin Palmer.

• Four different Islanders finished in double figures in Sunday's loss to Stephen F. Austin. Terence Jones led the way with 15 points, while Justin Reynolds (14), Demond Watt (13) and Horace Bond (10) all bested 10 points.

• The Islanders hit 21-of-25 free throws against UTSA on Wednesday night, one of their top games at the line this year. Justin Reynolds matched career highs with nine free throws made and 11 attempted.

• Senior Justin Reynolds had his third double-double of the season against UTSA. The Pearland native scored 16 points and grabbed 10 boards in a losing effort. It was his second double-double of the month, as he had 19 and 15 vs. Savannah State.

• Just a few games removed from a foot injury, Chris Mast appears to be hitting on all cylinders. The junior college transfer had 11 points and a career-best eight boards against Lamar after scoring 10 points to go along with six boards and two steals against Texas State on Feb. 15.

• Sophomore Terence Jones had a banner day from the field at Sam Houston State, as the Baltimore native scored a career-high 21 points. Jones was 4-of-7 from downtown and 8-of-14 from the field in the contest.

• Reynolds and fellow senior Demond Watt are just the second pair of Islanders teammates to top 1,000 career points at the same time, joining Corey Lamkin and Travis Bailey, who did so in 2005. Watt (1,238) is fifth in school history, while Reynolds (1,210) is seventh in Islanders lore.

SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS
UT Arlington has been up-and-down all season in the Southland, alternating winning and losing streaks throughout the year. Most recently, the Mavs have lost back-to-back games to the top two teams in the East, including last game's overtime loss to Northwestern State. UTA has seen three of its last four go to extra time, with OT wins over SFA and Southeastern Louisiana preceding the two-game losing skein.

LaMarcus Reed tops the team with 11.8 points per game, while Bo Ingram is close behind at 11.6. On the boards, it has been a team effort, as Ingram, Reed, Brandon Edwards and Jordan Reves all average between 4.7 and 5.5 rebounds a game.

A LOOK AT THE SOUTHLAND
With two games remaining per team, the Southland is still wide open, especially in the West. Texas State is in the lead at 10-4, but Stephen F. Austin is just behind at 9-5. Sam Houston State sits at 8-6, while UTSA and UT Arlington are right at the .500 mark at 7-7. The Islanders are 3-11 in league play.

In the East, things are only slightly more spread out, with McNeese State atop the division at 10-4. Northwestern State is just behind at 9-5 on the season. Nicholls and Southeastern sit at 7-7 to make it a four-way tie for sixth in the league, and Lamar is just behind at 6-8. Central Arkansas sits at 1-12.

WATT'S MORE
In addition to topping the 1,000-point plateau, Demond Watt has also surpassed the 800 rebound mark. Watt is now just six rebounds away from matching Corey Lamkin for the school record in that category (842). Watt is also second in school history in blocks (133), but has no chance of making a run at that school record.

QUALITY AT THE STRIPE
The Islanders had one of their best games of the season at the free-throw line on Wednesday at UTSA. As a team, Texas A&M - Corpus Christi went 21-for-25 at the line, led by a 9-for-11 performance from Justin Reynolds. Each of those numbers matched career highs for the senior. Demond Watt and Horace Bond each went 3-for-4, while three other players were all 2-for-2 at the stripe.

SENIOR SURGE
Senior Justin Reynolds came into this season as one of the most popular players in program history. But after a slow start to his final campaign in an Islanders uniform, even the most devoted of fans had to question whether he had lost some of his luster.

After a recent dry spell, the Pearland, Texas, native caught fire against Savannah State with one of his top outings in an Islander uniform. The senior grabbed a career-high 15 boards to go along with 19 points, his second highest output of the season. He followed that with a team-high 16 points against Texas State, including the team's only two three-pointers. He added 16 points and 10 rebounds at UTSA, his third double-double of the season.

He rang in the New Year with his previous best performance of the season, scoring 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting to go along with three steals against Texas Tech.

Reynolds, who was named to the Dr. Pepper Classic All-Tournament Team for his efforts on the court, is averaging 10.3 points per game after his 14 on Sunday. He is in the top seven in school history in eight different categories.