Islanders to Support ERACISM Social Inclusion Movement in Home Game against UIW Saturday

Islanders Game Notes (PDF) | Watch Islanders Digital Network | Live Stats

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – As part of a social inclusion movement, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball program will support ERACISM on Saturday when it hosts UIW at 3:30 p.m. at the American Bank Center.
 
The Islanders (3-11, 0-5 SLC) will wear t-shirts that will read ERACISM on the front and THIS GAME IS NO SECRET on the back in the warm up session and on the bench. It is part of ERACISM, which stands for Equality, Reconciliation, Action - Coaches Social Inclusion Movement. The goal is to create education, awareness and action with current and former college basketball coaches leading the way.
 
The movement was created by College Insider, Inc.
 
"I am proud to be apart of the wonderful effort by Collegeinsider.com in the establishment of ERACISM. Not only will this effort bring much needed attention to the social ills of racism, but it will also reveal contributions of so many black athletes and coaches alike who have done it both on and off the basketball court," said head coach Willis Wilson.
 
A&M-Corpus Christi is in the midst of a four-game home stand. The program was shorthanded in its last game against Stephen F. Austin, as four starters were relied upon to play over 35 minutes.
 
The Islanders will seek revenge against UIW (7-8, 4-4 SLC) after a 72-53 defeat on the road on Jan. 23. The Cardinals used a 20-3 run to create separation, which extended from the end of the first half to early in the second. Sophomore Jalen White scored a game-high 17 points.
 
White is the team's leading scorer with 11.0 points per outing and is second in rebounds with 5.6 per game. He's coming off a 19-point, 7-rebound outing vs. SFA. White has a pair of double-doubles on the year.
 
In conference games only, senior Myles Smith is the team-leader with 14.0 points per game. He's coming off back-to-back season-highs with 16 points against Sam Houston and 23 points against SFA.
 
Sophomore Jordan Hairston returned to the lineup Wednesday after missing the previous nine games due to injury. He tallied 13 points and a career-high seven assists.
 
Senior Nolan Bertain ranks fourth in the conference in three-point percentage (.411). He's made at least three long-range shots in seven games this year. Bertain is second on the team in scoring with 9.4 points per game, including 10.8 points in conference matches.
 
Junior De'Lazarus Keys is the team's leading rebounder with 6.8 per game. Keys, who missed the entire non-conference slate due to injury, also puts in 8.0 points per outing.
 
Since the last meeting between the two teams, UIW fell to Houston Baptist 73-57 and Abilene Christian 75-67, but is coming off a 67-58 road win over Lamar on Wednesday.
 
Keaston Willis is one of the league's top scorers and averages 19.6 points per game. He scored 15 points in the first meeting this year. The Cardinals shoot .388 from three-point range as a team as Logan Bracamonte is 25-for-61 (.410).
 
NOTES
- A&M-Corpus Christi is 9-5 all-time against the Cardinals and has won four of the last five meetings.
 
- The Islanders have excelled defensively this year and rank second in the conference in scoring defense (69.9 ppg). They also rank third in the league in both field goal percentage defense (.423) and three-point percentage defense (.292).
 
- A&M-Corpus Christi is 201-97 all-time at home and 133-70 in the American Bank Center. The team is 3-3 at home this year.
 
- The Islanders have been plagued by postponements all season. They've had six conference games postponed to different dates. Prior to conference play beginning, the Islanders went 22 days between games due to postponements. They had their final two non-conference games canceled and first three SLC matches rescheduled.
 
- Senior Perry Francois ranks third in the SLC in blocks with 1.5 per game. He averages 9.1 points and 4.5 rebounds per game to round-out the team's balanced scoring attack.
 
- Head coach Willis Wilson carries a 90-75 record against Southland Conference opponents. He's won 141 games overall since arriving at The Island University and is the program's career leader in coaching victories.
 
Stay Social
- For all the latest on Islanders Men's Basketball, be sure to follow the team on Twitter (@Islanders_MBB), Instagram (@IslandersMBB) and "like" the team's official Facebook page (IslandersMBB).
 
#ShakasUp