Islanders Begin SLC Preseason Tip-Off Thursday with Game against Northwestern State

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KATY, Texas – Merrell Madness starts Thursday when the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball program plays Northwestern State in the first round of the Southland Conference Preseason Tip-Off event at 5 p.m. at the Merrell Center.
 
The game will not count toward either team's conference record. It will be the first of three games in three days for both the Islanders (11-3) and the Demons (3-11), regardless of the outcomes.
 
A&M-Corpus Christi turned in a historic non-conference slate. The 11 wins are the most it's ever won prior to conference play beginning since joining a league in 2006-07 (the program competed as an Independent prior to joining the Southland Conference). The Islanders got off to their best start in program history with a 10-2 record after 12 games.
 
All 13 student-athletes that have played for A&M-Corpus Christi this year have scored in double-figures in a game. The 13 is tied for the most in the nation with Bowling Green.
 
Junior Isaac Mushila has won two Southland Conference Player of the Week awards this season. He averages 14.1 points and 8.4 rebounds per outing and has four double-doubles on the year. He's second in the SLC in rebounding and fifth in scoring. Mushila, who did not start until the fifth game, has netted over 20 points three times.
 
Along with Mushila, junior Trevian Tennyson averages in double-figures with 11.4 points per game. Tennyson has hit a three-pointer in every game this year.
 
Junior Terrion Murdix leads the league in assist:turnover ratio (2.0), is second in assists (4.1 apg) and third in steals (1.8 spg). He scored a career-high 19 points at Omaha and 18 at Minnesota.
 
Senior Simeon Fryer averages 8.7 points per game and is shooting .442 (19-43) from three-point range. He has doubled his three-point percentage from last year (.224).
 
In the team's last outing, it made a season-high 41 field goals in a 101-49 win over Sul Ross State. The Islanders also pulled down a season-high 59 rebounds, which led to a +28 rebounding margin. Sophomore Stephen Faramade tallied career-highs of 20 points and nine rebounds.
 
The Demons went up against the No. 1 ranked team in the nation in their last game but fell 104-68 to Baylor. It was one of three ranked opponents they traveled to this year along with No. 15 Houston and No. 19 LSU.
 
Kendal Coleman leads the team with 15.1 points and 8.2 rebounds per game and ranks top-25 in the country in field goals made.
 
The game can be watched with a subscription on ESPN+ or heard for free on 1440 AM NewsTalk K-E-Y-S with Steven King on the call.
 
NOTES
- The Islanders are 11-6 all-time against the Demons, including 1-1 on a neutral court. A&M-Corpus Christi has won 7 of the last 8 but the two teams did not play last season.
 
- A&M-Corpus Christi is 2-0 in neutral court games this season with wins over IUPUI and Denver in San Antonio. The Islanders are 23-20 all-time on a neutral court.
 
- The Islanders have more-than doubled their win total from last season when they finished 5-19 overall.
 
- The Islanders carry an RPI of 149 out of 358 teams, which is the second-highest in the Southland Conference only behind Nicholls at 143. The next closest school in the league is McNeese at 240.
 
- The Islanders rank sixth in the nation in turnovers forced with 19.5 per game. They are also 13th in steals per game (10.3), 13th in free throw attempts and 16th in free throws made. Individually, Mushila is top-25 in free throw attempts and made.
 
- In addition to the categories where they rank nationally, the Islanders lead the SLC in scoring (80.3 ppg), scoring defense (67.9 ppg), turnover margin (+6.0), assists (16.86 apg) and assist:turnover ratio (1.25). They are second in field goal percentage (.472) and three-point defense (.329).
 
- A&M-Corpus Christi is receiving votes in the CollegeInsider Mid Major Top-25 Poll.
 
- A&M-Corpus Christi has seven student-athletes who score at least 7.4 points per game.
 
- The Islanders have not been outscored in fast break points yet this season.
 
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