CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – In the first of two meetings this season, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball program will host UTRGV at 7 p.m. Thursday in the American Bank Center as part of the South Texas Showdown, presented by NavyArmy Community Credit Union.
The South Texas Showdown is an annual rivalry series in which A&M-Corpus Christi and UTRGV compete against each other in 12 sports. The Islanders lead the yearly series 5-1 as an institution, but trail this year 13-6 with each game counting as three points and one awarded for attendance.
A&M-Corpus Christi is coming off a celebratory night Monday when it honored the team with its 2022 Southland Conference Tournament championship rings. The Islanders also raised both the 2022 SLC Tournament championship banner and NCAA Tournament banner in the American Bank Center. A&M-Corpus Christi went on to defeat Trinity 91-73.
Senior
Isaac Mushila is the reigning Southland Conference Player of the Week winner. He averaged 15 points and 11 rebounds in games against Mississippi State and UTSA. Mushila followed it up with 26 points and 17 rebounds in the win over Trinity.
A&M-Corpus Christi won its home opener 75-55 over UTSA. The Islanders trailed 28-25 at half when they used a 26-3 run in the second to take control. Mushila registered 22 points and 16 rebounds, and
Terrion Murdix tied the single game school record with seven steals. The Islanders improved to 21-3 all-time in home openers.
The Islanders opened the season at Mississippi State. A&M-Corpus Christi led 20-8 with 10:14 remaining in the first half and carried a 30-25 edge at the intermission before the Bulldogs came back in the second. Murdix notched a team-high 10 points.
UTRGV is off to a 2-1 start. It fell to Kansas State 93-59 on the road before returning home to beat Southwestern Adventist 115-33 and St. Francis 77-51. Justin Johnson scores 14.7 points per game after leading the team with 17.7 per game last year.
Tickets are on sale and can be purchased online at goislanders.com/tickets or by phone at 361-825-BALL (2255). The ticket office can also be reached via email at tickets@tamucc.edu.
NOTES
- A&M-Corpus Christi is 18-11 all-time against UTRGV and swept the season series last year.
- The Islanders are 2-0 at home this year with double-figure wins over UTSA and Trinity (TX). A&M-Corpus Christi is 213-106 all-time at home and 141-77 in the American Bank Center.
- Mushila averages a double-double with 18.7 points and 13.0 rebounds per game. He's coming off back-to-back double-doubles and leads the Southland Conference in rebounding and is second in scoring.
- A&M-Corpus Christi continues to receive votes in the CollegeInsider Mid-Major Top-25 Poll. They are the only team from the Southland Conference represented.
- The Islanders were picked to win the league in the 2022 SLC Preseason Poll. They earned four Preseason All-Conference selections including three on the First-Team.
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