TUCSON, Ariz. – Going up against the ninth-ranked team in the nation, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball program will play its fifth contest away from home in the last six games Tuesday when it faces Arizona at 7:30 p.m. (CT) at the McKale Center.
A&M-Corpus Christi (5-4) will be playing for its first-ever win over a ranked opponent in program history.
The Islanders are coming off a 100-63 win over Texas Lutheran, the alma mater of head coach
Steve Lutz. Both senior
Isaac Mushila and senior
Simeon Fryer tallied double-doubles and were two of five Islanders to score in double-figures.
The victory over TLU was A&M-Corpus Christi's first home game in 20 days. It was the longest stretch away from home this year. A&M-Corpus Christi is going for its first true road win of the season Tuesday.
A&M-Corpus Christi ranks top-15 in the nation in steals per game (10.2) and 16th in turnovers forced per game (18.6). Individually, senior
Isaac Mushila is fourth in offensive rebounds per game (4.4), fifth in double-doubles (5) and seventh in rebounds per game (11.2).
Mushila averages a double-double on the season with 15.9 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. He's one of four Islanders averaging in double-figure scoring along with senior
Trevian Tennyson (12.6 ppg), senior
Terrion Murdix (12.4 ppg) and graduate
Ross Williams (11.4 ppg). Mushila is the only Islander to start in all nine games on the year.
The Wildcats are under the direction of second-year head coach Tommy Lloyd. Islanders head coach
Steve Lutz and Lloyd were the only two coaches in the nation last year to take their teams to the 2022 NCAA Tournament as a first-year head coach at a new institution. The Wildcats reached the Sweet 16 with a 33-4 season.
This year, Arizona is off to an 8-1 start with wins over No. 10 Creighton, No. 14 Indiana and No. 17 San Diego State. Their only loss was on the road at Utah. It will be Arizona's second game against a Southland opponent this year after topping Nicholls 117-75 on Nov. 7.
NOTES
- It will be the first-ever meeting against Arizona.
- A&M-Corpus Christi is 1-1 all-time against the PAC-12 with a 67-43 win over Oregon State on Nov. 13, 2009. That victory was also the program's last over a Power Five institution.
- The Islanders are 7-2 in the month of December under Lutz in two seasons. Their only losses are against Power Five schools Minnesota and Notre Dame.
- The Islanders lead the Southland Conference in scoring (79.7 ppg), free throw percentage (.769) and defensive rebounding (25.0 drpg).
- In two seasons under Lutz, the Islanders are 11-0 when they shoot over 50 percent from the field. They are 19-1 when the opposition scores below 70 points.
- A&M-Corpus Christi is ranked No. 148 in the NET Rankings out of 363 Division I institutions. The Islanders are the second highest in the Southland Conference only behind Northwestern State at 117. A&M-Corpus Christi ended last season at 243. Arizona is currently at 15.
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