BEAUMONT, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's basketball team is coming down to its final few games remaining in the regular season, and the team will spend the next two on the road at Lamar Saturday and HCU Monday.
The Islanders (16-10, 9-4 SLC) will tip-off against Lamar (15-11, 9-4 SLC) Saturday night at 6 p.m. before closing out the final road trip at HCU (16-18, 4-9 SLC) Monday at 7 p.m.
The Islanders are coming off a 72-61 win against Northwestern State to clinch a berth into the SLC Tournament, set for March 10-13 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Until then, they will continue fighting for seeding as they undertake a challenge on the road.
The last homestand for the Islanders help build confidence back up in the team, as three Islanders scored 20+ points between the two games. They turned in a season-high field goal percentage against the Lions with a .590 clip where junior
Garry Clark was 11-of-12 from the field for 24 points.
The team followed it up with a 72-61 win over Northwestern State that had
Jordan Roberts and
Dian Wright-Forde both score 20+ points. It is just the second time this year that the Islanders had two players score 20+ points in a game, and Wright-Forde has been a part of both instances after he and graduate
Lance-Amir Paul scored 20+ points each against UTRGV back on Dec. 6.
Clark has either recorded 10+ points or 10+ rebounds in 11 SLC game this season, recording a double-double in four of them. He leads the team in both with 12.1 ppg and 8.2 rpg.
Clark's 8.2 rpg ranks fourth in the SLC, though, he ranks third in the league in off. rebounds with 3.2 per game to rank 28th in the NCAA. He also ranks second in FG% at a .526 clip on the year. Redshirt sophomore
Stephen Giwa ranks fifth in off. rebounding with 2.4 per outing. Graduate
Marion Humphrey leads the SLC in assist/turnover ratio (3.2) to rank 13th in the NCAA and ranks fourth in assists (3.7 apg) and fifth in steals (1.6 spg).
A rebound-heavy team, A&M-Corpus Christi tops the conference in rebounds, off. rebounding, def. rebounding (27.0 drpg), and rebounding margin (+7.2). They also lead the league in 3FG% defense (.302). At least seven different Islanders have grabbed a rebound in every game this year.
Both games can be watched live with a subscription to ESPN+. They can also be heard live for free on 1440 AM K-E-Y-S with Steven King on the call.
NOTES
- A&M-Corpus Christi trails just 14-15 in the all-time series with Lamar. A&M-Corpus Christi and Lamar are currently tied for second in the SLC standings, as the result of the game could determine eventual opportunity for byes in the conference tournament. The Islanders have already previously beaten the Cardinals in a 79-71 victory at home earlier this season.
- A&M-Corpus Christi is 15-6 all-time against Houston Christian and have now won seven of the last 10 meetings with the Huskies. The 81-59 victory over the Huskies earlier this season marked just the second-ever time that the Islanders held HCU to under 60 points and first since 2013-14 when they beat them 65-45.
- The Islanders have shot over 33.3 percent from the three in seven SLC games this season, winning every conference game when they make more threes than their opponent.
- The Islanders are 30-2 over the last two seasons when holding the opposition to 70 points or less. They have held 10 Southland opponents to less than 70 points this year. On the offensive end, A&M-Corpus Christi is 23-0 over the last three seasons when shooting over .500 FG%.
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