MSU Men's Basketball Game Day

Midwestern State kicks off Lone Star Conference Rivalry Week Wednesday night against Cameron at Aggie Gym in Lawton. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m.
 
The Mustangs and Aggies then square off in the return game Saturday afternoon at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.

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MUSTANGS FAST BREAK

LAST TIME OUT: Midwestern State limited rival Tarleton State to a program low output in a 50-34 win on Jan. 12 at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. The Mustangs forced the Texans into a woeful 16.9 field goal percentage on 10-of-59 shooting. Senior forward Corbin Thomas led the way with 16 points and eight rebounds while Cam Adderley (12 points, 9 rebounds) and Keith Spellman (10 points, 5 rebounds) also notched double figures. DeAndre Upchurch paced TSU with 13 points off of the bench as Texan starters combined for just 11 points on 3-of-26 shooting.
 
MUSTANGS TOP THE LSC: Midwestern State (7-1) holds a one-game lead over Incarnate Word (6-2) as we near the half-way point in league play. Cameron and Texas A&M-Kingsville are tied for third at 5-3 followed by Texas A&M-Commerce (4-4), West Texas A&M (3-5), Tarleton State (3-5), Eastern New Mexico (3-5), Abilene Christian (2-6) and Angelo State (2-6). After Wednesday night's game in Lawton, MSU closes the league slate with seven of its final nine under the comfortable confines of D.L. Ligon Coliseum.
 
5 SEASONS, 50 LSC WINS:  Midwestern State claimed its 50th Lone Star Conference victory since the start of the 2008-09 season on Jan. 5 at Angelo State. The Mustangs are a cool 51-13 (.797) during the time span which includes three Elite Eights (2010, 2011, 2012) and three Lone Star Conference titles (2009, 2010, 2012). Tarleton State is second with a 46-18 mark (.719) trailed by West Texas A&M at 36-28 (.563).
 
ROAD WARRIORS TURNING TO DOME DOMINANCE: Midwestern State boasts a 5-1 road mark during Lone Star Conference and will close the first half with its seventh league game away from home. Following Wednesday night's contest, the Mustangs owe road trips to West Texas A&M and Tarleton State as they close out the season with seven of nine LSC contests under the dome. MSU is 20-1 on its home floor under coach Nelson Haggerty and 62-3 (.954) since the start of the 2008-09 campaign which includes 42- and 21-game winning streaks. Midwestern boasts a 533-125 mark (.810) since the coliseum opened in 1969.
 
MUSTANGS RARING TO GO IN SECOND HALF: Midwestern State has outscored the opposition in 14 out of 15 games this season and is averaging 40.2 points while outscoring its foes by 9.7 points a game. The Mustangs have used the second-half rallies of overcome halftime deficits in 10 of 15 games this season. MSU has trailed by 10-or-more points in the first half six times this season.
 
JUST GIVE ME A SECOND CHANCE:  Midwestern State has out-rebounded or matched the opposition in each of its 15 outings this season as the Mustangs lead the Lone Star Conference in rebound margin (+10.7), offensive rebounds per game (16.7) and offensive rebound percentage (44.4). MSU has converted 251 offensive rebounds into 235 second chance points, which accounts for an astounding 21.8-percent of its total scoring output.
 
HAGGERTY ON A ROLL: Midwestern State coach Nelson Haggerty goes for his 41st win since taking over the helm of the Midwestern State program in 2011-12. Haggerty led the Mustangs to their third consecutive NCAA II South Central Region championship last season winning the school's sixth Lone Star Conference title along the way. Haggerty, who is 40-8 (.833) in two seasons at MSU, has been a part of Elite Eights in each of the last four seasons and five of the last six serving as an assistant at Central Missouri (2007, 2009) before moving to MSU as Grant McCasland's top assistant (2010, 2011) and moving into his first head coaching role in 2011-12.
 
@DUNKEMC AT #8!!: Midwestern State senior forward Corbin Thomas' alley-oop off of an inbound pass from Kevin Grayer on Jan. 12 against Tarleton State became the first MSU highlight to make ESPN's Top Plays of the Day countdown. The dunk has made Thomas a nominee for the State Farm College Slam Dunk and 3-Point Championships to be hosted at the site of the Final Four in Atlanta.
 
THOMAS NAMED DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK.. AGAIN: Thomas was named Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week for the third time in the last four weeks after scoring 16 points and pulling down eight rebounds with three blocked shots in MSU's 50-34 win over Tarleton State.
 
MORE ABOUT CORBIN: Midwestern State senior forward Corbin Thomas has scored in double figures in seven of his last eight games including four double-doubles dating back to a home win over West Texas A&M on Dec. 5. The transfer from Missouri State leads the Lone Star Conference and ranks 49th in NCAA Division II with 8.5 rebounds a game and rates fifth in the league and 47th nationally with a 56.1 field goal percentage. Thomas leads the Mustangs in scoring at 13.7 points per game.
 
CAM LIKES TO START: Midwestern State junior Cam Adderley has picked up the scoring pace after moving into the starting lineup five games ago at Eastern New Mexico (12/31). The transfer from Northeastern CC (Colo.) has scored in double figures in each of his last four games to raise his scoring average from 4.8 to 7.2 points per game during his run as a starter which includes a season-high 15-point, 7-rebound performance at Texas A&M-Commerce. Adderley is averaging 12 points and 6.2 rebounds in 26.8 minutes per game as a starter.
 
A LIFT OFF THE BENCH: Sophomore guard Keith Spellman connected on a pair of 3-pointers to finish with 10 points and five rebounds off of the bench against Tarleton State. It was his first multiple-trey game since connected on 2-of-more 3-pointers in each of the first six games of the season. Spellman has scored in double figures in three of four games since moving to the bench at the start of the spring semester.
 
GIBBS GOES BIG AT THE POINT: Sophomore Derrell Gibbs didn't score a single point in his first start at the point guard position last time out against Tarleton State. But he played a major role in MSU's very defensive 50-34 win over Tarleton State. He pulled down eight rebounds, dished out four assists to go along with four blocked shots and a steal in 32 minutes.
 
NEXT TIME OUT: Midwestern State plays seven of its next eight at home beginning with the conclusion of the Red River Rivalry Saturday night against Cameron at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.
  

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SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION

CAMERON
// Wednesday, 01.23.2013 // 8 p.m. // Aggie Gym // Lawton, Okla.
Live Stats | Audio Streaming (BOB-FM) | Video Streaming  |  Game Notes (PDF)

Red-hot Cameron (9-5, 5-3) rolls into Wednesday night's matchup on a four-game winning streak and the Aggies have won six of their last seven games since suffering a third-consecutive loss at West Texas A&M on Dec. 8.
 
Junior guard Craig Foster leads a balanced scoring attack averaging 14.9 points per game while dishing out an LSC leading 5.4 assists per game, but six other Aggies tally between 6.1 and 9.9 points a game including junior guard Tim Johnson (9.9 points, 3.4 rebounds), senior forward Andrew D. Thomas (8.1 points, 3.8 rebounds), junior guard Jonathan Patino (6.5 points, 4.8 rebounds), junior forward Trevor Smith (6.5 points, 4.8 rebounds), senior forward Rudy Harrell (6.4 points, 4.2 rebounds), junior guard Asaad Robinson (6.1 points, 2.0 rebounds) and junior forward Aaron Thompson (6.1 points, 3.1 rebounds).

About the Series: Midwestern State and Cameron meet for the 63rd time on the hardwood Wednesday night at Aggie Gym. The Mustangs own a commanding 40-22 edge in the series that dates back to the 1968-69 season and have won the last nine meetings by an average margin of 14.3 points a game dating back to a 79-77 loss on Dec. 9, 2006 in Lawton.