Midwestern State ventures into its most daunting venue in the Lone Star Conference Wednesday night at First United Bank Center.

The Mustangs have lost in its last five trips to Canyon and owns just one win in 10 tries since the FUBC opened in 2002.

It's one of two remaining regular season road trips for MSU, which holds a two-game lead on the Lone Star Conference.

West Texas A&M is 7-2 on its home floor this season and rides a two-game winning streak into the contest.

Tipoff is set for 8 p.m.
   

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MUSTANGS FAST BREAK

LAST TIME OUT:  Junior guard Cam Adderley poured in a season-high 17 points including three 3-pointers to lead Midwestern State to a dominating 79-59 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville Saturday night at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. The Mustangs led by as many as 30 points in the first half and out-rebounded the Javelinas by a 44-20 margin. Junior forward Derek Kaster, freshman guard Conner Geiser and senior forward Jeff Grayer also notched campaign bests with 14, 9 and 8 points respectively. All 10 MSU players scored points in the team effort. It was the Mustangs 11th straight win over Texas A&M-Kingsville.

LAST TIME OUT (vs. West Texas A&M):  Midwestern State's Corbin Thomas (14 points, 10 rebounds) and Eddie D'Haiti (13 points, 10 rebounds) delivered double-doubles to lift the Mustangs to a 65-62 overtime win over West Texas A&M on Dec. 5 at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. WT's Kennon Washington misfired on a go-ahead free throw with 26 seconds left in regulation then MSU scored the final six points in overtime to overcome a 62-59 deficit with 2:15 to play. Keith Spellman buried a 3-poiner then D'Haiti followed a layup with a dunk after MSU drew a player control foul on the next Buff possession. Washington led the Buffs with 23 points.

MUSTANGS TAKE SOLE POSSESSION OF LSC LEAD:  Midwestern State (10-2) finds itself with a two-game lead with six league games to play after extending its winning streak to three games with a 79-59 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville. Cameron's 69-60 win over Incarnate Word Saturday vaulted the Aggies into a second-place tie with the Cardinals at 8-4. West Texas A&M and Eastern New Mexico are tied for fourth at 6-6 followed by Tarleton State (5-5), Texas A&M-Kingsville (5-7), Texas A&M-Commerce (4-6), Abilene Christian (4-8) and Angelo State (2-10).

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 54-14 (.794) 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 48-18 mark (.727) trailed by West Texas A&M at 39-29 (.574).

ROAD WARRIORS TURNING TO DOME DOMINANCE:  Midwestern State boasts a 5-2 road mark during Lone Star Conference play. The Mustangs owe road trips to West Texas A&M and Tarleton State, but close out the season with seven of its last nine LSC contests under the dome beginning on Jan. 26 against Cameron. MSU is 23-1 on its home floor under coach Nelson Haggerty and 65-3 (.956) since the start of the 2008-09 campaign which includes 42- and 21-game winning streaks. Midwestern boasts a 536-125 mark (.811) since the coliseum opened in 1969.

MUSTANGS RARING TO GO IN SECOND HALF:  Midwestern State has outscored or matched the opposition in 17 out of 19 games in the second half this season and is averaging 39.7 points while outscoring its foes by 7.9 points a game. The Mustangs have used the second-half rallies of overcome halftime deficits in 11 of 18 games this season. MSU has trailed by 10-or-more points in the first half seven times this season.

JUST GIVE ME A SECOND CHANCE:  Midwestern State has out-rebounded or matched the opposition in each of its 19 outings this season as the Mustangs rank third in NCAA Division II and lead the Lone Star Conference in rebound margin (+11.6) while leading the LSC in offensive rebounds per game (16.4) and offensive rebound percentage (44.9). MSU has converted 311 offensive rebounds into 298 second chance points, which accounts for an astounding 21.7-percent of its total scoring output.

HAGGERTY ON A ROLL:  Midwestern State coach Nelson Haggerty goes for his 44th 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 43-9 (.827) 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.

AND EVEN MORE CORBIN:  Midwestern State senior forward Corbin Thomas has scored in double figures in nine of his last 12 games including five double-doubles dating back to a home win over West Texas A&M on Dec. 5. The transfer from Missouri State ranks second in the Lone Star Conference and ranks 70th in NCAA Division II with 8.2 rebounds a game and rates fifth in the league and 50th nationally with a 55.5 field goal percentage. Thomas leads the Mustangs in scoring at 12.9 points per game.

KG POINTS IT UP:  Senior guard Kevin Grayer has dished out at least four assists in each of his last seven games, but has responded well since taking over primary point guard duties on Jan. 12 against Tarleton State. In the five games since, Grayer tallied 5.8 assists per game including top games of eight against Cameron and seven against Texas A&M-Kingsville. He boasts a 2.4:1 assist-to-turnover ratio during the stretch while maintaining his all-around game with 12.2 points and 3.2 rebounds a contest.

CAM GETS IT STARTED IN HERE:  Midwestern State junior Cam Adderley has picked up the scoring pace after moving into the starting lineup nine games ago at Eastern New Mexico (12/31). The transfer from Northeastern CC (Colo.) has scored in double figures in each of his last eight games to raise his scoring average from 4.8 to 8.6 points per game during his run as a starter which includes a season-high 17-point, 5-rebound performance Saturday agaisnt Texas A&M-Kingsville. Adderley is averaging 12.9 points and 5.1 rebounds in 27.3 minutes per game as a starter.

KASTER COMING ON STRONG:  Junior forward Derek Kaster delivered a season-high 14-point effort while pulling down eight rebounds in 19 minutes Saturday against Texas A&M-Kingsville. It was his third double-figure effort in his last four outings. Kaster has now accounted for 10-or-more points in six games this season.

D'HAITI DISHES IT OUT:  Junior forward Eddie D'Haiti matched a season high with six assists Saturday night against Texas A&M-Kingsville to go alling with eight points and nine rebounds. He also dished out six helpers against Mid-America Christian on Dec. 17, 2012.

NEXT TIME OUT:  Midwestern State kicks off a four-game home stand Saturday night against Eastern New Mexico then plays host to Abilene Christian, Angelo State and Texas A&M-Commerce. The Mustangs close out LSC play Feb. 23 at Tarleton State.
 

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SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION

WEST TEXAS A&M
// Wednesday, 02.06.2013 // 8 p.m. // First United Bank Center // Canyon, Texas
Live Stats | Audio Streaming (BOB-FM) | Video Streaming | Game Notes (PDF)

West Texas A&M (14-6, 6-6) bounced back to win its last two games after struggling to victories in two of its six previous games. The Buffs are paced by LSC Preseason Player of the Year Donald Sims. The senior forward from Chester, S.C. averages 14.3 points while leading the league in rebounds (8.7 per game) and field goal percentage (68.9 percent). Senior guard Kennon Washington adds 11 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game while senior forward Mason White (9.2 points, 3.6 rebounds), sophomore guard Tez Dumars (9.2 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists) and senior guard Darnell Jackson (8.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists) round out the Buffs attack. West Texas A&M scores 65.1 points and allows 58.4 a contest. The Buffs rank second in the LSC behind Midwestern State in team rebound margin (+8.2).

About the Series: Midwestern State and West Texas A&M meet for the 60th time on the hardwood Wednesday night at First United Bank Center. The Buffs own a 34-25 edge in the ninth longest running series in MSU history which dates back to the 1947-48 season. The home team has won the last nine games while West Texas A&M controls a commanding 9-1 edge in games played at the First United Bank Center. MSU's lone win at the facility came by a 61-55 score on Feb. 25, 2007, but the Buffs have won the last five games in Canyon. WT is 24-6 against the Mustangs all time in Canyon.