MSU Men's Basketball Game Day

Midwestern State begins its eighth NCAA Division II South Central Region with an opening round matchup against Newman (Kan.).

The Mustangs are a perfect 6-0 in NCAA II Championship opening round games as they go for their fourth consecutive regional championship.

Newman (Kan.) makes its first South Central Regional showings as the programs meet for just the third time. MSU won both games in 2009 and 2011.

Tipoff at Auraria Event Center is set for 9:30 p.m. (CDT).
     

---

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION

NEWMAN (KAN.)
// Saturday, 03.16.2013 // 9:30 p.m. (CDT) // Auraria Event Center // Denver, Colo.
Live Stats | Audio Streaming (BOB-FM) | Video Streaming | Game Notes (PDF)

SCOUTING THE JETS:  Newman (Kan.) (20-7) rolls into the tournament having lost three of its last four droppign a 93-79 decision to No. 2-seeded St. Mary's (Texas) in the Heartland Conference semifinals Friday in Fort Smith, Ark. Saturday's matchup with Midwestern State will the Jets' first against a Lone Star Conference foe this season.

Newman is paced by 6-0 seniro guard Shamar Acuay who comes off the bench to score 14.6 points while pulling down 3.4 rebounds a game. Seniro guard Darrell Traylor chips in 11.2 points and 4.4 rebounds a game while junior forward Marquis Cuyler adds 10.2 points and 4.3 rebounds a game while junior guard Trae Beck (7.7 points, 1.5 rebounds), senior guard Bobby Wesley (4.5 points, 2.2 rebounds) and junior center Ryan Mesh (4.0 points, 3.6 rebounds) rounded out the NU starting five.

The Jets rank third in NCAA Division II with a +6.3 turnover margin and are 18th in steals per game at 9.7. NU struggles on the glass as the Jets are out-rebounded by nearly four boards a game. Newman scores 76.8 points a game and allows 69.0.

ABOUT THE SERIES:  Midwestern State meets Newman (Kan.) for the third time on the hardwood Saturday afternoon in the opening of the NCAA Division II South Central Regional at Auraria Event Center in Denver. The Mustangs won both meetings including a 72-65 victory on Nov. 21, 2009 in Wichita then claimed an 89-69 win the next season at D.L. Ligon Coliseum in Wichita Falls.
 

---

MUSTANGS FAST BREAK

LAST TIME OUT:  Midwestern State shot a season low 30.6 percent from the field while falling to rival Tarleton State 53-50 Saturday in the Lone Star Conference Postseason Tournament finals at Allen (Texas) Event Center. The Mustangs went 11 1/2 minutes between field goals from a tradition three-point play by senior guard Kevin Grayer with 2.2 seconds left in the opening half until Eddie D'Haiti hit a baseline jumper with 8:32 to go in the contest yet MSU led 40-38 at that point. De'Andre Upchurch and Coleman Furst hit a pair of clutch treys to allow the Texans to reclaim a 52-50 lead with 1:11 to play. MSU senior forward Corbin Thomas polished off his 11th double double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds while D'Haiti added 10 points of his own.

LAST TIME OUT (vs. Newman):  Michael Loyd and Chris Hagan combined for 35 points and 14 assists to lead Midwestern State to its 500th win at D.L. Ligon Coliseum in an 89-69 out of Newman (Kan.) on Jan. 3, 2011. Loyd tallied a game-high 18 points and dished out seven assists while Hagan added 17 points and seven assists to lead the hot-shooting Mustangs who shot 56.1 percent as a team. Thomas Colbert added a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds as MSU built a 51-38 halftime lead and led by as many as 25 points in the second half.

SOUTH CENTRAL TIDBITS

- The Mustangs (2009, 2010, 2011) matched Southeast Missouri State (1988, 1989, 1990)  as the only teams to advance out of the South Central Region in three consecutive seasons.

- The South Central Region has existed in the NCAA Division II Tournament since 1959. This season marks the first time it has included the Lone Star, Hearland and Rocky Mountain Athletic conferences.

- Midwestern State is making its eighth appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament. The Mustangs are one of only six teams to qualify for NCAA II postseason play for each of the last five seasons -- and one of only two from the South Central Region.

- Midwestern State is making its eighth overall appearance in the NCAA Division II postseason which also includes appearances in 1999, 2000, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012.

- MSU earned its just its second at large bid into the national tournament as the No. 4 seed. The Mustangs advanced to the Elite Eight in its last at large season in 2011 as the No. 6 seed. Midwestern received automatic bids as LSC Postseason Tournament champs in 1999, 2000, 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2012.

- MSU claimed the No. 4 seed in the NCAA II South Central Regional for the second time. The Mustangs were also No. 4 advancing to the regional semifinals against Central Missouri in Warrensburg in 2009. MSU garnered the No. 1 seed as the tournament host in 1999, 2010 and 2012.  MSU was the No. 2 seed in 2000, No. 3 seed in 2007 and No. 6 in 2010.

- Midwestern State is 34-23 all time in national tournament which includes a 21-16 mark in 15 NAIA appearances and a 13-7 mark in seven NCAA showings.

LONE STAR CONFERENCE TIDBITS

- Midwestern State claimed the Lone Star Conference championship for the fifth time in the last seven seasons (2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013) after claiming back-to-back titles in 1999 and 2000.

- 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 58-16 (.784) 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 53-21 mark (.716) trailed by West Texas A&M at 42-32 (.568).

- Midwestern State owns the highest all-time winning percentage in Lone Star Conference postseason history with a 23-7 mark (.767) over 12 appearances. The Mustangs are 10-3 in opening round games including wins in their last six first round contests. MSU boasts a 7-3 record in the semifinal rounds and is a perfect 6-1 in the postseason championship round.

- Midwestern State suffered its first LSC Postseason Tournament loss falling to Tarleton State 53-50 on March 9 at the Allen (Texas) Event Cetner. MSU is now 6-1 in the final round with wins over Tarleton State in 1999, West Texas A&M in 2000, Southeastern Okahoma in 2007, Southwestern Oklahoma in 2009, Tarleton State in 2010 and Tarleton State in 2012. The Mustangs have won 15 of their last 17 LSC Postseason Tournament games dating back to the 2007 tourney.

MUSTANGS TIDBITS

- Midwestern State claimed its 20th win of the season in the opening round of the LSC Postseason Tournament against Texas A&M-Commerce. The Mustangs have now won 20 games in each of the last five seasons It's the second longest 20-win season streak in school history as Midwestern won at least 20 games in eight consecutive seasons under the legendary Dr. Gerald Stockton from 1973-81. The Mustangs boast a cumulative 130-30 mark over the last five seasons.

- Midwestern State has outscored or matched the opposition in 24 out of 29 games in the second half this season and is averaging 38.7 points while outscoring its foes by 5.2 points a game. The Mustangs have used the second-half rallies of overcome halftime deficits in 11 times this season. MSU has trailed by 10-or-more points in the first half on nine occasions this season.

- Midwestern State has out-rebounded or matched the opposition in 27 of 29 games this season as the Mustangs rank fifth in NCAA Division II and lead the Lone Star Conference in rebounding margin (+10.4) while leading the LSC in offensive rebounds per game (16.2) and offensive rebound percentage (44.7). MSU has converted 469 offensive rebounds into 461 second chance points, which accounts for an astounding 22.0-percent of its total scoring output.

- Midwestern State coach Nelson Haggerty needed just 61 games to claim his 50th win since taking over the helm of the Midwestern State program in 2011-12 in the LSC semifinals against Incarnate Word. Haggerty led the Mustangs to their third consecutive NCAA II South Central Region championship last season winning the school's sixth and now seventh Lone Star Conference title along the way. Haggerty, who is 50-12 (.806) 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.

- The count of pages flipped in opponents' record books is higher than points put on the scoreboard at times this season for Midwestern State. The Mustangs held Tarleton State to an all-time low scoring output in a 50-34 win on Jan. 12 at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. MSU then held West Texas A&M to their second lowest output since entering NCAA Division II in 1986-87 in a 55-42 win on Feb. 6, 2013 at the First United Bank Center.

- Midwestern State ranks fifth in NCAA Division II and leads the Lone Star Conference with a +10.6 rebound margin. The Mustangs have outrebounded the opposition by at least 20 boards on seven occasions this season including a +32 effort at Angelo State. Only one other Lone Star Conference team has achieved such a feat against NCAA competition this season as West Texas A&M controlled a +20 rebound edge at home against Angelo State. Abilene Christian and Cameron also controlled a +20 rebound edge against York (Neb.) and Southwest Adventist, respectively.

- Midwestern State senior forward Corbin Thomas has been named LSC Defensive Player of the Week honors three times while earning and a top offensive nod in another week. Thomas has notched 11 double-doubles this season while averaging to 13.9 points and 8.4 rebounds a game.

  
NEXT TIME OUT:  With a win, Midwestern State moves on to play the winner of the Metro State (Colo.) and Tarleton State first round contest which is set for Saturday night at  7 p.m. (Central Time) in the semifinal round. The semifinal round matchup is set for Sunday at 8:30 p.m. (Central Time).