MIDWESTERN STATE (1-1)
vs CENTRAL OKLAHOMA (3-0)

Saturday, Nov. 20 -- 4 p.m.
D.L. Ligon Coliseum (Wichita Falls, Texas)
All-Time Series: MSU leads 29-24

MIDWESTERN STATE
at #3 WEST TEXAS A&M

Monday, Nov. 22 -- 7:30 p.m.
First United Bank Center (Canyon, Texas)
All-Time Series: WT leads 42-32

WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Midwestern State tips off a challenging three-day stretch with non-conference games against Central Oklahoma Saturday at D.L. Ligon Coliseum before hitting the road to face No. 3-ranked West Texas A&M Monday night in Canyon.

The Mustangs and Bronchos tip off Saturday at 4 p.m., while MSU and WT get started Monday at 7:30 p.m.

Both games are available via pay-per-view video on the Lone Star Conference Digital Network. A free audio stream featuring the Voice of the Mustangs -- Pete Stein -- is also available at MSUMustangs.com/streaming.

GOING TO THE GAMES? All fans at D.L. Ligon Coliseum must purchase tickets online, then present the QR code to scan at the gate for admittance. No walk-up sales are available. Purchase your tickets at www.msumustangs.com/tickets.

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

1 |  Midwestern State split games at the season Ashbrook Classic last weekend at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. The Mustangs recovered from an 87-78 loss to UC Colorado Springs on Friday to beat Colorado State-Pueblo 77-64 on Saturday. The Mustangs were picked sixth in the Lone Star Conference Preseason Poll of coaches, sports information directors and selected media.

2 |  Junior guard Terrell Wilson leads Midwestern State scoring 13.5 points per game through the first two games of the season. He is coming off of a 21-point effort with five assists, three rebounds and two steals Saturday against Colorado State-Pueblo. It was the sixth effort of 20-or-more points of his career. Wilson is 35 points away from reaching 500 for his career.

3 |  Midwestern State remains one of the top offensive rebounding teams in all of NCAA Division II. The Mustangs ranked 17th in the nation last season collecting 13.32 offensive caroms per game. They are off to even better start this season pulling in 19 offensive rebounds per game to rank second in the Lone Star Conference and fifth in NCAA Division II. Midwestern State scored 27 second-chance points off of 27 offensive rebounds in a 77-64 win over Colorado State-Pueblo on Saturday led by senior forward Jermane Carter, who snagged 10 of his 11 total rebounds on the offensive end of the floor. Carter, who ranked seventh in offensive rebounds per game last season, rates third in the country through two games seven offensive boards per game through the first two games.

4 |  Central Oklahoma improved to 3-0 with a 112-62 drubbing of Jarvis Christian Wednesday night at Hamilton Fieldhouse. The Bronchos also owns home wins over Northwestern Oklahoma State (78-68) and UMary (80-71). UCO ventures out of Edmond for the first time this season Saturday afternoon at Midwestern State. Senior forward Isaiah Wade, who began his career at Iowa Western and continued on to Washington State, leads trio of Bronchos averaging double figures averaging 21.3 points and 11.3 rebounds per game. Wade is coming off of a season-high 24 points with 10 rebounds in just 14 minutes against Jarvis Christian but also recorded a double-double with 20 points and 16 rebounds against UMary. Second-year guard Jaden Wells adds 14.7 points shooting 11-of-16 from 3-point range, while junior Camryn Givens adds 10.7 points and six rebounds per game. Veteran coach Bob Hoffman is 27-29 (.482) in his third season at Central Oklahoma. Overall, he owns a 546-350 record (.609) over 28 seasons including stops at Oklahoma Baptist (242-79), UTRGV (68-77) and Mercer (209-165). Hoffman signed current MSU player Luke Hamilton during his 11-year stint at Mercer.

5 |  No. 3 West Texas A&M (5-1) dropped its first game of the season falling 73-66 to No. 9 Lubbock Christian in a rematch of the 2021 South Central Region championship game. The Buffs struggled from the floor finishing the game with a 32 team shooting percentage going 9-of-32 from 3-point range. WT is led by sophomore transfer Larry Wise (North Texas) who averages 17 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, while junior transfer Julius Brown (Lincoln Memorial) pitches in 16.4 points per game. Sophomore sharpshooter Zach Toussaint scores 14.6 points per game and led the team with 11 3-pointers through the first five games. Tom Brown boasts a 186-44 record (.809) in his eighth season at the helm at West Texas A&M. The Buffs are 148-22 (.871) over the last five seasons.

HEAD COACH JUSTIN LESLIE is in his third season at the helm of the Midwestern State men's basketball program. The Mustangs battled to an 8-21 mark in 2019-20 but closed the regular season by winning four out of five games to qualify for the Lone Star Conference Postseason Tournament. MSU also closed the 2020-21 regular season with four straight wins advancing the LSC Postseason Tournament for the second straight year with an 11-8 overall record. Prior to MSU, Leslie posted a 266-121 overall record (.687) at Azusa Pacific leading the Cougars to nine 20-win campaigns, two Pacific West Conference titles, seven postseason tournament appearance and an NCAA Division II Elite Eight showing in 2015. Overall, Leslie owns a 286-151 mark (.654) in 15 seasons as a collegiate head coach including a 20-30 record (.400) at MSU.

THE SERIES AGAINST THE BRONCHOS

Midwestern State and Central Oklahoma meet for the 54th time on the hardwood Saturday afternoon at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. The Mustangs own a 29-24 edge in the series which dates back to the 1948-49 season. UCO edged Midwestern State 73-72 in the last meeting between the programs on Nov. 20, 2019 in Edmond despite D'Monta Harris pouring in 36 points on 13-of-15 shooting with eight 3-pointers. MSU had won the previous three meetings of the series beginning with a 73-66 win in the 2011 NCAA Division II South Central Region final played at Hamilton Field House. MSU swept the Bronchos the next season before UCO departed the Lone Star Conference for the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Midwestern State 24-7 all-time against Central Oklahoma in Wichita Falls winning the last meeting at D.L. Ligon Coliseum by a score of 69-48 on Feb. 18, 2012.

THE SERIES AGAINST THE BUFFALOES

Midwestern State and West Texas A&M meet for the 75th time on the hardwood Monday night First United Bank Center in Canyon. The Buffs own a 42-32 edge in the series which dates back to the 1947-48 season. WT has won its last seven meetings with the Mustangs dating back to MSU's 84-78 win on Jan. 5, 2017. It was last win of Midwestern State's run of eight wins in nine games over West Texas A&M from 2012-17. Interestingly, Midwestern State is now 4-14 against the Buffs at both the First United Bank Center and at the venerable WTAMU Fieldhouse, also known as "The Box." The teams split a pair of games in Amarillo.

UP NEXT

Midwestern State travels to Aberdeen, S.D. to compete in the Dacotah Classic Friday and Saturday at Wachs Arena. The Mustangs take on No. 15 Northern State (S.D.) Friday at 7 p.m., then play Minnesota-Crookston Saturday at 3.