MIDWESTERN STATE (10-4, 10-4 LSC)
vs #15 TEXAS A&M-COMMERCE (10-2, 10-2 LSC)
Monday, February 22 – 5:30 p.m.
A&M-Commerce Field House (Commerce, Texas)
All-Time Series: MSU leads 44-27
 
COMMERCE, Texas -- Midwestern State looks to take down number 15 Texas A&M-Commerce for the second time this season in the Monday night game at A&M-Commerce Field House in Commerce, Texas. The tip-off time is set for 5:30 p.m.
 
FIVE STORY LINES
 
1 |  In Monday's Lone Star Conference match-up, the Mustangs and Lions fight to climb the point rankings. As of Feb. 14, Midwestern State sits at the top of the rankings with 4.077 points, while Commerce holds at fourth with 3.875. A win for either team could help propel them to the top. With a win, the Mustangs gain seven points and a bigger lead over Lubbock Christian at number two. If the Lions win, they gain five points to potentially move ahead of West Texas A&M.
 
MSU is currently in third of the West Division with a 2-2 record and TAMC leads the North Division at 4-1. Both teams defeated St. Edward's with the Lions going 85-74 and 73-62 in mid-December. The Mustangs played SEU two weeks ago and beat them 74-67. MSU and TAMC split with Cameron, with MSU going 78-81 and 52-75 in Dec. TAMC earned their second loss of the season to Cameron on Feb. 9, 61-66 with previously winning in January, 89-71. Midwestern and Commerce won out against Texas Women's with Midwestern going 67-51 and 46-37 while Commerce had 77-54 and 67-49.
 
2 |  Sitting at a 10-4 mark, the Mustangs are off to their best start through 14 games since the 2014-15 team went 12-2 and 23-7 overall. MSU is on a 9-0 home win streak, starting on Feb. 15, 2020, against UT Tyler. Their last win was Feb. 20, versus Angelo State winning 81-62. The team is undefeated at home for five total games this year at D.L. Ligon Coliseum, including the match against Angelo State. On the road, the squad is 4-4 for the season, dropping points at Cameron (52-75), West Texas A&M (60-78), Lubbock Christian (54-84), and Oklahoma Christian (49-65).
 
3 |  Winning the battle on the boards has been the greatest predictor of success for Midwestern State under coach Christopher Reay and will be a test in today's match. The Mustangs are 11-4 when controlling an edge on the boards since Reay took over last season and in nine of their ten wins this season. MSU ranks third in the LSC and 46th in NCAA Division II with a +4.9 rebound margin. They are also second in LSC, 68th nationally in rebounds per game (39.93). Commerce is the only team in the Lone Star Conference with more rebounds per game (43.25) and ranks 21st in NCAA Division II. They are second in the LSC and 19th in the nation with a +7.7 rebound margin.
 
Senior guard Haevyn Risley leads the team in total rebounds and rebounds per game with 90 and 6.4. With these numbers, she ranks at eighth in the LSC for total rebounds and tenth for rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Mandy Withey led the Mustangs in their last game against Angelo State. The Granbury, Texas, native grabbed six offensive and four defensive rebounds in the match, helping the home team out rebound their opponent 41-37.
 
4 |  Sophomore guard Frances King continues to lead MSU in assist for the season (57) which earns her third best in the conference. She also ranks 74th in NCAA Division II. King goes for 4.1 assists per game, which is fourth in the LSC and 60th nationally. Last season, she averaged 3.1 assists per game for the whole season. The Rockdale, Texas, native had a six assists in MSU's last game against Angelo State. This tied her season-high assists that she seized in the Dec. 11, 2020, game against Cameron.
 
5 |  Senior guard Morgan Lenahan leads MSU in defensive rebounds with 74 total and is second for MSU with 82 rebounds for the season and 5.9 rebounds per game. Lenahan ranks sixth in the Lone Star for defensive rebounds per game. The Haddonfield, N.J., native is first for the team in scoring with 13.9 points per game and tallied double figures in 11 of 14 games this season. She had a standout performance against Angelo State on Feb. 20, with 29 points – a career-high for the senior. She went 11 for 20 from the field, four of seven from beyond the arc, and three for four on free throws. The Mustangs are 8-3 when Lenahan scores more than ten points in a game.

HEAD COACH CHRISTOPHER REAY is almost to the end of his first full season at the helm of his alma mater. He guided the Mustangs to a 4-6 mark over the final 10 games in 2019-20 serving in an interim role following Noel Johnson's leave of absence to continue her fight against ovarian cancer.  His career coaching record stands at 14-10 (.583) heading into Monday's game. Reay served as the top assistant for the previous 10 campaigns playing a hand in guiding MSU to three consecutive NCAA Division II South Central Regionals from 2012-15 as MSU claimed a Lone Star Conference regular and postseason tournament titles in 2012-13. Reay competed two seasons at Midwestern State in 2006-07 and 2007-08 after transferring from SMU helping MSU to an LSC postseason tournament championship and a regional semifinal appearance in 2007.
 
THE SERIES WITH THE RAMS
  
Midwestern State and A&M-Commerce meet for the 72nd time in history, dating back to 1976. The earlier win this season against Commerce snapped a five game winning streak spanning over two years for the series. It also snapped the Lions' four game winning streak they acquired to start the season. Rebounding helped in the win with Midwestern outing Commerce 45-33 and shooting for the Mustangs whomped the Lions 46%-39%. This will be the first game for TAMC since their loss against Cameron on Feb. 9. The last time MSU played at Commerce was Jan. 4, 2020, where they dropped 70-107 to the number eight ranked Commerce.