MIDWESTERN STATE (9-7, 8-7 LSC)
vs UT PERMIAN BASIN (8-9, 7-9 LSC)
Game 1: Thursday, Feb. 25 -- 7:30 p.m.
D.L. Ligon Coliseum (Wichita Falls, Texas)
Game 2: Saturday, Feb. 27 -- 4 p.m.
Falcon Dome (Odessa, Texas)
All-Time Series: UTPB leads 8-4
 
WICHITA FALLS, Texas - Midwestern State battles to keep postseason hopes alive with a pair of games against UT Permian Basin.
 
The Mustangs and Falcons meet Thursday night at 7:30 in D.L. Ligon Coliseum before squaring off Saturday afternoon at 4 in Odessa.
 
FIVE STORY LINES
  
1 |  Midwestern State enters the final series of the season standing ninth in the Lone Star Conference Basketball Point Ranking System. The top eight teams advance to the LSC Postseason Tournament set for campus sites from March 2-7. The rating system is an average of points earned per game in a graduated system considering your opponent's record ranging from three points for a home win against a sub-.250 team to seven points for a win against a team with better than a .750 record on the road. A team receives 0-2.5 points in a loss. The Mustangs have the opportunity to add a total of 8.5 points with a sweep of UT Permian Basin this weekend which be four points at home and 4.5 points on the road against a team with a record of better than .250 but less than .500. If the Mustangs sweep UTPB, they would jump the Falcons with a 3.117 rating to 3.111 for UTPB. That is good enough to claim one of the eight berths in next week's Lone Star Conference Postseason Tournament if St. Edward's doesn't win out by beating St. Mary's in a single game and UAFS twice -- all on the road -- to surge to a 3.176 rating. Even if the Hilltoppers pull off the feat, then St. Mary's would need to gain a weekend sweep at Oklahoma Christian to deny the Mustangs a spot with a 3.272 rating.
 

Rank	School	Rating	Games Played
1	Lubbock Christian	4.357	14
2	West Texas A&M	4.200	10
3	DBU	4.000	15
4	Texas A&M-Kingsville	3.821	14
5	UT Permian Basin	3.250	16
6	Angelo State	3.179	14
7	Texas A&M-Commerce	3.136	11
8	St. Mary's	3.125	8
9	Midwestern State	2.967	15
10	St. Edward's	2.929	14
11	UAFS	2.731	13
12	UT Tyler	2.714	14
13	Oklahoma Christian	2.367	15
14	Texas A&M International	2.250	12
15	Cameron	1.967	15

  
 
2 |  With two games this weekend, Midwestern State finishes the season having played five of a possible eight games against Lone Star Conference West Division foes. The Mustangs missed its series against West Texas A&M due to COVID-19 concerns, then hazardous weather conditions wiped out a road game with Angelo State last week. The Mustangs claimed a win against Angelo State over the weekend after taking losses to Lubbock Christian in January.
 
3 |  Midwestern State sports a 9-7 record heading into weekend play against UT Permian Basin. The Mustangs are looking to finish their first campaign with a winning record since hosting the NCAA Division II South Central Regional with a 24-6 mark in 2015-16. The breakdown of the seven losses is very intriguing. Five of MSU's seven losses have come to teams ranked in the National Association of Basketball Coaches' (NABC) Top 25. Four of the seven losses were by one point, in overtime or both. The Mustangs suffered back-to-back one-point setbacks at No. 15 DBU, another one-point loss in OT to No. 14 Lubbock Christian and an overtime loss to No. 9 St. Edward's.
 
4 |  Midwestern State extended its run of games with at least one 3-pointer to 570 games by hitting six triples in Saturday's win over Angelo State. The Mustangs are one of the premier 3-point shooting teams in NCAA Division II rankings second in the LSC and fifth nationally with 11.4 made triples per game. Juniors Luke Hamilton (3.31) and Derrick Ogechi (2.75) rate second and third in the LSC and 12th and 44th, respectively, in NCAA Division II in made 3-pointers per game.
 
5 |  Midwestern State leads the Lone Star Conference and rates 14th nationally with a +7.2 rebound margin. The opposition has out-rebounded the Mustangs one time in 16 games this season, while MSU has controlled at least a +10 edge on the glass seven times including in each of the last two games. Midwestern attacks the boards relentlessly as a team as five players average at least 4.5 rebounds per game led by junior Jermane Carter (7.5), junior Derrick Ogechi (6.1), junior Jalin Brown (6.0), junior Luke Hamilton (5.6) and freshman Pierre Sanders (4.5). Carter tops the LSC and ranks fourth in NCAA Division II grabbing 4.57 offensive rebounds per game.
 
HEAD COACH JUSTIN LESLIE is in the midst of his second 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. 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 283-149 mark (.655) in 14 seasons as a collegiate head coach including a 17-28 record (.377) at MSU.
 
THE SERIES WITH THE FALCONS
  
Midwestern State and UT Permian Basin meet for the 13th and 14th time on the hardwood with a home-and-home series this week. The Falcons lead the series which dates back to the 2007-08 season by an 8-4 margin. UT Permian Basin has won seven of the last eight meetings between the programs dating back to the 2016-17 season. MSU's lone victory during the came by a 73-65 score on Jan. 10, 2019 in Wichita Falls. The Mustangs are 4-1 against UTPB at D.L. Ligon Coliseum, but are winless in five trips to the Falcon Dome in Odessa.