SILVER CITY, N.M. -- Midwestern State goes for a sweep of its two-game road trip out west as it visits Western New Mexico after handling Sul Ross State on Thursday night, 75-63.

Midwestern State jumped out to 9-0 lead as Reggie Hill made his first two shots from 3-point range. Will Shepherd also hit a shot from beyond the arc in the opening minute, and Midwestern State never relinquished the lead.

The Mustangs (16-5, 11-4) had three players score in double figures. Mason Gibson led the scoring attack with 21 points. Pierre Sanders added 18 points, and Hill chipped in 13 points for the Mustangs, who shot 47 percent from the field, including 9-of-24 from 3-point distance.

Midwestern State is percentage points ahead of UT Permian Basin in fourth place and is three games behind St. Mary's, which sits atop the LSC standings. Dallas Baptist is 14-2 in conference play and Lubbock Christian is 12-3.
Midwestern State is hosting UTPB next week and closes the season with a home-and-home against Lubbock Christian.

Gibson, who is the fourth-leading scorer in the LSC with 16.9 points per game, has scored double figures in 18 of his 20 appearances this season, and scored at least 20 points in seven games.

Pierre Sanders is the second-leading scorer for the Mustangs this season with 13.1 points per game, and he is shooting 51.5 percent from the field (102 of 198). Sanders is shooting 48.5 percent from 3-point range (32 of 66) and is an 86.7 percent free-throw shooter (39 of 45).

The fifth-year senior guard from Hutto, Texas, is second in the conference with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.60, and he is sixth in the league with 3.7 assists per game.

Shepherd averages 9.3 points per game and is the second-leading rebounder for the Mustangs with 5.1 boards per game.

Hill is the fifth-leading rebounder in the conference with 7.3 rebounds per game. Hill has started the last nine games for MSU and has scored 74 points and grabbed 70 rebounds in that span. The 6-8 senior forward from Melbourne, Florida is averaging 7.3 points per game.

Bakari LaStrap, who missed the first eight games of the season due to injury, scores 8.8 points per game for the Mustangs with 2.8 assists and three rebounds per game. LaStrap shoots 43.6 percent from the field (41 of 94) and has hit 31-of-38 free throws (81.6 percent).

Jonathan Jackson hits 2.1 3-pointers per game and averages 7.9 points per game for the Mustangs. The 6-4 guard from Sachse, Texas, is 38-of-98 (38.8 %) from 3-point range.

The Mustangs are second in the LSC and 14th in the nation with a 3-point shooting percentage of 38.7, hitting 9.6 3-pointers per game, which leads the conference. MSU has hit at least 10 3-pointers in 11 games this season, including eight of the last 12 contests.

Midwestern State has an effective field goal percentage of 53.4 percent, which is fourth-best in the LSC. Effective field goal percentage accounts for the added value of three-point shots. MSU attempts the most 3-point shots in the LSC with 24.7 attempts per game.

Midwestern State is the fourth-highest scoring team in the LSC with 77.9 points per game while holding opponents to 66.8 points, which is the fourth-best scoring defense in the league. The plus-11.1 scoring margin is third-best in the LSC and 22nd among NCAA Division II programs.

The Mustangs are 10th in the nation and lead the league with a field goal percentage defense of 39.6 percent, and opponents are only hitting 29.3 percent of their 3-point attempts against the LSC's best 3-point percentage defense, which is 10th best in the nation.

Sanders and Gibson lead the Mustangs with 39 and 37 steals respectively, and MSU is fourth in the league with 8.9 steals per game. Midwestern State is forcing 13.5 turnovers per game while only committing 11.1 turnovers, which is second-fewest in the LSC.

Midwestern State is committing the fewest fouls in the LSC with 14.5 per game, which is the 28th-fewest among NCAA Division II programs.

The Stang Gang is sixth in the conference with 37.3 rebounds per game, and second in the league with 26.8 defensive rebounds per game.

Midwestern State leads the all-time series with the WNMU, 17-3, and has won five of the last six meetings, including an 82-53 win at home on Jan 9. The Mustangs are 5-3 at Drag's Court after posting a 90-77 win in Silver City last season.

Western New Mexico is coming off a 61-53 loss to Lubbock Christian and has fallen to 4-19 overall with at four-game losing streak. The Western Mustangs are 3-13 in the LSC with a 2-7 home record this season.

WNMU is scoring 65.4 points per game and is allowing its opponents to score 78.5 points per game. The minus-13 scoring margin is 15th in the league.

Matthew Okoye is averaging 17.9 points per game in his 13 appearances this season. Carson Kelly is responsible for 13.1 points per game.

Donovan Black is grabbing 5.1 rebounds per game for the Western Mustangs, who are 12th in the conference with 32.5 boards per game as a team.

Kelly leads the squad with three assists per game, and he boasts the best free-throw percentage in the conference, hitting 81-of-90 shots from the foul line (90 %).

Midwestern State hosts UT Permian Basin on Thursday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.