KINGSVILLE, Texas – Texas A&M University-Kingsville (9-6, 2-3 LSC) will be put through the ringer this weekend as they have dates scheduled with two top-ten programs according to the National Association of Basketball Coaches Poll as of January 9. On Thursday, January 11, the Javelinas will take on #6 UT Permian Basin (13-1, 5-0 LSC) at 7:30 p.m. followed by a 2 p.m. tip-off on Saturday, January 13 versus #8 West Texas A&M University (14-1, 4-1 LSC). Both games will be played inside of the Gil E. Steinke Physical Education Center. 

At the conclusion of this weekend, what has been a tough stretch for the Javelinas should slow down just a tad. The last four games for the Blue and Gold will have been played against teams in the top five of the Lone Star Conference and three of the four teams have been nationally ranked. The upcoming games will be arguably the toughest yet as UTPB comes in as the best three-point shooting team percentage wise, while WT has knocked down the most triples in all of the LSC. TAMUK can serve as the kryptonite for both teams, however, as they lead the league in three-point field goal defense with a .320 clip. With two high-powered offenses coming to town, it will be the Hogs defense that will have to step up. That has not been an issue all season long though, as they rank second in the league with 63 total blocks, and sit third with a 2.60 turnover margin. 

After pouring in a season-high of 26 points last game, Trey Sumpter remains the teams scoring leader with an average of 12 ppg and ties Robert Stevenson with 5.5 rebounds per game. Stevenson (6.4 ppg) is second in the conference with 27 total blocks (1.9 per game). After Sumpter, the Javs are a score by committee bunch with both Caelan Neal and Jacolby Harris averaging eight points and Derrick Byrd, Will West, and Cris Boleware all chipping in seven points on average.  

A prolific UTPB Falcons' offense will be first on the docket. They are on a league-best ten-game winning streak that dates back to Thanksgiving. Their lone loss of the season came against #23 Dallas Baptist, 87-80 (11/18/17). The Falcons are the top-scoring offense in the LSC and ranks eighth in DII at 91.5 ppg. They also rank first in the league in field goal percentage (.507), three-point field goal percentage (.379), assists per game (18.4), and rebound margin (11.9) - which also ranks third-best in the nation. Reigning LSC Player of the Year Daeshon Francis has been on a tear, averaging a league-best 20.8 ppg, ranks second with 26 steals, sixth with 12 blocks, and eighth with 6.6 rebounds per game. James McPherson drops 16.1 ppg followed by senior Josh Morris who averages 13.7 ppg, 6.7 rebounds per game and has 11 total blocks. Senior guard Sammy Allen serves as the muscle of the team, averaging a double-double with 11.3 ppg, and a league-high 11.9 rebounds per game. He is also the team leader with 52 assists. 

On Saturday, the Buffs will lace 'em up, boasting a six-game winning streak of their own. Their only loss of the season was a 106-100 setback to UTPB. WT will play against Angelo State on Thursday before the trip to South Texas. The Buffs are right behind the Falcons, averaging 91.1 points per contest and have the highest scoring margin in the LSC at 17 points. WT ranks in the top five in both field goal and three-point field goal percentage, but they also make their opponents pay at the charity stripe as they lead the conference with a .746 percentage. 2016 LSC Player of the Year David Chavlovich leads the Buffs with 20.5 ppg and 15 steals. He also leads the LSC with 76 total assists. Jordan Evans adds 17.9 ppg and Ryan Quaid averages an impactful double-double at 14.7 ppg and 10.7 rebounds per game. He also has 20 blocks this season. Rounding out the top scorers for WT is true freshman Gage Prim who averages 11.3 ppg and 7.3 rebounds per game. 

Links to live stats will be made available on javelinaathletics.com as well as a link to the live stream which will feature Mark Inserra on the call. 

Become a member of the 6th Man Pack that features great benefits such as reserved chairback seating for home games and access to the 6th Man Pack Lounge at LSC doubleheaders for the 2017-18 season. The 6th Man Pack Lounge will be catered by Fatman's Meat Market. For more information on joining the team, contact the ticket office at 361-593-4030. 

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