KINGSVILLE, Texas – Basketball season is upon us once again as the Texas A&M-Kingsville men's basketball team is set to head on the road to open up the season against South Dakota Mines on Friday in Rapid City, S.D. with tipoff set for 7 p.m. CT. The Javelinas will turn around the following day and make the trip to Nebraska to take on Chadron State on Saturday at 8 p.m. CT.
The Javelinas will be looking to build upon a successful 2022-23 campaign where the squad finished with a 21-12 record, including an LSC East division title, a run to the LSC semifinals, and a trip to the South Central Regional for the third year in a row.
The Hogs head into the season led by first year head coach
Omar Gonzalez and senior
C.J. Smith. Smith was named an LSC preseason player to watch after a 2022-23 season with a team-best 11.1 PPG on 39.2 percent shooting. He also led the Javelinas in assists (87) and steals (37) over the season.
Also returning for the Javs is senior
Kavon Booker who led the team in total rebounds (171) and blocks (36). Junior
Marcus Jones-Green and senior
Isaiah Payne will be looking to continue adding big contributions to the team as well.
SCOUTING THE HARDROCKERS
TAMUK and SD Mines meet to open the season for the third year in a row and seventh time overall. The Javelinas currently hold the series lead 4-2 after a 75-42 victory last season.
The Hardrockers finished 9-19 overall and 8-14 in the RMAC last season.
C.J. Smith led the Hogs with 15 points in the previous matchup.
Kavon Booker also collected 9 points and 3 rebounds in the win.
The Hardrockers return Alejandro Rama and Kolton Frugoli. Rama was the second-best scorer on the squad in 2022-23 with 19.6 PPG on 49.4 percent shooting. Frugoli was the team's leading assister and second-best rebounder, dishing 74 assists and grabbing 135 total boards.
The SD Mines squad returns a wealth of overall experience with six players either seniors, grad students, or fifth-year players.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
TAMUK and CSC meet for the third year in a row as well and the sixth time overall. The Javelinas lead the series 5-0 after an 82-76 win in overtime in 2022.
Chadron State finished the 2022-23 season with a 19-10 overall record and a 16-6 record in the RMAC including a run to the RMAC quarterfinals.
Three Javelinas scored in double-digits last time out against the Eagles, including
C.J. Smith with 13 points and 2 assists and
Kavon Booker with 12 points and 6 rebounds.
CSC returns their top scorer in Bryce Latimer and their top rebounder in Josh Robinson. Latimer averaged 15.2 PPG last season and was also the team's second-top assister with 104. Robinson grabbed 242 boards last season, almost 100 more than the next highest on the team.
Follow the Javelinas all season long by visiting javelinaathletics.com to find links to live stats and streaming information as well as a recap at the end of each contest. To keep up-to-date with Javelina Men's Basketball, follow the program on Facebook /JavelinaMBB or on X @JavelinaMBB. Watch your Javelinas live today on the Javelina Sports Network.
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