No.16 WEST TEXAS A&M (5-0) at LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY (1-2)
Thursday, November 17 - 7:00 PM                                             
Rip Griffin Center (Lubbock, Texas)
Radio: KJTV 950 AM/100.7 FM
All-Time Series: WTAMU leads 16-4
Tweet #LCUvsWT
 
TASTE OF SUCCESS
Lubbock Christian University grabbed their first win of the season against Randall University on Monday night, 91-63. LCU's (1-2) explosive 91-point performance showcased five Chaps in double-figures. Tyler Rogers picked his spots and grabbed a season-high 18 points on Monday night.
 
LAST GAME RECAP
Lubbock Christian University finally broke into the win column with a 91-63 victory over Randall University Monday night inside Rip Griffin Center. Lubbock Christian, hungry for the win following an 0-2 record in the RMAC/Heartland Challenge, had five Chaps in double-figures, led by Tyler Rogers' 18-point performance.
 
Randall jumped out to a 6-2 lead on a free throw by Isaac Bowles and the Saints had the Chaps attention early. The score was never separated by more than a four-point margin in the opening 11 minutes of the game. LCU was able to get a run going, as Jay Workman kicked off a 23-10 run to close out the first half for the Chaparrals over the final 10:29 of the half. LCU led 36-23 at the break.
 
Workman owned the Chaps only three-pointer of the half, while leading LCU scorers on 3-of-6 shooting. As a squad, the Chaps shot 45.2% from the field, while holding the Saints to a 29.6% field goal percentage (8-27). Lubbock Christian outscored Randall 24-12 in the paint.
 
A three-pointer by Randall's Trey Sneed cut the LCU lead to 10 points at the 18:51 mark of the second half. The Chaps rebuilding process followed, with six straight points by Brennen Fowler eventually turning into an 8-3 run and LCU led 48-33 with 15:33 to go. Ridrell Holman knocked down two three-pointers in the game and his second came with 11 minutes left in the contest to put LCU up 64-43. The Chaparrals closed out the night on an 11-5 run and rung up their first win of the season 91-63.
 
Trey Sneed led all scorers with 19 points on 7-14 shooting and 2-of-3 from behind the arc. Sneed also racked up 11 rebounds and en route to a double-double. Sneed and Adam Morales were the only two Randall players to enter double figures for the evening. The Saints Isaac Bowles also added 10 rebounds and six points.
 
LCU stretched the floor, as there were five Chaps in double figures. Lubbock Christian forced 16 turnovers while only committing 10 of their own. Rogers attacked the net with efficiency as he went 7-of-9 (77.7%) from the field for 18 points. Freshman Jay Workman was right behind Rogers with 17 points. Workman also tacked on four assists, three steals, and two blocks. Fowler's 17 points and 14 rebounds gave him LCU's first double-double of the season. Fowler also added three blocks in his 22 minutes. In total, Lubbock Christian shot over 50% from the field and outscored the Saints 18-9 off of turnovers. For the third game in a row, the Chaps put a beat down on their opponent under the basket.  LCU outscored the Saints 52-20 down low while also scoring 15-second chance points.
 
CHAP LEADERS
Brennen Fowler has shown no regard for his defenders so far this season. The sophomore is averaging 17.3 points per game in 77 minutes played. He alone has eight blocks and Monday put up his first double-double of the season.
 
Freshman Jay Workman has done his diligence in his first three games by averaging 12.3 points per game. In his career debut, Workman came off the bench to lead Lubbock Christian scorers with 14 points. Workman also grabbed his first career start on Monday night against Randall University and streaked out to 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting.
 
Redshirt senior, Ridrell Holman has proven to be a threat from behind the arc. He leads the Chaps with seven three-pointers on 16 attempts for a 43.8% average. Holman has been a staple for the Chaps as he leads the squad with 87 minutes played so far.

Despite getting off to a slow 1-2 start, the Chaps have showed promise as they have dominated different aspects of the game. The Chaps have out-rebounded their opponents 107-88. LCU has also blasted opponents in the paint by outscoring them 114-48 under the rim. The Chaps have also converted 37-second chance points while also forcing opponents into 41 turnovers.
 
BUFF UP ON FACTS ABOUT WEST TEXAS A&M
·    The Buffs come into the contest with a perfect 5-0 record on the year. Two of their victories have come over ranked opponents (No. 23 Arkansas Ft. Smith and No. 15 Fort Lewis).
·    The Buffs narrowly missed out on an NCAA Tournament berth in the 2015-16 season. WTAMU finished the year as a nine-seed and were left on the outside looking in with Lubbock Christian capturing the eighth-seed spot in the 2016 NCAA Tournament.
·    As a team, WT leads the nation by shooting 103-150 from the free throw line. The Buffs also top the country with 50 three-pointers made in their five games.
·    West Texas A&M was preseason picked to finish fourth in the grueling Lone Star Conference that includes No. 10 Tarleton State, No. 19 Angelo State and No. 20 Midwestern State holding down the first, second and third spots, respectively. The Buffs return nine upperclassmen including junior David Chavlovich, a 2015-16 NABC All-South Central Region First Team member and NABC All-American. He is the third Buff in WTAMU history to be named to an All-American team.
·    Head Coach Tom Brown enters his third year at the front of West Texas A&M men's basketball program. In his two seasons with WT, Brown has boosted the Buffs to two Lone Star Conference Tournament appearances as well as their first 20-win season since the 2010-11 season. He is 38-22 since arriving in Canyon.
 
SUCCESS AGAINST THE BUFFS
Although West Texas A&M holds a 16-4 all-time record over Lubbock Christian, the Chaps have owned the recent past with the Buffs. In the 2015-16 season, LCU took on the Buffaloes twice and won each contest by 10+ points. In the five seasons since head coach Todd Duncan has taken over at Lubbock Christian, he has topped WT twice in three meetings.
 
In the Chaps first meeting with the Buffs last season, LCU won by a margin of 74-64. Lubbock Christian held WT to a 33.9% field goal percentage, while shooting 22-59 (49.2%). Despite the Chaparrals scoring 74 points, they went 0-7 behind the arc. A majority of LCU's points came from under the basket as the Chaps outscored the Buffs 54-18 in the paint. Lubbock Christian's bench also showed up in a big way as they added 33 points. The then-junior Isaac Cardona posted a double-double with 22 points and 15 rebounds.
 
PRIOR MEETING WITH WEST TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
LUBBOCK, Texas (December 3, 2015) – A 23-7 run by Lubbock Christian University midway through the first half and a crucial 13-2 spurt over West Texas A&M with eight minutes remaining in the contest allowed the Chaparrals to run to a 93-78 victory over the Buffs as Marcus Arrington scored a career-high 18-points for the second consecutive game and Marcos Schuster tallied a season-high 16.
 
The game was made up of contrasting halves as the Chaps (6-1) trailed 36-34 at the break with a trio of three-pointers while the Buffs (6-3) hit twice as many before going 0-for-12 from beyond the arc after the break while LCU hit 8-of-14 from deep and outscored WT 57-41 in the final 20 minutes.
 
LCU's ability to take care of the ball played a pivotal role as the Chaps tossed out 21 assists to 10 turnovers compared to a 9-to-6 ratio from the Buffs. The high scorers of the game shined at different moments, as WT's David Chavlovich went on a tear in the first half with 15 points and finished with six more after halftime. A.J. Luckey's 21 was highlighted by his 14 points after the break. Arrington upped his career-high by a deuce with his 18, Tyler Rogers added 15 and Ridrell Holman chipped in 10.
 
WT quickly gained control of the contest at 22-7 behind 11 points in six minutes from Chavlovich. An and-one by Arrington, a jumper by Schuster and a three-pointer by Luckey pulled LCU to within 10 at the 10-minute mark. Another 10 points, all unanswered, on a combined effort from Schuster, Alford, Cardona and Luckey, gained the first lead since the opening minute at 30-29 with 4:48 on the clock. Rogers gave the Chaps a 36-29 advantage with 1:32 to go before Chavlovich hit a jumper and banked in a three to close the score to a pair heading into halftime.
 
The Buffs regained their lead on a jumper by Ryan Quaid four minutes into the second half until a trey by Schuster and layup by Arrington put the Chaps up 53-49. A Luckey three-pointer fueled the 13-2 run to go up 18 that led to the 93-75 final.