LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY (9-11, 5-4) at ST MARY'S UNIVERSITY (7-14, 3-6)
Thursday, February 1 – 7:30 PM
Bill Greehey Arena (San Antonio, Texas)
All-Time Series: LCU leads 6-5
Radio: 100.7 FM The Score



 
SOUTH TEXAS SCRAMBLE
Lubbock Christian University has made their way down to San Antonio, Texas for a Thursday night Heartland Conference scrap against St. Mary's University. The Chaps will have the opportunity to complete the regular season sweep over the Rattlers, while continuing to build their resume for the postseason. LCU has won three of their last four contests and sits tied for fourth place in the conference standings (5-4). Dallas Baptist leads the conference (8-2), with four teams sitting behind them with four losses (LCU is one of the four teams).

A LOOK AT THEIR LAST GAME
A three-game win streak came to a close Saturday afternoon, as Lubbock Christian University fell in overtime at No.17 Arkansas - Fort Smith 82-74 inside Stubblefield Center. Isaac Asrat tallied 18 points and seven rebounds to lead four Chaparral players in double figures during the Heartland Conference contest.
 
Arkansas - Fort Smith used outside shooting to take an early 10-5 lead, but LCU marched back and cut the Lions lead to two-points on back-to-back buckets. Adam Rivera provided a layup a 90 seconds later to cap a 5-0 run to regain a seven-point lead for UAFS (18-11). Kentton Williams answered by drilling consecutive buckets for the Chaps, and Ja'Qualyn Gilbreath followed with a mid-range jumper to tie the game at 18-18. Kyree Elder reclaimed the lead for the Lions with a three-pointer at the 11:50 mark. The Chaparrals then exploded on a 14-4 run to take their first lead of the afternoon, with 6:06 left in the half, at 34-28. Asrat sealed up the first period for LCU netting a pair of free throws to give the Chaps a 40-34 advantage at the break.
 
Marcos Schuster was the spark for Lubbock Christian in the opening period, scoring 12-points on a trio of three-pointers and 4-of-6 shooting. His offensive performance helped push the Chaparrals to a 48.1% (13-of-27) field goal average. LCU's defense pressured UAFS into committing nine turnovers in the half. The Lions were also limited to 12-of-29 shooting (41.4%) from the floor.
 
Lubbock Christian came out strong in the second half, scoring eight of the first 12 points on their way to a 48-38 lead. Arkansas Fort Smith began to slowly chip away, and a pair of free throws by Darrion Strong-Moore brought the Lions within two-points, 57-55, at the 5:15 mark. LCU traded points with UAFS until Ladarius Coleman drilled a trey to claim Arkansas - Fort Smith's first lead of the half at 62-61 with 1:59 to play. Asrat quickly recovered for the Chaps sinking a pair of free throws and returning the lead to LCU. Brennen Fowler attempted to provide some late game heroics for Lubbock Christian with a clutch layup on an assist from Rashaan Proctor. Fowler's bucket gave LCU a 65-63 cushion with 24 seconds remaining. Fort Smith's Chris Crawford was fouled just five seconds later where he was able to knock down both free throws and tie things up at 65-65 to close out the second half.

In overtime, Arkansas - Fort Smith opened the extra period on a 10-3 scoring run to take a 75-68 lead. They opened the extra frame 5-of-5 from the field. 
 
Despite Lubbock Christian holding UAFS to a 33.3% shooting performance in the second half, the Lions ultimately overcame a 10-point deficit on their way to the win. The Chaps were unable to match their first half outing and registered a 30.4% field goal average in the second half. Additionally, LCU was outscored 17-9 in the overtime stretch.
 
Fowler and Asrat each collected 10 points over the second half and overtime period. Fowler finished the day just behind Asrat with 17 points, two assists, two blocks and two steals. Schuster (15 points) and Jay Workman (11 points) rounded out the Chap scorers in double-digits while also adding seven rebounds apiece. LCU finished the afternoon shooting 38.6% from the floor, 23-for 34 (67.6%) from the free throw line.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
There were a combined 44 turnovers in LCU's contest at UAFS (LCU had 23). The Chap's 23 turnovers marked a season-high and the most since committing 23 against St. Edward's (Jan. 19).
 
ATTACKING THE BASKET
Despite losing to Arkansas - Forth Smith Saturday, Lubbock Christian has been able to show their prowess on the offensive end over their past four games. Beginning with their 97-83 win over St. Edward's (Jan. 18), the Chaparrals have averaged 85.75 points per game on their way to a 3-1 mark. Asrat has led the way over the four-game stretch with 18.3 points per contest on an impressive 50% shooting (28-of-56) and 10 three-pointers.
 
PLAYING WITH HEART
Since beginning their Heartland Conference schedule, the Chaps have grinded their way to a 5-4 record putting themselves in a tie for the fourth-place position with Rogers State. With seven conference matches remaining, LCU will face three opponents who currently rank tied or above them in the conference standings. The Chaparrals also play four of their next seven competitions on the road. Head coach Todd Duncan and his squad have struggled as the away team and have posted a 2-6 overall road record and a 1-6 mark in Heartland Conference away matches this season.
 
PROTECT YA NET
LCU's defense has been able to flex on their opposition, limiting opponents to a 42% field goal average. The Chaps are pulling down 35.8 rebounds per game, 27.2 of which have been defensive boards. Brennen Fowler currently leads the Heartland with 6.6 defensive rebounds per game, 9.1 total rebounds per game and 182 rebounds on the year. Fowler has also made his way up the Lubbock Christian record books throughout the 2017-18 campaign, where he currently sits in third-place overall with 122 career blocked shots. Fowler's presence in the paint has led the Chaparrals to 4.1 blocks per game to head up the conference. 
 
FROM THE JUMP
Lubbock Christian has relied on a group of six players to rotate between their starting five. Those six alternating starters have packed the biggest punch for the Chaps, scoring 61.9 points per contest while holding the opposition's starting five to 51.3 points. LCU has been able to count on Asrat (18.5 ppg), Fowler (15.1 ppg) and Marcos Schuster (11.5 ppg) for a large portion of their offensive output.
 
StMU FACTS
- The Rattlers head into Thursday night's matchup in the eighth-place in Heartland standings with a 3-6 conference record.
- St. Mary's is currently riding a five-game losing streak where they have scored 66 points per contest.
- So far this season, StMU has registered a -4.7 scoring margin against their opposition on the way to a .333 winning percentage and a 7-14 overall record.
- St. Mary's has gone 3-6 at home this season, but 2-2 at home since beginning the Heartland Conference schedule. Their last home-win against a conference foe came in a 70-67 result over Oklahoma Christian (Jan. 13).
- Junior forward Petar Radojicic has led the Rattlers with 13.5 points per contest. Radojicic has also led his squad in rebounds with a 6.9 average and 144 boards on the season.

RIVALRY AGAINST StMU
Lubbock Christian has nabbed a narrow 6-5 series advantage over the Rattlers since their first meeting in 1992. St. Mary's won that series introduction with an 82-72 result over the Chaparrals (Mar. 7, 1992). LCU has won four of the last five matchups, the most recent of which came earlier this season in an 80-49 statement victory for the Chaps inside Rip Griffin Center (Jan. 6). Duncan's squad has picked up two wins on the road against the Rattlers throughout the series.

PRIOR MEETING WITH StMU
LUBBOCK, Texas (January 6, 2018) – The Chaparrals held St. Mary's University to 17 points in the first half en route to an 80-49 Heartland Conference win inside Rip Griffin Center. Isaac Asrat marked a game-high 17 points, while Brennen Fowler notched his fifth double-double of the season on 14 points and 13 rebounds.
 
LCU jumped out early with Fowler and Asrat combining for the Chap's first five buckets to take an 11-8 lead over the Rattlers, inside the opening eight minutes. Marcos Schuster struck next with a three-pointer, sparking a 15-2 LCU scoring run to take a 26-10 lead with 5:17 remaining in the half. St. Mary's would be held to seven points over the remainder of the half, while LCU finished the period shooting 6-of-8 to take a 43-17 lead heading into the locker room.
 
Lubbock Christian held the St. Mary's offense to 25.9% (7-of-27) shooting in the opening period. Asrat led the Chaps at the break with all 17 of his points for the game on four three-pointers and 6-of-9 shooting. Fowler wasted no time with his double-double, picking up 10 points and 10 rebounds in the half. The LCU offense knocked down a staggering 53.3% (16-of-30) shooting performance in the opening 20 minutes.
 
The Chaparrals didn't let off the gas after the intermission and quickly extended their lead to 29 points, 53-24, after a layup by Fowler at the 15:43 mark. Things got worse for St. Mary's three minutes later, as Freddie Williams was charged with a technical foul that led to four consecutive free throw makes from LCU's Ja'Qualyn Gilbreath. Rashaan Proctor provided the stamp for Lubbock Christian on an old-fashioned three-point play, putting the Chaps up 80-44 with 1:09 left on the clock. Though the Rattlers scored five more points before the buzzer, LCU was able to cruise to an 80-49 final score.
 
Lubbock Christian followed up their first half with a 59.1% (13-of-22) field goal average in the second period. For the game, the Chaparral squad tabbed a 55.8% (29-of-52) shooting performance. Gilbreath (13 points) joined Asrat and Fowler as the lone LCU players in double-scoring figures. Asrat knocked down four of Lubbock Christian's nine triples for the day, leading the Chaparrals to a 50% three-point average.
 
Lubbock Christian moves to 6-9 on the season and 2-2 in Heartland Conference play following the win. Their success over the Rattlers also creates a two-game winning streak.