LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (7-3, 3-1)
vs. WESTERN WASHINGTON (7-3, 0-2)
Thursday, Dec. 19 – 6 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. CT
South Point Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada)
 
TIPOFF
After a week off, the Chaparrals are headed back out on the road for their final two non-conference games of the season at the 2024 Holiday Hoops Classic. LCU is coming off of two big Lone Star Conference wins on the road against UT Tyler and No. 5 DBU and is riding a four-game win streak into this week's invitational. They will take on a pair of tough opponents in Las Vegas, first facing 6-3 Western Washington before a matchup with 9-2 Montana State-Billings.
 
IN THE ENTERTAINMENT CAPITAL
This will be Lubbock Christian's third trip overall to the Holiday Hoops Classic in Las Vegas, but their first since 2022. They have found success in the South Point Arena so far, going a perfect 4-0 in Las Vegas games. On their last trip, the Chaps earned wins against No. 4 West Liberty as well as Le Moyne College, who now competes at the Division I level. In 2021, wins came against Rollins College and Western Washington. The other men's teams competing in the classic this season include Missouri S&T, St. Mary's, Colorado School of Mines, West Liberty and Angelo State. LCU's women's team will also be playing at the tournament.
 
AWARD CENTRAL
Lubbock Christian sophomore guard Ethan Duncan was named the Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week, the league announced on Monday. It is his first honor this season and the second given to a Chap. Duncan averaged 22 points, four rebounds and two assists over a pair of conference victories, including an upset on the road of No. 5-ranked DBU. Duncan also had two steals, made seven of 13 shots from 3-point range and hit 9 of 10 free-throw attempts. In the 78-67 victory against DBU that snapped the Patriots' eight-game winning streak, Duncan had a game-high 21 points and played all but three minutes. Against UT Tyler, he had 15 second-half points. 
 
BEYOND THE ARC
The Chaps enter the week ranked No. 1 in the nation in three-point field goal percentage. They are shooting 43.6 percent as a team, one full percentage point ahead of the second-place team, and 10 spots higher than the next-highest LSC team (St. Edward's). Three LCU players – Jaylen Thompson, Ty Caswell and Sean Murphy – are shooting better than 50 percent from behind the arc but do not meet the minimum 2.5 made threes per game to be on the conference or national leaderboards. Duncan does though, and his 49.2 percent shooting ranks 13^th nationally and No. 3 in the league.
 
FAIR OR FOUL
Lubbock Christian has limited its opponents to an average of 68.1 points per game this season, which is the fifth-best mark in the Lone Star Conference. They have been able to limit opponents defensively while also committing just 14.0 fouls per game, which is the second-fewest in the conference and ranks No. 20 nationally. Only Midwestern State (13.5 per game) has fewer in the league. Chap opponents have shot 130 total free throws and are shooting 71.5 percent from the line. Aaron Gonzales has committed the fewest fouls of any Chap averaging at least 10 minutes per game, with only six on the year.
 
PROTECT THE ROCK
Through 10 games, Lubbock Christian is averaging just 9.9 turnovers per game, which is the fewest in the LSC. Coming into the matchup with DBU, the Patriots were forcing an average of 26.1 turnovers per game to lead the nation, and the Chaps only turned it over 15 times. Najeeb Muhammad has only turned the ball over 13 times against a team-leading 34 assists. His 2.6 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks second in the LSC.
 
SHARP-SHOOTERS
Effective field goal percentage is a statistic that adjusts field goal percentage to account for the fact that three-point field goals count for three points, while all other field goals only count for two points. Lubbock Christian leads the LSC and ranks No. 11 nationally in that category at 58.5 percent. Against DBU, they only shot 37.5 percent from behind the arc but still shot 49.0 percent from the field overall. Sean Murphy, Caswell, Alex Anamekwe and Jaylen Thompson are all shooting better than 50 percent on the year.
 
THE SERIES WITH THE VIKINGS
Lubbock Christian and Western Washington have met once before, in the exact same place that they will meet this week. In the 2021 Holiday Hoops Classic at the South Point Arena, the Chaps earned an 84-74 win. Lloyd Daniels had 25 points and Parker Hicks scored 24 for LCU in the win.
 
SCOUTING THE VIKINGS

• Western Washington is 7-3 on the year and won its most recent contest against Langara College, which is located in Vancouver, British Columbia, 92-56
• The Vikings were picked to finish sixth among the 10 teams in the Greater Northern Athletic Conference after going 9-9 in GNAC play last year
• Tony Dominguez is in his 13^th season at the helm of the WWU men's basketball program and is 136-81 in his team as the head coach
• The Vikings have six different players averaging double-figures this year, led by Will Wilson with 16.9 points per game.
• WWU leads the GNAC in scoring with an average of 85.3 points per game. They shoot 51.3 percent from the field as a team

 
THE SERIES WITH THE YELLOWJACKETS
This will be the first-ever meeting between Lubbock Christian and Montana State-Billings in men's basketball.
 
SCOUTING THE YELLOWJACKETS

• MSUB is 9-3 on the year and will enter Vegas on a loss, falling to No. 13 Minto State on Saturday 92-66
• Senior Yellowjacket guard Jalen Tot is third in the GNAC in scoring with an average of 17.9 points per game
• Luke Fennelly is in just his second season leading MSUB, but had an excellent first year, winning West Region and GNAC Coach of the Year while leading the Yellowjackets to a conference title and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament
• MSUB was picked to finish second in the GNAC Preseason Poll, just five points behind Central Washington and with only one fewer first place vote
• The Yellowjackets lead the GNAC in three-point field goal percentage, shooting 38.3 percent from behind the arc