LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (11-4, 6-1)
vs. WESTERN NEW MEXICO (2-12. 1-7)
Saturday, January 11 – 3 p.m.
Rip Griffin Center (Lubbock, Texas)
 
TIPOFF
The weather in Texas is cold, but Lone Star Conference basketball action continues to heat up as Lubbock Christian hosts Western New Mexico on Saturday. The Chaps come in riding a three-game wins streak and have won eight of their last nine contests. LCU has shot better than 50 percent in each of the three wins in their current streak and is 8-0 when making at least half of their shots this year. WNMU comes in averaging 63.9 points per game on 39.9 percent shooting.
 
HOW CAN I HELP YOU
Lubbock Christian recorded 25 total assists in Thursday night's 84-54 win against Sul Ross State. It is their most in a single game since Feb. 24, 2022, when they had 27 against Western New Mexico. Forward Sean Murphy was the leading assist man, collecting a career-high seven in the game. Najeeb Muhammad added in five. He leads the team and ranks fifth in the LSC with 58 on the year (3.9 per game). He is also first in assist to turnover ratio at 3.6. LCU's average of 15.2 assists per game ranks seventh in the league.
 
BEYOND THE ARC
The Chaps continued to shoot well from downtown against the Lobos, hitting 42.9 percent of their three-point attempts. The Chaps rank No. 1 in the nation in three-point field goal percentage, shooting 42.8 percent for the year. They average 10.3 made three-pointers per game, which leads the LSC and is 18^th in Division II. Jaylen Thompson and Ty Caswell 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 47.6  percent shooting ranks 13^th nationally and No. 2 in the league. Duncan is also ninth in the country in total three-pointers made with 50
 
SWIPER, YES SWIPING
LCU also set a new season-high in steals on Thursday, pocketing 10 steals. The last time they had at least 10 steals was Feb. 24, 2024, when they had 11 against St. Mary's. Lubbock Christian forced 19 turnovers overall, which is their second-most this season and the most against an NCAA team. The last time they forced 19 or more turnovers against an NCAA team was Dec. 1, 2022 against Oklahoma Christian, which was a 70-68 loss. Four different Chaparral players have at least 10 steals this season, led by Thompson with 20.
 
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. 10 in the nation in that stat with a mark of 58.2 percent. Their actual field goal percentage of 49.4 is good enough for 25^th nationally and second in the LSC. Sean Murphy leads the team in field-goal percentage, shooting 62.2 percent, which would rank No. 20 nationally and second in the LSC if he met the minimum of five made field goals per game.
 
LOOKING AT THE LONESTAR
DBU suffered an overtime loss to St. Mary's Thursday afternoon, leaving a virtual three-way tie atop the LSC standings. The Rattlers, the Chaps and UT Permian Basin all have just one loss in league play this year, although UTPB has played one more league game and sits at 7-1. St. Mary's is now the only team still undefeated in East Division play, while the Chaps and Falcons are the only teams without a West Division loss. Lubbock Christian will travel to Odessa to take on UTPB for the first time this Thursday.
 
AWARD CENTRAL
Lubbock Christian senior forward Sean Murphy was named the Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week, the league announced on Monday. The New Zealand native pulled down 7.0 rebounds and added in 11.5 points per game on 61.1 percent shooting in LCU's two wins. This is the third time this season an LCU player has been recognized with a conference weekly award. Ty Caswell was named Defensive Player of the Week on Dec. 2 and Ethan Duncan earned Offensive Player of the Week honors on Dec. 9.
 
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
The Chaps have only played five games on their home floor through the first 14 games of the year, going 4-1 in that time. They average 88.6 points per game on 52.9 percent shooting inside the Rip Griffin Center while limiting opponents to 66 points per game on 46.3 percent shooting. Four players are averaging double-figures at the friendly confines, led by Caswell and Amondo Miller Jr. with 14 points each. The Chaps are 148-80 (.649) in home games under head coach Todd Duncan.
 
THE SERIES WITH THE MUSTANGS
Matchups between Western New Mexico and Lubbock Christian date all the way back to 1973, but the two teams have only met 24 times overall, with LCU leading 14-10. The Chaps have dominated the series since moving into the NCAA, winning eight of the 10 matchups. The two losses both came in the 2023-23 season. LCU won both matchups last year, 71-61 in Silver City and 88-53 in Lubbock.
 
SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS

• Western New Mexico is shooting 28.2 percent from behind the arc as a team this season, which is the worst in the LSC
• The two Mustang wins on the year have come against Sul Ross and Southwest (N.M.), who is a member of the NAIA
• Matthew Okoye leads WNMU in scoring with 14.8 points per game, but he has only played in the Mustangs' most recent five games
• Head Coach Mark Bunker is in his second season leading the Mustangs and is 6-35 in his time there
• WNMU is second in the LSC (behind the Chaps) in free throw percentage at .725