No. 17 LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN (22-7, 17-4)
vs. MIDWESTERN STATE (22-5, 17-4)
Saturday, February 28 – 3 p.m.
Rip Griffin Center (Lubbock, Texas)
 
TIPOFF
How will the West be won? That's what's on the line Saturday as Lubbock Christian hosts Midwestern State for the 2024-25 regular season finale. The Chaps and Mustangs are currently tied atop the West Division standings with identical 10-3 in-division records after MSU won the Thursday matchup between the two teams in Wichita Falls. The winner will earn an automatic spot in next week's Lone Star Conference postseason tournament.
 
SENIOR SENDOFF
Prior to tipoff of Saturday's game, Lubbock Christian will recognize its six graduating seniors for their contributions to the Chaparral basketball program. The six honorees include Albert McBride Jr., Jaylen Thompson, Sean Murphy, Aaron Gonzales, Najeeb Muhammad and Ty Caswell. Gonzales and Caswell have been with the Chaps for their entire collegiate careers, Muhammad is completing his third season after transferring from a junior college, and Murphy, Thompson and McBride have played their final year at LCU.
 
LOOKING AT THE LONE STAR
With their win on Thursday night against UT Tyler and Lubbock Christian's loss, Dallas Baptist clinched the outright Lone Star Conference regular season title and the No. 1 seed for next week's tournament at the Comerica Center in Frisco. LCU and MSU are battling for the No. 2 seed. If the Chaps win, MSU would be the No. 3 seed, holding the tiebreaker over St. Mary's, should the Rattlers win their season finale against St. Edward's. If LCU loses, however, and St. Mary's wins, StMU would be the No. 3 seed and the Chaps would fall to the No. 4 spot because of the early season loss to the Rattlers.
 
THE DEFENSE DOESN'T REST
This weekend's matchup features the two best defensive teams in the Lone Star Conference. MSU leads the league in scoring defense, limiting opponents to an average of 65.4 points per game, but LCU is right on the heels, allowing an averaging of 65.6 points per game. Chap opponents shoot 42.9 percent from the field, including 32.9 percent from behind the arc. LCU has limited opponents to worse than 50 percent shooting 21 times this season, going 19-2 in those contests. They are 9-0 when limiting opponents to less than 40 percent shooting. LCU matched its season-high on Thursday with five blocks. A career-high three of those came from Muhammad.
 
CHARITY STRIPE
Lubbock Christian only attempted five free throws against the Mustangs on Thursday night, making five of them. It was the fourth straight game they played with only one free throw missed. They have shot at least 90 percent five times this season and their season percentage is  80.6 percent, which is the No. 2 mark in the nation. Ty Caswell and Ethan Duncan are both shooting better than 90 percent from the charity stripe, but do not have enough attempts to qualify for the national/conference leaderboards. Muhammad does though, and his .863 percentage ranks second in the LSC. 
 
NATIONALLY KNOWN
Lubbock Christian moved up in the national top-25 rankings this week, rising to No. 17 in the NABC poll. They stood pat at No. 21 in the D2CSC poll. Only one other Lone Star Conference team is in the polls, as DBU is ranked No. 10 by both the D2CSC and the NABC, but Midwestern State is also receiving votes, including being the first team out from the NABC. Lubbock Christian's early-season opponent Colorado School of Mines is also  in the polls at No. 5 in the NABC and No. 6 in the D2CSC. No. 17 is LCU's highest national ranking since early in the 2022-23 season, when they were ranked No. 16 in the NABC poll
 
REGIONALLY RECOGNIZED
The second NCAA regional rankings were released on Wednesday, with this week's list actually ranked 1-10. The Chaps came in at No. 3 this week with a 21-6 overall D-II record, including 19-6 in South Central Region play. The two teams above LCU are No. 1 Colorado School of Mines and No. 2 DBU, both teams the Chaps have beat this season. Other LSC teams under consideration include Midwestern State, St. Mary's, Eastern New Mexico, Angelo State and West Texas A&M. MSU Denver and Regis are the other two RMAC schools on the list.
 
WHERE THE HEART IS
This will be the last game at home for the Chaps, who are 10-2 at the Rip Griffin Center this season. On their home floor, LCU is averaging 81.7 points per game on 50.1 percent shooting. Opponents in the Rip are averaging 65.2 points on just 45.1 percent shooting. Amondo Miller Jr., Ethan Duncan, Caswell and Muhammad are all averaging at least 12 points per game at home this year. The Chaps are 154-81 (.649) in home games under head coach Todd Duncan.
 
THE SERIES WITH THE MUSTANGS
Lubbock Christian and Midwestern State have been meeting on the hard wood since the latter still used Indians as its mascot. In the all-time series, which started in 1972, MSU leads 28-16. In LCU's Division II era though, LCU has controlled the series, winning eight of the 11 matchups. One of the biggest wins in Chaparral basketball history came against Midwestern Stat in D.L. Ligon Coliseum in March of 2016. The Chaps, who made the NCAA Tournament in their first year of postseason eligibility, were the No. 8 seed taking on the host and No. 1 seed and No. 7 nationally-ranked Mustangs. LCU jumped out to a 16-point halftime lead and won the game 79-73 in overtime.
 
SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS

• Midwestern State has the longest active win streak in the Lone Star Conference, having come away victorious in eight straight games
• The 22 wins by the Mustangs are already their most in a single season since the 2015-16 season, when they were 24-6 under Nelson Haggerty, winning the LSC and the league's postseason tournament
• Mustang forward Reggie Hill ranks fourth in the conference in rebounding with an average of 6.7 per game
• Midwestern State limits opponents to just 39.6 percent shooting, which is the best mark in the LSC
• MSU guard Pierre Sanders is fourth in the league in assists per game at exactly 4.0