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LeTourneau has won their last nine games to move into first place in the ASC East Division at 7-3. Junior guard Alec Colhoff leads the YellowJackets pursuit of their would-be first division title in team history. Hardin-Simmons, the defending ASC champions, won two important games against Howard Payne and Sul Ross State, snapping a three-way tie for first place in the West Division. The Cowboys have won seven straight and senior center Justin Jones who set the ASC career blocks record with 304 leads the team.
With the 2017 American Southwest Conference Basketball Championship Tournament a little more than five weeks away and will be hosted by the East Division No. 1 seed. The NCAA Division III Region Rankings will also be coming soon. Wednesday (Feb 8) is the first of three region rankings posted with the second and third following the Feb. 15 and 22.
East Division Player of the Week
UT Dallas junior guard Caleb Banks averaged 21.0 points and 4.5 assists while shooting 40 percent a pair of road losses at UT Tyler and LeTourneau last week. Banks scored 21 points and handed out four assists Thursday in a loss at UT Tyler. He then had 21 points and five assists Saturday in a loss at LeTourneau.
West Division Player of the Week
Howard Payne junior guard Khyce Randall led the Jackets to a 2-1 week in wins over Austin College and McMurry. Randall averaged 22.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game while shooting over .500 from the field and behind the arc. Randall was 10-of-18 from three-point land and 15-of-17 at the free-throw line for the week. He scored a season-high 32 points at ASC West Division leader Hardin-Simmons.
D3Hoops Team of the Week
Week 8 (Jan. 2-8, 2017)
Jeff Martin, Sr., G, LeTourneau
Martin averaged 25.5 points in two victories including a career-high 30 points in a 121-106 win over Concordia Texas. The senior point guard shot 56 percent (18-32) from the floor and swiped six steals to go along with 13 rebounds. Martin dished out 17 assists in the two games and is currently ranked sixth in the nation and second in the conference with 90 total assists.
Josh Berard, Sr., F, Univ. of Ozarks
Berard averaged 36.5 points and went 28-of-47 from the field (.595) over two games last week. Berard led Ozarks in scoring in both contests with 33 against Hardin-Simmons and recorded his second 40-point performance of the season with a game-high 40 points against McMurry. Berard also led Ozarks in rebounds in both games, had seven assists and was 16-of-18 from the foul line (.888).
ASC Records
Concordia Texas tied its ASC record for most points scored in a single game as the Tornados defeated Belhaven 144-97 (Dec. 1). In all, seven players finished the night in double-figures. Christian Colston (14), Gabriel Spivey (12) and Phil Meikle (11) all recorded career highs. Joe Neal and Joshua Samuels led Concordia with 15 points each. Rashad Coleman (14) and Ephriam Price (13) also finished in double-digits. As a team, the Tornados tallied 90 points off the bench and forced 33 turnovers that resulted in 49 points. Concordia Texas shot 49-of-71 from the floor (.690), was 12-of-20 from behind the arc (.600) and hit 34-of-39 free throws (.872). The Belhaven win marks the third time in school history Concordia Texas has scored 144 points. The most recent were against Ozarks, February 8, 2016.
UT Tyler and Hardin-Simmons recorded the fifth triple overtime game in ASC history (Dec. 10). The Patriots held off the Cowboys for a 106-101 win in Tyler. Of the five triple overtime games played in more than 20 seasons of ASC men’s basketball, UT Tyler and Hardin-Simmons have competed in three of them. The Cowboys won the meeting in the 2013 ASC Championship Tournament Quarterfinals, and the Patriots won the other two games.
Hardin-Simmons set the ASC record for most three-point field goals in a single game in a 135-95 win over Univ. of Ozarks (Jan. 5). Junior guard Caleb Spoon led the Cowboys with 11-of-18 from behind the arc and scored a team-high 33 points. Senior guards Dashun Dixon was 8-of-12 for 28 points, and Christian O’Neal hit 5-of-10 to finish with 20 points. HSU breaks the previous mark held by East Texas Baptist with 23 treys set earlier this season against Huntingdon (Nov. 19).
The University of Ozarks, set the ASC record for largest, winning margin with a run-away victory over Baptist Bible (Mo.) 109-35 (Jan. 9). Every player on the roster scored including five who reached double figures. Senior guards Dillon Gash and Dylan Gray led with 17 and 16 points, respectively. Freshman guard Jerome Luster scored 13, while junior guard Jace Richardson and sophomore forward Skylar Barnes had 11 points each. As a team, Ozarks was 38-of-72 (.528) from the perimeter including 19-of-39 (.487) from three-point range.
Hardin-Simmons senior center Justin Jones set the ASC record for career blocks with 304 surpassing former Cowboy Mardochee Jean. Jones set the record in 99 games edging Jean by seven games who recorded 300 blocks in 106 career games.
AROUND THE ASC / Notes Submitted by ASC Sports Information Staffs
Records as of January 16
East Division
Belhaven (2-12) – Belhaven dropped two road contests last week, falling to Louisiana College on Thursday and East Texas Baptist. The Blazers remain winless on the road this season but return home for three games this upcoming week.
East Texas Baptist (3-4 / 11-4) – East Texas Baptist hit the century mark for the fourth time this season with 102 points against Belhaven. ETBU’s 55 rebounds are the second-most in a game this season after recording 57 against Centenary (La.). Quillian averaged 9.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game last week with three blocks against Mary Hardin-Baylor. Tyler Day had a season-high 15 points against UMHB. Jordan Gray made five 3-pointers and averaged 11 points per game. Dylan Augustine hit four 3-pointers against Belhaven and was 4-of-4 from the foul line. Gosey had 14 points against UMHB and had scored 10 or more points in two of the last three games.
LeTourneau (7-3/ 13-4) – LeTourneau extended their winning streak to nine with two ASC victories over Univ. of Ozarks and UT Dallas. The YellowJackets never trailed as they blew past the Eagles, 92-69 Thursday night. Caleb Loggins shot 9-of-11 from the floor including the first three-point field goal of his career. He finished with a career-high 20 points and pulled down seven rebounds. LETU started the second half with an 18-2 run to overpower UT Dallas, 94-83. Nate West led the YellowJacket comeback with 19 of his game-high 21 points in the second half.
Louisiana College (0-7 / 3-10) – After a barrage of three-pointers doomed the Wildcats early in the week against Concordia Texas-Louisiana College responded with a much-needed win in the first real home game of the season Thursday night over Belhaven. Five different players scored in double figures over the two games, including Raheem Regis extending his double-digit scoring streak to 10 consecutive games. The Wildcats embark on a four-game road trip starting this week with at Univ. of Ozarks on Thursday.
Univ. of Ozarks (1-8 / 6-9) – Univ. of Ozarks took a 74-point win over Baptist Bible College and then lost both of its ASC road games during the week. Junior point guard Jace Richardson posted three double-digit scoring efforts, hitting 11 against Baptist Bible, 21 against LeTourneau and 18 against UT Tyler. He also dished out eight assists against Baptist Bible and six assists against LeTourneau. Senior guard Josh Berard scored 25 against UT Tyler and now ranks fifth all-time in career scoring with 1,449 points. Ozarks will host five straight home games beginning Thursday with Louisiana College.
UT Dallas (2-6 / 3-12) – The Comets dropped both road games last week, falling at East Division foes UT Tyler and LeTourneau. UTD lost a close 79-76 decision at UT Tyler before falling 94-83 at LeTourneau. The Comets will look to snap a three-game losing streak Monday when they open a four-game home stand against Mary Hardin-Baylor. UTD will host East Texas Baptist and Louisiana College later in the week.
UT Tyler (6-4 / 10-6) – The Patriots earned two ASC wins last week after taking a 79-76 win over UT-Dallas on Thursday and then an 89-67 win against Univ. of Ozarks on Saturday. UT Tyler is now 5-2 in ASC play at home and 6-4 overall in the conference standings. The Patriots travel to Mississippi this week to play Rust on Thursday and then Belhaven on Saturday.
West Division
Concordia Texas (4-3 / 10-6) – Concordia Texas has won three of its last four games, with all the wins coming on the road. The team shot 53 percent from three-point range (15-of-28) in the win over Louisiana College.
Hardin-Simmons (7-1 / 13-4) – Justin Jones crossed the 1,000 career-point plateau and set the ASC career record for blocks surpassing the old total of 300 set by former Cowboy Mardochee Jean. He now has 304 for his career. Caleb Spoon hit ten three-pointer last week. HSU hit 42-of-47 free throws in the two wins. HSU has six players averaging double figures for the season.
Howard Payne (6-2 / 10-6) – Howard Payne went 2-1 for the week with wins over Austin College (74-67) and McMurry (74-68). Khyce Randall averaged 22.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game while shooting over .500 from the field and behind the arc. Randall was 10-of-18 from three-point land and 15-of-17 at the free-throw line for the week. He scored a season-high 32 points at Hardin-Simmons. Rickey Guillory also had a solid week scoring 20 with seven blocks at Austin College and posting 27 points at HSU. J Bailey had one of his best games ever as a Jacket at McMurry going 7-of-7 from the field with 14 rebounds and five assists.
Mary Hardin-Baylor (3-3 / 10-5) – The Cru went 2-0 last week with wins over East Texas Baptist and Concordia Texas. UMHB faces UT Dallas on Monday and then plays at Howard Payne and Sul Ross State to close out a four-game road trip. Braden Hammond had a team-best 22 points in the win over ETBU. Austen Stolte had his first career double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds against the Tigers. Aubrie King poured in 29 points to lead the win over Concordia. Keenan Holdman added a career-high 16 points in his first start of the season. Ryan Newton chipped in 11 points and seven rebounds off the bench in the win over the Tornados.
McMurry (4-4 / 8-8) – In the first eight games of the season, senior Nate Estrada averaged 10.6 points and shot .319 from the field, but in the last eight contests he has scored 18.1 points and connected on .417 from the floor. McMurry heads into this week’s cross-town game versus Hardin-Simmons with a .500 record. HSU leads the all-time series, 47-43, with the two teams splitting last year’s meetings, each winning on its home floor.
Sul Ross State (5-3 / 9-8) – Sul Ross State is looking to recover from a pair of ASC losses on the road last week. C.J. Ross scored a season-best 25 points, but McMurry rallied from a halftime deficit to defeat Sul Ross (92-89) in a Thursday night shootout at Kimbrell Arena. Caleb Thomasson shouldered a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds on the evening while Jacob Dawson and Isaiah Tillman collected 13 and 10 points, respectively. The Lobos then fell 84-80 two days later at Hardin-Simmons. Thomasson nailed down a double-double with 25 points and 12 rebounds. Brock Anders posted 19 points in while Ross had 14. Xavier Webb finished the day with 10 points. Sul Ross State ended the day shooting 32-of-66 from the field including an 8-of-18 showing from the beyond the arc. The Lobos connected on e8-of-11 free throws at 73 percent.