Lions earn 77-61 victory over UAFS in von Rosenberg’s 100th game.

COMMERCE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s basketball team rebounded from an earlier loss with a 77-61 victory over the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith on Sunday afternoon in the Field House. 

A&M-Commerce splits the season series with UAFS and is 3-3 overall at 2-2 in the Lone Star Conference. UAFS is now 2-4 overall and 2-4 in league play.

A&M-Commerce returns to the hardwood on Friday and Saturday (January 22 and 23) with back-to-back home games against UT Tyler.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

– The Lions used a hot-shooting first half to build up an insurmountable 16-point halftime lead. A&M-Commerce shot 50 percent (15-of-30) in the first half.

– Demarcus Demonia (Fort Washington, Md.) led A&M-Commerce with 21 points, five rebounds, three assists, and three steals.

– Augustine Ene (Carrollton – Creekview) scored 16 points with five rebounds, and Alex Peavy (Smithson Valley) netted 10 points with six boards.

– Devin Bethely (Baton Rouge, La.) passed out six assists. Bethely and Carius Key (Irving – MacArthur) each swiped four steals.

– The Lions picked up the win in the 100th career game for head coach Jaret von Rosenberg.

HOW IT HAPPENED

After conceding an early three-point play, A&M-Commerce rattled off seven straight points on a Demonia dunk, a pair of Ene free throws, and a Peavy triple. UAFS stayed within arms’ reach for the next eight minutes before A&M-Commerce hit the gas. 

At the midpoint of the first half, the hosts led by four but then went on a 14-2 run to pull away. Demonia netted six points, Ene scored five, and Bethely hit a three-pointer to put A&M-Commerce up 35-19 with 6:30 to play in the first half. 

The scoring flurry calmed down, but TAMUC hit a pair of three-pointers in the final minute to take a 43-27 halftime lead. Seven of A&M-Commerce’s 15 made field goals in half were three-pointers. 

The second half started with A&M-Commerce stretching the lead to 20 points in the first two and a half minutes, as Demonia’s dunk at the 17:31 mark made it a 49-29 lead. 

UAFS did not let A&M-Commerce run away with the game, as the lead did not stretch to more than 22 down the stretch. Payton Brown scored 11 of UAFS’s last 13 points in the final five minutes, but they never threatened A&M-Commerce’s lead in the rousing home win.

Perera’s school record highlights the Lions’ return to the track at Crimson & Gold Invitational.

PITTSBURG, Kan. – A school record by a first-time performer highlighted the action for the Texas A&M University-Commerce track and field teams as the Lions kicked off the indoor portion of the season at the Pittsburg State Crimson and Gold Invitational after nearly ten months away from the competition. 

“Today was a great day for us. There was a lot of excitement, just walking into the building and getting back on the track to be in a competitive environment. It was the most fun I’ve had coaching in a long, long time. No titles were won, but I saw people get back to doing what they love,” said Lion head track and field coach George Pincock. 

“Ushan Perera’s first time in the uniform was just off his national record, and we’re excited to see what he can continue to do. Micky Ferdinand has been with us for a while and finally got to compete and jumped really well in both the pole vault and high jump. On the women’s side, we’ve got a really young group, but they came in and competed well. Minna Svaerd is one of our veterans but got her season started well with a great pole vault and 200-meter as well as a strong leg on our 4×400 meter relay. Shadaria Hall finished fourth in her first time running for us in the 60 meter dash. 

“The main takeaway from this week is that this was a rust-buster to create a foundation to build upon. I think we did well today, with that in mind, and we’re ready to keep building on a great day.”

The Lions’ performances were highlighted by two events where the A&M-Commerce men swept the top three places, including a double-break of the school record in one event. 

The men’s high jump school record was shattered by freshman Ushan Perera (Mahabage, Sri Lanka), who claimed an automatic spot at the national championships at 2.21 meters (7′ 3″). His mark was one centimeter outside of the all-time top 10 in Division II and three centimeters short of the Sri Lankan national record, and he cleared every bar on the first attempt. Micky Ferdinand (Micoud, St. Lucia) claimed a provisional qualifying spot in the event at 2.11 meters (6′ 11″), which also broke the previous school record of 2.10 meters. Dakari Hill (Orlando, Fla.) finished off the podium sweep at 2.02 meters (6′ 7 ½”). 

In the men’s 200 meter dash, the final heat saw the Lions claim the top three spots, led by Lamarion Arnold (Montgomery, Ala.), who earned a provisional qualifying mark at 21.24 seconds. Gage Marshall (Windsor, Ontario, Canada) was second at 21.89 seconds, and Delan Edwin (St. Lucia) was third at 21.96 seconds. 

Arnold was a double champion on the day, winning the 60-meter dash with a provisional qualifying time of 6.82 seconds. 

Dorian Andrews (Dallas – Skyline) was the event champion and earned a provisional qualifying mark in the men’s 60-meter hurdles at 8.16 seconds. Ferdinand also earned a provisional qualifying mark with a runner-up finish in the men’s pole vault at 4.83 meters (15′ 10″), and Axel Paolucci (Lyon, France) was the event champion in the 600-yard run at 1:14.51. 

On the women’s side, Minna Svaerd (Karlstad, Sweden) earned a provisional qualifying mark in the women’s pole vault at 3.76 meters (12′ 4″), and Iniuto Ukpong (Mansfield – Summit) was the event champion in the women’s shot put at 13.41 meters (44′ 0″). 

AUTOMATIC QUALIFIER AND SCHOOL RECORD

Men’s High Jump

Ushan Perera

2.21m (7′ 3″)

PROVISIONAL QUALIFIERS

Men’s High Jump	Micky Ferdinand	2.11m (6′ 11″)
Men’s Pole Vault	Micky Ferdinand	4.83m (15′ 10″)
Men’s 60 Meter Hurdles	Dorian Andrews	8.16
Men’s 60 Meter Dash	Lamarion Arnold	6.82
Men’s 200 Meter Dash	Lamarion Arnold	21.24
Women’s Pole Vault	Minna Svaerd	3.76m (12′ 4″)

EVENT WINNERS

Men’s High Jump	Ushan Perera	2.21m (7′ 3″)
Men’s 60 Meter Hurdles	Dorian Andrews	8.16
Men’s 60 Meter Dash	Lamarion Arnold	6.82
Men’s 200 Meter Dash	Lamarion Arnold	21.24
Men’s 600 Yard Run	Axel Paolucci	1:14.51
Women’s Shot Put	Iniuto Ukpong	13.41m (44′ 0″)

Coach von Rosenberg coaches in the 100th game as Lions host UAFS on Sunday.

COMMERCE – Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s basketball head coach Jaret von Rosenberg will coach in his 100th career game as the Lions complete the weekend home-and-home set Arkansas-Fort Smith at home on Sunday afternoon. 

WHO: UAFS at A&M-Commerce 

WHERE: Commerce | The Field House

WHEN: 4:00 pm on Sunday, January 17

RECORDS: A&M-Commerce is 2-3 on the season entering the weekend. UAFS is 2-3.

TELEVISION/LIVE VIDEO: Lone Star Conference Digital Network (Direct Link)

RADIO: Lion Sports Network | KETR-FM 88.9 (Streaming on KETR.org)

LIVE STATS: Click HERE

LIONS COME BACK HOME

• The Lions look to bounce back from a loss in the second leg of a home-and-home series with UAFS on Sunday afternoon in a divisional game.

• A&M-Commerce dropped the series’s opening game in Fort Smith on Friday night with a 72-67 loss after erasing a 14-point second-half deficit.

• The Lions made one more field goal and one more three-pointer than UAFS, but the home team connected on eight more free throws in the game.

• A&M-Commerce made 24-of-62 (38.7 percent) of its field goal attempts and only 34.3 percent (12-of-35) in the second half. 

DOUBLE-DOUBLE ANOMALY

• A&M-Commerce had two double-double performances in the game, as Augustine Ene scored 13 points and had 11 rebounds and Demarcus Demonia had 12 points and ten rebounds, with each player dishing out two assists.

• This marked the first time A&M-Commerce had a pair of double-doubles in the same game since the 2019 LSC Championship game when Willie Rooks and Trey Conrod did so.

• Oddly enough, both of those games were losses. The last time the Lions doubled up on double-doubles in a win was the 2018 home opener vs. Our Lady of the Lake when Conrod and Tyree Robinson did so. 

THAT’S A LITTLE WEIRD…

• In the Lions’ last two games at the Stubblefield Center in Fort Smith, they had the same rate at the free-throw line.

• Both the 2020 and 2021 matchups saw A&M-Commerce go 10-of-14 at the charity stripe. 

HITTING THE CENTURY MARK

• Head coach Jaret von Rosenberg is coaching his 100th game as a collegiate head coach today in his fifth season.

• Sam Walker is the program leader in games coached at 487 games with a 285-202 record.

• Coach Rose becomes the eighth head coach to coach in 100 games at A&M-Commerce.  

Rk	Coach	W	Record
1.	Sam Walker	487	285-202
2.	Jim Gudger	392	202-190
3.	Norman Pilgrim	278	152-126
4.	Paul Peak	252	134-118
5.	Jerry Matthews	225	99-126
6.	Dennis Vinzant	152	92-60
7.	Bob Rogers	147	113-34
8.	Jaret von Rosenberg	99	66-33

BETHELY LEADS LSC IN EFFICIENCY
• Senior point guard Devin Bethely is the LSC’s leader in an assist-to-turnover ratio by a wide margin, dishing out 3.3 assists to every turnover committed.
• He is the only player in the LSC averaging over 3.0 assists to turnovers.
• This mark ranks 16th in the nation, with Michael Bradley of Mercyhurst averaging 17.0 A/TO in three games.
• Bethely’s 6.0 assists per game rank second in the LSC. Lubbock Christian’s Cameron Copley leads the LSC with 35 assists in five games.

LSC ASSIST/TURNOVER

Rk	Player	School	Ast	TO	A/T
1	Devin Bethely	TAMUC	30	9	3.3
2	Cameron Copley	LCU	35	13	2.7
3	Pierre Sanders	MSU	34	13	2.6
4	Carson Hughes	DBU	25	11	2.3
5	Paul Williams	ASU	24	11	2.2

LSC ASSISTS/GAME

Rk	Player	School	Ast	Gm	APG
1	Cameron Copley	LCU	35	5	7.0
2	Devin Bethely	TAMUC	30	5	6.0
3	Daniel Venzant	SEU	39	7	5.6
4	JoJo Murray	WT	27	5	5.4
5	Terrell Wilson	MSU	34	8	4.3
	Pierre Sanders	MSU	34	8	4.3

 ALL-TIME vs. UAFS

• This is the seventh all-time meeting between these two, with the series now tied at 3-3 after Thursday’s result.

• A&M-Commerce is 2-0 in the Field House against UAFS, winning both meetings last year.

• TAMUC came up with an 83-75 victor in the regular-season meeting. They followed that with a 77-73 win in the first round of the LSC Tournament.

• The two programs faced off three times last season, with A&M-Commerce winning in the opening round of the LSC Championship Tournament. 

LOOKING AT LION HISTORY

• This is the 27th time the Lions have played on January 17. Their record is 13-13 on this date and a 9-3 home record.

• The Lions’ first home game on this date was a 16-11 win over Burleson College in 1922. The first game was a 14-4 loss to North Texas in 1918, the Lions’ second season of basketball.

• A&M-Commerce is 0-1 under Jaret von Rosenberg on this date. 

D2SIDA REGIONAL RANKINGS

• The first D2SIDA Regional Rankings of the season has been announced for games through January 10.

• D2SIDA will rank six teams per region this season.

Rk	The school (1st)	Rec	Votes
1.	West Texas A&M (3)	3-1	31
2.	Colorado School of Mines (2)	8-0	29
3.	DBU (1)	5-1	26
4.	Colorado Mesa	7-0	22
5.	Tex. A&M-Kingsville	7-1	8
	St. Edward’s	5-1	8

RV: Lubbock Christian, 1; Black Hills St., 1.

CAREER PERCENTAGE LEADERS
• Head coach Jaret von Rosenberg is ranked third in school history in career winning percentage.

Rk	Coach	W	Record
1.	Bob Rogers	.769	113-34
2.	Will Hill Acker	.708	46-19
3.	Jaret von Rosenberg	.667	66-33
4.	Darrell Tully	.621	59-36
5.	Dennis Vinzant	.605	92-60
6.	Sam Walker	.585	285-202
7.	Norman Pilgrim	.547	152-126
8.	Paul Peak	.532	134-118
9.	Jim Gudger	.515	202-190
10.	Jerry Matthews	.440	99-126

MOVING UP THE RANKS
• Head coach Jaret von Rosenberg is now eighth all-time in wins at A&M-Commerce.

Rk	Coach	W	Season
1.	Sam Walker	285	17 (2000-17)
2.	Jim Gudger	202	14 (1969-82)
3.	Norman Pilgrim	152	11 (1957-67)
4.	Paul Peak	134	9 (1991-99)
5.	Bob Rogers	113	5 (1952-56)
6.	Jerry Matthews	99	8 (1983-90)
7.	Dennis Vinzant	92	8 (1937-45)
8.	Jaret von Rosenberg	66	4 (2017-pr)
9.	Darrell Tully	59	4 (1946-49)
10.	Will Hill Acker	46	3 (1928-30)