COMMERCE– The Texas A&M University-Commerce men's basketball team gets back into conference action on Thursday as they travel to face Texas A&M-Kingsville. It is the first conference game for the Lions since Dec. 10.
WHO: A&M-Commerce (10-2, 3-1 LSC) at A&M-Kingsville (7-4, 0-2 LSC)
WHEN: Thursday, Jan. 5 at 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Gil E. Steinke Physical Education Center in Kingsville
LIVE STATS: http://www.sidearmstats.com/tamuk/mbball/
LIVE VIDEO: https://boxcast.tv/view/mbb-vs-am-commerce-781667
LIVE AUDIO: http://www.ketr.org/
The Lions are coming off of a 78-76 road win over Southern Arkansas on New Year's Eve. The Lions withstood a late rally by the Muleriders and made plays down the stretch to come away with the victory. Head coach
Sam Walker was glad to get the win, especially with his team being short handed.
"Our defense was good," he said. "We shared the basketball. With all the guys we had out for that game, it was good to get a win. Every road win is a good win, no matter how you get it done."
With that, the Lions essentially wrapped up their non-conference schedule. A&M-Commerce has only one non-Lone Star Conference game left on their schedule. Walker likes where his team is. Winning the conference has always been the first goal of his team.
"We can concentrate on conference now," he said. "We had been looking at the standings but conference games are when it really counts. Every game is going to be competitive. Every game you can win on the road will be a steal."
The Lions now go on to face one of their sister schools in A&M-Kingsville. Walker said the Javelinas are always a tough out, especially on their home floor. The Lions swept the season series in 2015 but before that, the last time they won in Kingsville was in 2003. The home team won both contests last season.
"It's a tough place to play," he said. "We have probably won there maybe once in the last 10 years. Their coach does a phenomenal job with his players. But I think we are up to the task. It should be a good game on Thursday."
Walker is confident in his team and the way they have played throughout the early season. He knows his team will need to execute well if they want to defeat the Javelinas.
"We just have to shoot the ball well," he said. "We have seen it throughout this year. When we shoot the ball well, we have won and when we haven't, we haven't done as well. It seems to go hand in hand. When shots go down, we have played better defense and have done a better job sharing the ball. We have to get good shots and knock them down if we want to win."
