This Week
- UMHB hosts St. Thomas (TX) on Tuesday in Belton for the first time in an official regular season contest. The two programs met last year in Houston on Nov. 24, 2023, as UST came away with a 90-82 victory in overtime. The two previously faced off at the Mayborn Campus Center on Dec. 12, 2019, though it was marked as an exhibition for UMHB. UST was in its first year in the SCAC and was transitioning to Division III in 2019-20.
- The second game of the homestand tips off on Thursday night, as the Crusaders battle Concordia (TX) for the second time this season. UMHB won the first meeting on Austin, 89-83, on Nov. 14.
- The Cru is at home for just the second time this season, after defeating Texas Lutheran, 92-69, on Nov. 16.
- UMHB will play back-to-back home games twice in the month of December. This stretch of St. Thomas and Concordia will be followed by a Dec. 29-30 homestand against Concordia-Moorhead and Illinois Wesleyan.
Storylines
- UMHB is looking to win its first two home games of the season for the fourth-straight year on Tuesday night. In five seasons under head coach Clif Carroll, The Cru is 47-4 at the Mayborn Campus Center, with a home winning percentage of 92.2%.
- After dropping its season opener at No. 1-ranked Trine, 98-70, The Cru has responded with four straight victories, beating Heidelberg, Concordia (TX), Texas Lutheran, and the College of Biblical Studies.
- The Crusader offense has clicked early, with UMHB shooting .480 or better from the field in each of the last four games. On the season, The Cru is shooting 47.6%, in addition to converting on 33.6% of its 3-point attempts.
- Much of that strong shooting has been a credit to UMHB’s ball movement, creating high-percentage shots on the offensive end. The Cru has 88 assists in five games, with an average of 17.6 per game. For reference, UMHB had just 64 assists through last season’s first five contests.
- On the defensive end, UMHB comes into this week averaging 11.2 steals per game against Division III opponents. That mark is 34th nationally, and second amongst ASC teams. The Cru had 20 steals in last Saturday’s 95-59 win over the College of Biblical Studies.
- Eli Beard has emerged as The Cru’s go-to scorer, averaging 22.6 points per game. The senior guard is second in the ASC in scoring, as he has already eclipsed the 100-point mark this season (113). Beard has tallied 20 points or more in four of UMHB’s five games this season.
- Balanced scoring has been a key to The Cru’s 4-1 start. Eight players come into this week averaging at least 6.0 PPG. Against both Concordia and Texas Lutheran, five Crusaders scored in double figures.
Scouting the Opposition
St. Thomas (TX) Celts
- UST is not nationally-ranked in the D3hoops.com Top 25, but the Celts earned the most points from the voters amongst unranked teams in Monday’s poll. They picked up 42 points and were just two points shy of tying for the 25th spot in the weekly national ranking.
- The Celts are coming off a 20-7 season in 2023-24 and have reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the last two seasons, establishing themselves as one of Texas’ top D-III programs.
- UST is ranked No. 19 nationally by Massey Ratings, after starting 5-0 for the first time since 2019-20. The Celts hold notable wins over LeTourneau (85-70 on Nov. 9) and Hardin-Simmons (62-55 on Nov. 15).
- Senior guard Marion Williams leads UST’s offense with 12.4 PPG, and had 26 points against Howard Payne in a 98-71 home win two weeks ago on Nov. 23. Senior forward Andrew Adebo also averages 12.2 PPG for the Celts.
- An efficient offensive team, UST averages 17.4 assists per game, the 38th-best average in Division III. The Celts also rank 27th in the country in turnovers forced per game (18.8).
- UST head coach Anthony Medina is in his 10th season at the helm of the program. He is just the second head coach in program history, and is a UST alum himself. When he graduated in 2012, he left as the Celts’ all-time leader in points, rebounds, minutes played, and games played, twice being named All-Red River Conference during his career.
Concordia (TX) Tornadoes
- The Tornados enter the week coming off a 10-point loss to LeTourneau, 93-83. Concordia will play just three games in the month of December, facing UMHB on Thursday before an extended break. The Tornados resume non-conference action at the CTX Holiday Classic, Dec. 29-30.
- Concordia holds a notable 94-92 win over Hardin-Simmons. That contest saw the Tornados put up 50 points in the first half alone, and hold off HSU’s second-half comeback, culminating with a pair of clutch free throws from Aaron San Miguel with two seconds left.
- Caleb Golden, who did not play against LETU this past Saturday, leads the team with 19.7 PPG. Donovan Stafford, a senior guard from DeSoto, is averaging 15.8 PPG. Golden and Stafford lead a fast-paced scoring attack for the Tornados, as Concordia is No. 5 in Division III in points per game (94.5).
- That said, because of the up-tempo, full-court press style that Concordia plays with on both ends of the floor, the Tornados generally score a lot, but also give up a lot. Concordia is 385th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing 88.5 points per game.
- Also look for Concordia to make the most of its trips to the free throw line. The Tornadoe shoot 83.5% from the charity stripe, which is currently the fourth-best percentage in the country. As of Monday, just 15 teams in Division III are shooting 80% or better from the FT line.
Follow the Action
- WATCH: Tune into both of UMHB’s home contests this week on cruathletics.com. Jordan Cox (play-by-play) and Carey Leech (color commentary) will have the call live from the Mayborn Campus Center.
- STATS: Live stats will be available through both games on cruathletics.com.
- ADMISSION: Admission is free to both of UMHB’s home games. So if you’re in the area, make the trip over to the UMHB campus for two high-level non-conference duels.
