WICHITA, Kan. — With the opportunity to close the first half of the Heartland Conference schedule with a .500 record on the table, the Newman men's basketball team will face off against Arkansas-Fort Smith Saturday afternoon at 3 at Fugate Gymnasium.
SCOUTING NEWMAN
The Jets (11-6, 4-5 Heartland) couldn't find a consistent offense in falling to Rogers State 81-67 Thursday night. Seniors Jalen Love and Gavin Thurman were clicking, combining for 51 of the team's 67 points and shooting 50 percent from the floor, but that hot hand didn't spread to the rest of the team. The loss meant that Newman suffered its first losing streak since the beginning of the conference season.
LEADERS
Gavin Thurman, Senior-16.7 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.6 apg, 49.0 FG%, 39.4 3FG%
James Pegues, Senior-13.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 61.5 FG%, 83.5 FT%, 42.9 3FG%
Jarvis Williams, Junior-11.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.4 apg, 44.1 FG%
Jalen Love, Senior-11.1 ppg, 2.9 apg, 2.9 rpg, 1.0 spg
Cortrael Colbert, Senior-8.3 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.7 spg
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
The Lions (14-3, 7-2 Heartland) have won three in a row after suffering their second conference loss of the season two weeks ago to Texas A&M International. Those three wins came over Oklahoma Panhandle State, Lubbock Christian and Oklahoma Christian by an average of nearly 13 points. UAFS was held to 67 points by OC on Thursday, their second-lowest output of the season. DaVaunta Thomas put up 16 points and eight rebounds in that one, with Alex Cooper adding 16 and Seth Youngblood 14 points.
LEADERS
Alex Cooper, Junior-14.9 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 5.1 apg, 1.5 spg, 48.3 3FG% (42-of-87)
Seth Youngblood, Junior-13.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2.1 apg, 84.1 FT%
DaVaunta Thomas, Sophomore-12.8 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.0 spg, 40.0 3FG% (20-of-50)
Dusan Stojanovic, Senior-11.2 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 52.1 FG%
Kenny Martin, Senior-9.6 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 1.0 bpg, 58.9 FG%
HISTORY LESSON
The Jets trail the series against the Lions 8-4 since moving to Division II, with a 90-88 win at home last season snapping a six-game skid. The games have been tight over the past two seasons, with the last four matchups all being decided by five points or fewer.
NOTES
-The Jets held RSU to just 4-of-17 from 3-point range, the fourth straight game they've held their opponent under 30 percent from deep, and their ninth time overall in 17 games. For the season, they're 20th in the country, allowing teams to convert on just 30.7 percent.
-Newman has forced more turnovers than they've committed in each of the past four games, averaging a plus-6.1 margin over that stretch. For the season, the Jets are plus-3.6 per game, putting them 30th in the country.
-The Jets are back to having five players average double figures after Love's 30-point game Thursday bumping him the whole way up to 11.1 ppg, and sixth man Daniel Nwosu averaging 10.1.
-With their recent win streak, the Lions are up to a 13.0-point scoring margin on the season, averaging 87.8 per game while allowing just 74.8.
COVERAGE
Thursday's 7:30 p.m. tipoff will be broadcast live on 1410 AM (KGSO) in Wichita, with live video, audio and statistics available at www.newmanjets.com.
