Game 5: Lamar at Arkansas State
November 25, 2012 l ASU Convocation Center
Jonesboro, Ark. l 2:05 p.m. (CT)
Radio: EAB Sports Radio Network (107.9 KFIN-FM, flagship) – Matt Stolz (Play-By-Play)
TV: None
LIVE STATS & VIDEO WEBCAST
Tip Off: The 2012-13 Arkansas State University men's basketball team will seek to extend its current winning streak to four games as the Red Wolves entertain the Lamar Cardinals this Sunday (Nov. 25) afternoon in a 2:05 p.m. (CT) non-conference contest at the ASU Convocation Center in Jonesboro, Ark.
2012-13 A-StAte Ticket Information: Individual single-game ticket prices for the 2012-13 ASU men's basketball season are $12 for the upper center area, $10 for the upper side, $8 for the upper wings, $6 for children and senior citizens (age 55+), and $5 group rate purchase of 12 tickets or more. Tickets may be purchased through the ASU Box Office by calling 870-972-2781 or 888-ASU-FANS. Ticket information for the 2012-13 season is also available on ASU Athletics official Web site – www.AStateRedWolves.com.
The Records: Arkansas State (3-1, 0-0 Sun Belt). The Red
Wolves extended their current winning streak to three with a 73-72
non-conference road win over Central Arkansas last Tuesday (11/21) night at UCA's
Farris Center in Conway, Ark. Lamar
(1-4, 0-0 Southland). The Cardinals snapped a four-game season-opening
losing skid with an 86-82 non-league triumph over IUPUI this past Tuesday
(11/20) in the consolation game of the NIT Season Tipoff at Charlottesville, Va. A season ago, Lamar registered a 23-12
overall mark with a first-place 11-5 record in the Southland Conference's (SC)
East Division. The Cardinals were
crowned 2012 Southland Conference Tournament champions and also made their
sixth NCAA Tourney appearance last season and the first since the 1999-00 campaign.
The Coaches: Arkansas
State – John Brady (Bellhaven,
1976), 5th season, 64-67 (.489); Career - 345-283 (.549) – (1-3 vs. LU). Brady was named the 2009-10 SBC Coach of the
Year and the District VII Coach of the Year by the United States Basketball
Writers Association (USBWA). He served
six seasons (1991-97) as head coach at Samford and then spent 10-plus seasons
(1997-08) in a head coaching capacity at LSU.
Brady guided LSU to two SEC Championship titles along with four NCAA
Tournament appearances, which included a Final Four appearance in the 2005-06
season. Lamar – Pat
Knight (Indiana, 1995), 2nd season, 24-16 (.600); Career-6th
season, 74-77 (.490) – (1-0 vs. ASU). Knight is the 10th individual to
serve as head coach since Lamar became a four-year institu tion in 1951.
He became the third coach to take the Cardinals to the NCAA Tournament
in his initial season and also led LU to its first 20-win season since the
1987-88 campaign. Prior to Lamar, Knight
spent 10 seasons at Texas Tech, including the final three-plus years
(2007-11) as head coach where he compiled a 50-61 (.450) record. Knight was named head coach designate at
Texas Tech prior to the 2005-06 season and assumed head coach duties from his
Hall-of-Fame father Bob Knight toward the end of the 2007-08 season.
About Lamar: Redshirt frosh
forward Rhon Mitchell presently leads Lamar in both scoring (12.0 ppg.) and
rebounding (6.6 rpg.) this season.
Senior guard Donley Minor is the other Cardinals' player averaging
double figures at 11.0 points a game.
Senior forward Stan Brown has posted a squad second-best 5.8 rebounding
average and is third in team scoring with an 8.8 points per contest
average. In the win over IUPUI (11/20),
all five Cardinal starters tallied double digits in points with senior guard
Donley Minor's 22 leading the way.
All-Time Series: Lamar leads 46-34
in the all-time series which originated in the 1961-62 season. ASU won the inaugural matchup with a 66-65
decision in the 1962 NCAA Tournament.
Lamar has prevailed in five of the last six meetings against the former
Sun Belt Conference member, which includes a 65-62 home victory in the 2011-12
season opener (11/11) in Beaumont, Texas. The last A-State win occurred in 2010-11 when the Red Wolves claimed a
78-75 home decision in Jonesboro. The
last five outings has resulted in ASU averaging 71.8 points a game (359 total) to Lamar's 80.8 points per
contest (404 total) for a -9.0 points differential.
Double Vision: Junior guard Ed Townsel has tallied double-digit
points in each of ASU's four contests this season, all off the bench. The A-State reserve is coming off a 15-point
performance at Central Arkansas on Wednesday (11/21). He racked up a squad-leading 19 points at
Tennessee-Martin (11/16) after garnering 14 points apiece in the season opener
at Dayton (11/10) and the home opener versus Arkansas-Monticello (11/13). Townsel compiled 11 double-figure scoring
outings a season ago in 32 contests.
Almost: Senior forward Brandon Peterson narrowly missed
registering a second double-double this season after scoring 12 points and
grabbing nine rebounds in 31 minutes at Central Arkansas (11/21). His first double-double of 2012-13 featured a
12-point, 15-rebound performance against Arkansas-Monticello (11/13).
Hot Hand: Freshman guard Raeford “Gator” Worsham has connected
on 85.7 percent (12-14) of his shots from the floor in the last two ASU
contests, which includes a 9-of-10 effort at Central Arkansas on Wednesday
(90.0%). Worsham recorded both a game
and season-best 18 points off the bench at Central Arkansas in 21 minutes of
playing time. Worsham's previous points high was six at Tennessee-Martin
(11/16).
Shot Stopper: Brandon
Peterson's 132 career blocked shots is currently third most on ASU's
all-time list, which includes a squad-best nine blocks in four games this
season. Peterson had a team-high 33 shot
rejections in 34 outings last season after chalking up a career season-most 61
blocks in 31 games as a freshman in 2009-10. He recorded
at least two blocks in a game on 10 occasions a season ago and claimed or
shared team-high blocked shot honors a squad-best 17 times.
Red Wolf Tracks: Ed Townsel currently has amassed 522
career points in 70 contests and is averaging a career 7.5 points per contest
... Senior guard Marcus Hooten needs
49 more points to notch his 500th career point and has presently netted a 451
points total in 38 appearances ... Brandon
Peterson is 182 away from scoring the
1,000th point in his career. He has
scored 818 career points in 100 contests for an 8.2 points per game average ...
Ed Townsel remains 10 steals away
from reaching the century mark ... Brandon
Peterson is three steals away from producing his 50th career theft ... The
Red Wolves have generated 14 assists in a contest in each of their four games this
season ... Trey Finn, who has made
138 career three-point fields, is one shy of occupying sole possession of fifth
place on ASU's all-time three-point field goal leaders list. The A-State tri-captain is currently tied
with Tevoris Thompson (2003-04) ... ASU's three seniors – Brandon Peterson, Trey Finn,
and Marcus Hooten have combined to
presently produce 37.9 percent (109-287) of the Red Wolves' scoring output this
season.
No Place Like
Home: A-State
has a current 247-94 regular-season home mark (.724 win pct.) since 1987-88 and
has posted double-digit home victories 14 times in a single season, including a
10-5 home ledger in 2011-12.
Last Time Out: ASU's freshman guard Cameron Golden drained a game-winning
three-point shot with 4.8 seconds left in lifting the Red Wolves to a 73-72 non-conference road win over Central
Arkansas last Wednesday (11/ 21) in Conway, Ark.
With
just over a minute left in the game, A-State fought back and narrowed a UCA
seven-point deficit to 72-70 with 1:05 left on the clock on a jumper by Raeford Worsham. On the Bears'
inbounds, the Red Wolves applied man-to-man pressure and it paid off as Brandon Peterson stole the ball to give
ASU possession with 22.9 seconds remaining. Following an ASU timeout, the
Red Wolves worked the ball around the perimeter and Trey Finn took a dribble hand off from Golden, who would toss in 10
points to go with four assists and steals apiece. Finn then ball
penetrated, drawing in two UCA defenders, before passing the ball to Golden in
the corner. Golden drew all net on his uncontested shot from beyond the
arc in the right corner near the Red Wolves' bench with 4.8 seconds
remaining.
Central
Arkansas came out of a called timeout with possession but committed a costly
turnover as LaQuentin Miles slipped on receiving the inbounds pass and was
whistled for stepping out of bounds, thus turning the ball over to A-State with
2.2 seconds left in the contest. After Raeford Worsham missed both ends
of a two-shot foul, a desperation shot by Miles hit the front of the rim as the
final horn sounded.
Worsham
turned in another solid performance for the Red Wolves with a game-leading 18
points off the bench. Worsham was nine-of-10 from the floor and grabbed
five rebounds for ASU, which shot 45.8% (27-59) for the game. Ed
Townsel posted double-figure points for the fourth consecutive contest with
a 15-points performance while Brandon Peterson just missed a double-double with
a 12-point, nine-rebounds effort.
2012-13 Reference Guide Now Online: The 2012-13 A-State men's basketball reference guide is now available to view online in PDF format and contains information for all devoted Red Wolves fans. The 110-page publication features such information as 2012-13 student-athlete rosters, season preview, student-athlete biographies, coaching staff bios, 2011-12 season statistics, and all-time series records along with career, season, and game statistical records. The annual publication is a production of the ASU Sports Information Office under the direction of director Jerry Scott along with assistant directors Chris Graddy and Joe Gorby.
To view the 2012-13 ASU men's basketball publication online, please visit the respective link - 2012-13 Arkansas State Men's Basketball Reference Guide.
A Season Ago: A-State concluded the 2011-12 campaign at 14-20 overall and posted a fifth-place 6-10 mark in the Sun Belt Conference's (SBC) West Division. The Red Wolves were 10-5 at home, 2-14 on the road, and 2-1 at neutral sites a season ago.
Up Next: Arkansas
State begins
Sun Belt Conference (SBC) action this upcoming week as the Red Wolves travel to
Florida for a pair of league outings.
The Red Wolves square off against the FIU Panthers on Thursday (Nov. 29)
at the U.S. Century Bank Arena in Miami, Fla.
Game time is set for 6:30 p.m. (CT).
A-State then visits Florida Atlantic Saturday (Dec. 1) in a 7 p.m. (CT)
tilt at FAU Arena in Boca Raton, Fla.
