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UTEP Miners (11-7, 3-1 C-USA)
at
SMU Mustangs (11-6, 0-3 C-USA)
 
Sat. Jan. 20 - 7:00 p.m. CT
Moody Coliseum (8,998)
Dallas, Texas
Radio: KAAM 770 AM
Internet: Mustang All-Access
www.SMUMustangs.com
 
 
The SMU Mustangs (11-6, 0-3 Conference USA) host the UTEP Miners (11-7, 3-1 C-USA) at Moody Coliseum on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 7 p.m. It is the first of two meetings this season, the Mustangs visit the Don Haskins Center on Feb. 21.
 
The Mustangs trail UTEP 14-13 in the all-time series that dates back to the 1927-28 season. The series has been in spurts. After winning the first meeting, SMU dropped five straight followed by winning 12 of the next 15. The Ponies are currently trying to break a six-game drought against the Miners. The last win was a 65-43 triumph on March, 1, 2003, at the Don Haskins Center in El Paso. Last season UTEP won 80-67 in Dallas on Jan. 11, and 57-53 in El Paso on Jan. 28.
 
The coaching matchup is a first for SMU’s Matt Doherty and UTEP’s Tony Barbee. Barbee is familiar with the Mustangs since he was an assistant at Memphis in 2005-06.
 
The Mustangs are 7-2 at home this season and are looking for their first league win this year. The Ponies fell to Southern Miss 57-56 on Jan. 10, in the only home conference game this season. The Ponies stormed back from 21 down in the second half to take a one-point lead before falling.
 
The Mustangs lead Conference USA in 3-point percentage defense (.308) and rebounding defense (28.7) and rank second in rebound margin (+7.9) and scoring defense (60.6). Individually, Jon Killen is leading in the league in steals (2.06) and is third in assists (5.35). Ike Ofoegbu is third in rebounds (7.1) and Donatas Rackauskas is fourth (7.0). Ofoegbu is also second in offensive rebounds (3.65). Bamba Fall is second in blocked shots (2.59).
 
 
LAST GAME: ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- Jermaine Taylor scored 18 points off the bench as Central Florida held off a second-half SMU rally to beat the Mustangs 64-56 Wednesday. Taylor's layup with 6:20 remaining gave UCF (13-4, 2-1 Conference USA) a 58-46 lead -- its largest of the night. But UCF went cold from the field and a 7-0 run from the Mustangs closed the gap to 58-53 with 3:23 left. SMU (11-6, 0-3) couldn't get closer than seven points after a 3-pointer from Mike O'Donnell put the Knights back up by eight with 1:47 remaining.
Taylor was the only UCF player in double figures. O'Donnell, Dave Noel and Lavell Payne finished with nine points each. SMU shot 37 percent from the floor. Brian Epps led the Mustangs with 14 points. Derrick Roberts finished with 12 points. Dave Noel's 3-point play with 1:35 remaining gave UCF its biggest lead of the first half, 31-22. SMU trailed by seven at halftime despite shooting 35 percent during the first 20 minutes.
 
LAST SEASON AGAINST UTEP:
L, 80-67 on Jan. 11, 2006: DALLAS (AP) - John Tofi scored 29 points and had 11 rebounds to lead Texas-El Paso to an 80-67 victory over SMU on Wednesday night. Both teams rekindled their rivalry as members of Conference USA Wednesday after leaving the Western Athletic Conference. Edgar Moreno added 11 points for the Miners. Jason Williams scored 10 points and had 10 rebounds for UTEP (8-5, 1-0). Derrick Roberts led the Mustangs (7-6, 0-1) with 17 points. Dez Willingham added 16 and Brian Morris had 10. The Miners lead 37-28 at the half and pulled out to a 16-point lead with 15:20 left in the second half.
L, 57-53 on Jan. 28, 2006: EL PASO, Texas (AP) - Miguel Ayala scored 25 points as UTEP beat SMU 57-53 Saturday night to remain undefeated in conference play. John Tofi followed Ayala with 13 points, and Edgar Moreno finished the game with 9 points and 8 assists for UTEP (12-5, 5-0 Conference USA). SMU (10-8, 2-3) was led in scoring by Bryan Hopkins with 21 points. Dez Willingham scored 9 for the Mustangs. SMU led the Miners 25-22 at halftime.
 
BY AIR AND BY WEB: The Mustangs are on KAAM 770 AM in Dallas/Fort Worth. Rich Phillips, Allen Stone, and Jay Poerner bring you all the SMU basketball action and news from around Conference USA. All home games can also be seen through Mustangs All-Access at SMUMustangs.com.
 
BEST STARTS: SMU is 11-6, which is the best since 12-3 start in 2000-01.
 
W = 100+: Head coach Matt Doherty has 101 career wins. He got career win 100 when SMU defeated Texas-Pan American 84-71 on Jan. 4. (Doherty wins - 22 at Notre Dame, 53 at North Carolina, 15 at Florida Atlantic, 11 at SMU)
 
IS YOUR GAME HALF FULL OR HALF EMPTY: The Mustangs are 10-1 when leading at the half and 1-5 when trailing at the break. The Mustangs won 64-62 at TCU after trailing 27-21 at intermission. Conversely, SMU fell 59-52 at Florida State after leading 26-25 at the half.
 
OFF THE COURT NEWS:
DEC. 8 - SMU breaks ground on Crum Basketball Center
The Mustangs broke ground on the Crum Basketball Center on Dec. 8. It is a $13 million, 43,000 sq. ft. training center that will be open in the Fall of 2007. (complete information on page 10 of the game notes)
DEC. 19 - SMU Adds George Lynch To Staff
George Lynch, a 12-year NBA veteran and NCAA Champion, joined the SMU men's basketball staff as the team's administrative assistant/graduate manager. Lynch averaged 22.8 minutes, 6.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.2 steals in 774 games during his 12 NBA seasons. He was a first round selection (12th overall) by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1993 NBA draft and played for four franchises: Lakers, Vancouver Grizzlies, Philadelphia 76ers, and New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. He was All-Atlantic Coast Conference and All-Final Four Tournament in 1993 when the North Carolina Tar Heels to the NCAA Championship. Lynch also played in the 2001 NBA Finals when the 76ers won the NBA Eastern Conference.
DEC. 20 - Inside College Hoops with Matt Doherty
SMU men's basketball coach Matt Doherty will have a weekly one-hour radio show beginning Jan. 8. Inside College Hoops with Matt Doherty is hosted by Rich Phillips, the voice of the Mustangs, and will be on KAAM 770 AM, the home of Mustangs' basketball. The weekly event will be held at Ten Sports Grill in downtown Dallas beginning at 7 p.m. (more information on page 4 of the notes)
DEC. 30 - Mustangs Unveil New Scoreboard and Videoboard in Moody Coliseum
The new $900,000-dollar Daktronics scoreboard is 17 feet high by 25 feet wide with eight-by-12-foot video boards on all four sides. The board was built and raised while both teams played away from Moody Coliseum during the semester break from Dec. 13 until Dec. 30. The dedication was at halftime of the Jan. 10, C-USA opener against Southern Miss. President R. Gerald Turner, Vice President Brad Cheves and Director of Athletics Steve Orsini thanked the contributors that made it a reality: Suzanne and Bill Hutchison, B.R. and Denny Holman and Sandy and Chuck Hutchison.New corner scoreboards and signage were also put in Moody during the break and are part of arena upgrades that will continue over the summer.
JAN. 9 - Matt Doherty on KFWD TV-52 Southwest Kia Sports Talk Each Thursday
Coach Matt Doherty will make a weekly appearance on Southwest Kia Sports Talk on KFWD TV-52 each Thursday until the NCAA Final Four. The show is hosted by Josh Roe and airs weekdays at 6:30 p.m. The show re-airs each night at 11:35 p.m.
JAN. 11 - Derrick Roberts and Ike Ofoegbu named captains - Join Donatas Rackauskas and Jon Killen
Coach Matt Doherty named Derrick Roberts and Ike Ofoegbu as team captains. They joined Rackauskas and Killen, which have been team captains since before the season. The previous day, the Mustangs rallied from an 18-point halftime deficit before falling 57-56 to Southern Miss in the C-USA opener. After intermission, Roberts had five points, four rebounds, and an assist while Ofoegbu had eight points and six boards.
 
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLES: Devon Pearson entered the season with 11 career double-doubles, which was the most by an active player in C-USA. He was the only current Mustang with any entering 2006-07. Pearson had nine in 2005-06.
2006-07 Double-Doubles
Player   Stats    Opponent          Season Career
Ike Ofoegbu       26 pts, 10 rebs  La-Monroe 11/22            1st        1st
Devon Pearson  19 pts, 10 rebs  Texas College 12/3        1st        12th
Ike Ofoegbu       14 pts, 10 rebs  Prairie View A&M 12/10  2nd       2nd
Ike Ofoegbu       13 pts, 11 rebs  at Centenary 12/16         3rd        3rd
Ike Ofoegbu       10 pts, 11 rebs  Brown 1/6          4th        4th
Devon Pearson  13 pts, 10 rebs  Brown 1/6          2nd       13th
Ike Ofoegbu       12 pts, 11 rebs  Southern Miss 1/10        5th        5th
Bamba Fall        12 pts, 10 rebs  at Houston 1/13 1st        1st
 
EYE ON THE POWER RANKINGS - RPI & SAGARIN: Jan. 18 - RPI No. 144, Sagarin No. 134
The RPI is one of the principal components the NCAA selection committee uses to determine the field for the NCAA Men's Tournament. It has three primary components. It does not include non-Division I opponents in SMU’s record (Paul Quinn and Texas College). The Mustangs finished the 2005-06 season at No. 269 in the RPI and No. 198 in the Sagarin ratings.
Part I (25% of the formula): Team winning percentage.
Part II (50%): Average opponents' winning percentage.
Part III (25%): Average opponents' opponents' winning percentage.
The Mustangs reached No. 7 in the RPI on Dec. 8
                                                            1-50      51-100  101-200 201+     Non Conference L10       R/N
Rnk                  Conf      W-L      SOS     W-L      W-L      W-L      W-L      W-L      RPI       SOS     W-L      W-L
144       SMU     CUSA   9-6        207       0-1        1-1        3-3        5-1        9-3        103       251       5-5        4-4
22         Florida St.         ACC     13-5      L, 59-52 at FSU on 11/14/06
59         Dayton  A-10     12-5      W, 53-48 at SMU on 11/18/06
86         Oklahoma         B12      9-6        L, 69-42 at Oklahoma on 12/28/06
 
OUR FTM IS MORE THAN YOUR FTA: Head coach Matt Doherty sets a goal for the Mustangs to make more free throws than the opponent attempts. Here is a look at the season to date.
            SMU     Opp                  Goal     Result
11/12    18-25    7-9        vs. Illinois State Yes      W, 57-55
11/13    10-17    3-4        vs. McNeese State         Yes      W, 70-54
11/14    7-9        13-18    at Florida State  No        L, 59-52
11/18    27-40    12-24    Dayton  Yes      W, 53-48
11/22    15-22    15-19    Louisiana-Monroe           No        W, 99-66
11/27    20-24    12-19    Paul Quinn        Yes      W, 76-54
12/3      13-22    9-10      Texas College    Yes      W, 79-63
12/13    10-19    2-4        Prairie View A&M           Yes      W, 68-51
12/16    12-15    7-12      at Centenary      No        W, 68-40
12/21    16-23    12-19    at TCU  No        W, 64-62
12/28    7-11      11-17    at Oklahoma      No        L, 69-42
12/30    24-32    22-30    North Carolina A&T        No        L, 80-76
1/4        19-25    10-18    Texas-Pan American      Yes      W, 84-71
1/6        3-6        11-16    Brown   No        W (ot), 60-56
1/10      11-17    7-11      Southern Miss   No        L, 56-57
1/13      15-20    11-12    at Houston        Yes      L, 82-67
1/17      14-19    13-19    at UCF  No        L, 64-56
Season 241-346 177-261 NO       Yes 7-1 / No 4-5
 
ASSIST BY KILLEN: That call has been the most common assist call at SMU in more than a decade. Jon Killen is averaging 5.35 after 17 games. No player has averaged five or more assists for SMU since Gerald Lewis had 6.7 per outing in 1992-93.
 
JON “SHOOTER” KILLEN: Coach Matt Doherty called Jon Killen “shooter” during the summer to help him think more aggressively on offense. The mindset is showing.
2004-05 Fr.        46 points in 28 games (1.6 avg)
2005-06 So.       57 points in 29 games (2.0 avg)
2006-07 Jr.         134 points in 17 games (7.9 avg)
 
MASTERS OF THE CLUTCH: Fifth-year senior Donatas Rackauskas will have his masters in accounting in May 2007 and has a strong grasp on hitting bigtime shots. He finished his bachelor’s in accounting in December 2005 (3.5 years). He is in his fifth season because he missed the 2004-05 season due a preseason knee injury.
- Nov. 14 at Florida State - hit a 3-pointer with 44 seconds left to pull SMU within 54-52 before falling 59-52.
- Jan. 6 against Brown - hit a 3-pointer with six seconds remaining in overtime to seal the 60-56 victory
 
HONORS:
Colonial Classic All-Tournament (SMU went 2-1)
            Jon Killen (10.7 points, 5.4 assists, 3.3 steals)
            Ike Ofoegbu (14.0 points, 6.7 rebounds)
 
 
OPENING ACT IS A WINNER: Matt Doherty is off to an impressive start at SMU. Here is how he compares with othercoaches in their first year of running the men’s basketball team on the Hilltop. The Most wins by SMU under a first-season coach is 16 by Sonny Allen in 1975-76.
COACH W-L      PCT      SEASON          LEAGUE           W-L      PCT      FINISH
Dale Morrison    12-2      .857      1916-17 N/A
John Shumate   13-16    .813      1988-89 SWC    7-9        .438      7th of 9
Matt Doherty     11-6      .647      2005-06 C-USA  0-3        .000      ___ of 12
F.C. Baccus      14-8      .636      1938-39 SWC    8-4        .667      3rd of 7
Sonny Allen       16-12    .571      1975-76 SWC    10-6      .625      3rd of 9
E.O. “Doc” Hayes          13-10    .565      1947-48 SWC    5-7        .417      5th of 7
James Stewart   10-8      .556      1942-43 SWC    4-8        .333      T-5th of 7
Burton Rix         5-4        .555      1917-18 N/A
Roy D. Baccus  11-10    .524      1944-45 SWC    7-5        .583      T-3rd of 7
Jimmy Tubbs     14-14    .500      2004-05 WAC    9-9        .500      T-4th of 10
H.A. Faulkner    10-11    .476      1922-23 SWC    4-10      .286      6th of 6
R.N. Blackwell   8-14      .363      1921-22 SWC    4-11      .267      4th of 6
J.W. St. Clair     5-11      .313      1924-25 SWC    4-10      .286      6th of 8
Mike Dement     8-20      .286      1995-96 SWC    3-11      .214      T-7th of 8
Dave Bliss         7-20      .259      1980-81 SWC    3-13      .188      9th of 9
Bob Prewitt       6-18      .250      1967-68 SWC    5-9        .357      T-7th of 8
 
BUZZER BEATERS:
11/12 vs. Illinois State - W, 57-55 - Devon Pearson gave the Mustangs an opening-night victory against Illinois State as he tipped in a miss from Derrick Roberts as time expired for the 57-55 triumph. Pearson tipped it in from the right side of the basket after Roberts’ 12-foot jumper from the left baseline skipped across the rim.
12/21 at TCU - W, 64-62 - Dez Willingham hit a running 3-pointer from the left wing as time expired to give SMU the 64-62 win. The play started when Derrick Roberts received the inbounds pass and threw it to Donatas Rackauskas at mid-court. Rackauskas took two dribbles and fed Willingham on the left wing for the game-winner. The lead changed hands four times in the final 17 seconds. Brent Hackett gave TCU a 60-59 lead on a 3-pointer with 17 seconds remaining. Jon Killen was fouled by Kevin Langford three seconds later and hit both free throws. Killen was then called for a blocking foul against Ryan Wall with 8.9 seconds to go. Wall hit both free throws to give TCU a 62-61 edge that set up the final play.
 
WHERE THERE IS A “WILL”INGHAM, THERE IS A WAY: Dez Willingham has beat the buzzer with a running 3-pointer twice to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat:
Dec. 21, 2006 - W, 64-62 at TCU - Willingham hit a running 3-pointer from the left wing as time expired to give SMU the 64-62 win. He received a pass from Donatas Rackauskas as the Mustangs went the length of the court for the winner in the final 8.9 seconds. The lead changed hands four times in the final 17 seconds.
Jan. 21, 2006 - Rice W, 80-69 (ot) - The Mustangs forced overtime after Willingham hit a 25-foot three-pointer to tie the game at 64-64 with a half a second left in regulation. That concluded an SMU rally from seven points down with 1:37 remaining in the second half.
 
I LIKE IKE: Ike Ofoegbu has become a force for the Mustangs this season. In just six games, he has almost matched his totals from last season in scoring, free throws, and field goals while drastically increasing his averages
            Points   Avg.      Rebs     Avg.      FG        3FG      FT
2004-05 21         0.8        28         1.1        5-31      0-3        11-18
2005-06 102       3.8        82         3.0        35-62    0-1        32-50
2006-07 207       12.2      120       7.1        67-123  10-25    63-88
 
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARDS: Devon Pearson became the 29th player at SMU with 500 career  rebounds when he passed the mar against Louisiana-Monroe 11/22.
REBOUNDING (CAREER)
  1. 1169 - Jon Koncak - 1981-85
  2. 1077 - Ira Terrell - 1972-76
  3. 976 - Jeryl Sasser - 1997-01
  4. 889 - Larry Davis - 1981-85
  5. 840 - Jim Krebs - 1954-57
  6. 790 - Willie Davis - 1997-01
  7. 785 - Jeff Swanson - 1974-78
  8. 759 - Patrick Simpson - 2001-05
  9. 745 - Joel Krog - 1953-56
 10. 690 - Tim Mason - 1989-93
 11. 687 - Carroll Hooser - 1963-66
 12. 669 - Lynn Phillips - 1966-69
 13. 650 - Quinton Ross - 1999-03
 14. 634 - Eric Castro - 2001-05
 15. 621 - Terry Williams - 1983-87
 16. 619 - Steve Strange - 1958-61
 17. 615 - Jan Loudermilk - 1959-62
 18. 609 - Greg Kinzer - 1989-93
 19. 580 - Bill Voight - 1966-69
 20. 574 - John Colborne - 1985-90
 21. 568 - Devon Pearson - 2003-06
FAMILIAR FOE: The Mustangs have met seven opponents more than 100 times.
Rice      182       111-71  Feb. 10@SMU, Feb. 24@RU
TCU      182       100-82  W, 64-62 - Dec. 21@TCU
Baylor   175       100-75
Texas A&M       175       90-85
Texas   174       71-103
Arkansas          153       59-94
Texas Tech       104       47-57
 
BLOCK PARTY: Bamba Fall’s 2.59 blocks per game are second Conference USA. In 2005-06.
Bamba Fall set the SMU freshman record with 53 blocks last season in just 18 games. (Passed the previous record of 43 by Ira Terrell in 1972-73). He also led C-USA with 3.36 per league contest.
 
Bamba Fall - Blocks                   GP       2+        3+        4+        5+        6+
2005-06             Fr.        18         15         10         8          3          1
2006-07             So.       17         12         7          4          3          2
                        Total     35         27         17         12         6          3
 
SMU Single-Season Team Blocks Average
5.0        149 in 30 games in 2002-03
4.9        83 in 17 games in 2006-07
4.8        138 in 29 games in 2005-06
 
SMU Career Blocked Shots
1. 278 - Jon Koncak - 1981-85
2. 169 - Ira Terrell - 1972-76
3. 151 - Patrick Simpson - 2001-05
4. 129 - Reggie Franklin - 1977-79
5. 97 - Bamba Fall - 2005-07 (Moved into 5th against Southern Miss 1/10 - 6 blocks)
6. 88 - James Gatewood - 1990-94
7. 81 - Quinton Ross - 1999-03
8. 78 - Brad Branson - 1978-80
9. 69 - Bobby Dimson - 1994-98
10. 67 - Thines Robinson II - 1974-78
     67 - Jeryl Sasser - 1997-01
12. 65 - Glenn Puddy - 1984-86,87-89
13. 63 - Donatas Rackauskas - 2002-07
 
SMU Single-Season Blocked Shots (Since 1972-73) (GP)
1.  97    Jon Koncak (Jr.), 1983-84 (33)
2.  91    Jon Koncak (Sr.), 1984-85 (33)
3.  79    Ira Terrell (Sr.), 1975-76 (28)
4.  70    Reggie Franklin (Sr.), 1978-79 (27)
5.  59    Reggie Franklin (Jr.), 1977-78 (28)
6.  54    Jon Koncak (So.), 1982-83 (30)
7.  53    Bamba Fall (Fr.), 2005-06 (18) - Set the SMU Freshman Record
8.  51    Brad Branson (Sr.), 1979-80 (28)
9.  47    Ira Terrell (So.), 1973-74 (27)
10. 45   Patrick Simpson (So.), 2002-03 (30)
11. 44   Bamba Fall (So.), 2006-07 (17)
 
SMU Single-Season Blocked Shots by a Sophomore (GP)
1.  54    Jon Koncak, 1982-83 (30)
2.  47    Ira Terrell, 1973-74 (27)
3.  45    Patrick Simpson, 2002-03 (30)
4.  44    Bamba Fall (So.), 2006-07 (17)
 
SMU Single-Season Blocked Shots Average (Since 1972-73)
Must Play in 75% of Games (Blocks/Games Played)
Bamba Fall averaged 2.9 as a freshman, but only played in 18 games.
1.  2.9   Jon Koncak (Jr.), 1983-84 (97/33)
2.  2.8   Ira Terrell (Sr.), 1975-76 (79/28)
    2.8    Jon Koncak (Sr.), 1984-85 (91/33)
4.  2.6   Reggie Franklin (Sr.), 1978-79 (70/27)
5.  2.1   Reggie Franklin (Jr.), 1977-78 (59/28)
 
SMU MILESTONES:
- The Mustangs won seven consecutive games (Nov. 18 to Dec. 21) for the first time since winning 10 in a row to start the 1997-98 season
- The Mustangs swept a homestand of five or more games for the first time since a six-game stretch in the 1997-98 season
- The Mustangs won a school-record five games in November, finishing the month 5-1. The Mustangs had previously gone 4-0 in November to start the 1997-98 and 2000-01 seasons.
- SMU had its first 2-0 start against Div. I opponents since a 4-0 start to the 2000-01 season. The 2-0 starts in 2004-05 and 2001-02 included non-Div. I victories. (Savannah St. in 2001-02 and UT-Tyler in 2004-05)
 
SMU RECORD UPDATES: Additions or changes to the SMU record book during the 2006-07 season.
SMU Single-Game - Team
            3FGM   T-4th - 13 Texas-Pan American 1/4
                        T-6th - 12 vs. McNeese State 11/13
                        T-6th - 12 La-Monroe 11/22
            3FG PCT           3rd - 61.9% (13-21) Texas-Pan American 1/4
SMU Single-Game - Individual
            FTA      T-7th - 17 by Ike Ofoegbu vs. Illinois State 11/12
Opponent Single-Game - Individual
            3FGM   T-6th - 7 by Robert McKiver, Houston 1/13
Moody Coliseum Single-Game - Team
            3FGM   T-4th - 13 by SMU vs. Texas-Pan American 1/4
            3FG PCT           T-5th - 61.9% (13-21) by SMU vs. Texas-Pan American 1/4
 
LONG TIME, NO SEE: SMU has had a few numbers in the boxscore that have not seen in a while
- SMU scored 99 points against La.-Monroe 11/22 - last time was 101 at Puerto Rico - Mayaguez 12/20/2000 (W 101-72)
- Jon Killen had 10 assists against La-Monroe 11/22 - last time was Bryan Hopkins with 10 against TCU on 11/24/2002 (W ot, 87-84)
 
IT’S THE RED JERSEYS: The Mustangs have a set of red jerseys in addition to the traidtional home white and road blue. The Mustangs have won both games played in the red jerseys this season.
Dec. 3   Texas College    W, 79-63           50th anniversary of opening Moody Coliseum
Dec. 21 at TCU  W, 64-62           Defeat rival on Dez Willingham’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer
 
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: The Mustangs are 7-2 at home this season. The Mustangs defeated Dayton 53-48, Louisiana-Monroe 99-66, Paul Quinn 76-54, Texas College 79-63, and Prairie View A&M 68-51 in the season-long five-game homestand from Nov. 18 to Dec. 13. It was the first sweep of a homestand of at least five games since a six-game sweep in 1997-98.
Most Home Wins for SMU (7-1 with 8 home games remaining)
15-1      1984-85
13-1      1956-57, 1987-88, 1992-93
13-2      1970-71, 1999-00
13-4      1997-98
12-1      1971-72
12-2      1985-86
12-4      1979-80
11-2      1950-51, 1960-61, 1983-84
11-3      1930-31, 1975-76, 1988-89
10-0      1555-56
10-1      1957-58, 1961-62
10-2      1965-66, 1966-67, 1973-74, 2000-01
10-3      2002-03
10-4      1978-79, 1986-87, 2004-05
 
TOUGHNESS: The starting lineup against North Carolina A&T of Brian Epps, Jon Killen, Donatas Rackasukas, Paulius Ritter and Cameron Spencer was decided based on toughness drills conducted by the coaching staff in practice the day before the game. The winners got to start.
 
MUSTANG HOOPS BLOG: SMU Mustangs’ head coach Matt Doherty has his own blog at www.MustangHoopsBlog.com.
 
COACHING EXPERIENCE: Head Coach Matt Doherty has assembled a coaching staff of Associate Head Coach Mike Garland, Assistant Coach Lance Irvin, Assistant Coach Steve Lutz, and Director of Operations Malcolm Farmer. The coaching staff entered the season with totals of 49 years of collegiate coaching with 16 conference crowns and 12 conference tournament championships. They have earned 26 postseason appearances, including 18 bids to the NCAA Tournament with 14 trips to the Sweet 16, nine Elite Eights, six Final Fours and two National Championships. The coaching staff has also guided 32 players to the NBA.
 
SMU RECORD FOR NATIONAL TV EXPOSURE: The SMU Men's Basketball team has a school record five nationally televised games during the 2006-07 regular season. The Mustangs play four games on CSTV and one game, at Memphis, on ESPN. The Mustangs' games on CSTV include TCU, both match-ups with Houston and the home game against Memphis. The Mustangs play the first three televised games on the road before playing the final two at home in Moody Coliseum.
Thu, Dec. 21, at TCU (CSTV) - W, 64-62 on Dez Willingham 3-pointer at buzzer (Tom Hart, Steve Lappas)
Saturday, Jan. 13, at Houston - L, 82-67 as Bamba Fall has first career double-double (12 pts, 10 rebs)
Saturday, Feb. 3, at Memphis - 11 a.m. (ESPN)
Wednesday, Feb. 7, vs. Houston - 7 p.m. (CSTV)
Saturday, March 3, vs. Memphis - 8:30 p.m. (CSTV)
 
R-T-C: Head Coach Matt Doherty uses the initials RTC to represent his vision for the Mustangs. They are Respect, Trust and Commitment. The red wristbands the players wear have RTC as well as several signs around the Mustangs’ locker room and offices.

Is there a line yet?

Any preview on the alumni game?