SMU/Tulane preview

[PonyPride]

TULANE Green Wave (8-8, 1-3 C-USA)
at
SMU Mustangs (11-7, 0-4 C-USA)

Wed. Jan. 24 - 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 (11-7, 0-4 Conference USA) host the Tulane Green Wave (8-8, 1-3 C-USA) at Moody Coliseum on Wednesday, Jan. 24, at 7 p.m. It is the the only meeting for the two this season and the Mustangs last home game until a nationally televised (CSTV) visit from Houston on Feb. 7.

The Mustangs and Green Wave have each won nine times in series history. The Mustangs fell 59-56 at Fogelman Arena in New Orleans on Feb. 1, 2006. The coaching matchup is a first for SMU’s Matt Doherty and Tulane’s Dave Dickerson.

The Mustangs are 7-3 at home this season and are looking for their first league win this year. The two home losses in conference have been examples of the thin line between victory and defeat. The Ponies fell to Southern Miss 57-56 on Jan. 10, as Derrick Roberts left-elbow jumper at the buzzer was just long. SMU stormed back from 21 down in the second half to take a one-point lead before falling. Against UTEP on Jan. 20, Donatas Rackauskas had a game-tying three-point attempt with 17 seconds remining.

The Mustangs lead Conference USA in 3-point percentage defense (.304) and rebounding defense (28.8) and rank second in rebound margin (+8.0) and scoring defense (61.3). Nationally, the team is ninth in rebound margin, 40th in blocked shots, and 42nd in scoring defense. Individually, Jon Killen is leading in the league in steals (1.94) and is third in assists (5.28). Ike Ofoegbu is third in rebounds (7.2) and Donatas Rackauskas is fifth (6.7). Ofoegbu is also second in offensive rebounds (3.67). Bamba Fall is leading the league in blocked shots (2.67) and ranks 15th in the NCAA.

LAST GAME: DALLAS - Devon Pearson scored 16 points and had 11 rebounds to lead SMU (11-7, 0-4) as the Mustangs fell 72-67 to the UTEP Miners on Saturday night. Stefon Jackson scored 18 points for UTEP. The Mustangs led until the 4:06 mark of the second half and had a three-point attempt from Donatas Rackauskas with 17 seconds to go that would have tied the game at 70. Ike Ofoegbu had 14 points and nine boards for the Mustangs, which had a 39-30 edge for the game. Bamba Fall had four blocks to reach 101 for his career in just his 36th game. He has 14 blocks through the first four league games. Maurice Thomas added 13 points and Kevin Henderson had 12 for UTEP (12-7, 4-1 Conference USA). Jon Killen had 10 points and four of SMU's 12 assists.

LAST SEASON AGAINST TULANE - L, 59-56 on Feb. 1, 2006: NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Quincy Davis scored a season-high 25 points and Tulane withstood a late SMU rally for a 59-56 victory Wednesday night. Tulane never trailed in the game and led by as much as 16 in the second half. But the Mustangs forced a pair of turnovers and a pair of missed shots in the final 2:44 as Tulane scored just one point in that stretch. However, the Wave defense held SMU to just one 3-pointer and four free throws during the same stretch to hold on for the victory. Davis was 8-of-13 from the field and 9-of-11 from the free-throw line for the Green Wave (7-12, 3-4 Conference USA). Vytas Tatarunas added 12 points. Bryan Hopkins led SMU (10-9, 2-4) with 17 points. Derrick Roberts added 12 and Dez Willingham had 10. Devon Pearson also grabbed 11 rebounds and Bamba Fall pulled down 10.

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.

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 10-2 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, and lost to 72-67 to UTEP after holding a 32-29 edge after 20 minutes.

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

Devon Pearson 16 pts, 11 rebs UTEP 1/20 3rd 14th

EYE ON THE POWER RANKINGS - RPI & SAGARIN: Jan. 22 - RPI No. 150, Sagarin No. 140

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 9-7 166 0-1 1-1 3-4 5-1 9-3 92 232 4-6 4-4

22 Florida St. ACC 14-5 L, 59-52 at FSU on 11/14/06

59 Dayton A-10 13-5 W, 53-48 at SMU on 11/18/06

86 Oklahoma B12 10-6 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

1/20 23-29 14-22 UTEP Yes L, 72-67

Season 264-375 191-283 NO Yes 7-2 / 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 5.27 after 18 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. 144 points in 18 games (8.0 avg)

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)

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.

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.

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

F.C. Baccus 14-8 .636 1938-39 SWC 8-4 .667 3rd of 7

Matt Doherty 11-7 .611 2005-06 C-USA 0-4 .000 ___ of 12

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

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

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. 579 - 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

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)



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.



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



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

2006-07 221 12.3 129 7.2 70-134 10-26 71-102



BLOCK PARTY: Bamba Fall’s 2.67 blocks per game are leading 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. 18 13 8 5 3 2

Total 36 28 18 13 6 3



SMU Single-Season Team Blocks Average

5.0 149 in 30 games in 2002-03

4.9 88 in 18 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. 101 - 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. 48 Bamba Fall (So.), 2006-07 (17)



SMU Single-Season Blocked Shots by a Sophomore (GP)

1. 54 Jon Koncak, 1982-83 (30)

2. 48 Bamba Fall (So.), 2006-07 (17)

3. 47 Ira Terrell, 1973-74 (27)

4. 45 Patrick Simpson, 2002-03 (30)



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)

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.

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.

QUOTABLE: Quotes by and about SMU from the 2006-07 season.

Jan. 20 - Postgame - UTEP (L, 72-67)

Matt Doherty (on the Mustangs’ effort)

"I am proud of my team. We have come up empty in league play, but they haven’t quit. I asked them to invest their whole self in this game – their whole emotional self – and they did. The thing is, there is no guarantee if you do that, you'll win."

Matt Doherty (on his team getting through the struggles with slow starts)

"I think we did get through it. You didn't see it in a win, but we did. We would have beat a lot of teams tonight. We just have to keep chipping away."

Matt Doherty (on Devon Pearson bouncing back with 16 points and 11 rebounds)

“We really focused on him taking 15 to 18-footers, attacking the basket, and getting offensive rebounds. He only had two offensive boards, but he did have 11 rebounds.”

[smu diamond m]

These are great previews.

[PonyPride]

Once again, that's the fine work of the great Herman Hudson in the SMU sports information office.

[EastStang]

This may be one of our few chances to win one this year.

[Pony_Fan]

This may be one of our few chances to win one this year.

I agree, this is a must win.

[mavsrage311]

Once again, that's the fine work of the great Herman Hudson in the SMU sports information office.

long live the great Herman Hudson!

[MustangIcon]

Ponies win by double digits tomorrow night.

[ponyup10]

its either a win tomorrow...or a probable 0-8 start in C-USA with a nearly impossible 3 game road trip coming up.