Men's Basketball | 11/17/2014 4:54:00 PM
Monday, November 17, 2014
PORTALES, N.M. — Coming off a successful opening weekend in San Angelo, Texas, the Eastern New Mexico men's basketball team will play their first true road games of the season on Tuesday and Thursday. First up will be a meeting with Colorado State-Pueblo at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in Massari Arena. They Greyhounds follow up with a 7:30 p.m. tip on Thursday at Fort Lewis in Whalen Gym.
ENMU is 2-0 for the first time since the 2010-11 season. Their opponents are both 2-0 as well. The Skyhawks will host Northern New Mexico Tuesday night prior to taking on Eastern.
Senior
Michael Randle leads the team with 20.0 points per game, a 68.4 percent field goal percentage and 55.6 three-point field goal percentage. He is also tied for the team lead with 3.0 assists per game with junior
Deyton De La Cerda while grabbing 4.0 rebounds a contest. At the free throw line, Randle is 9-for-12 (75.0 percent).
Also averaging double-figures in points is juniors
Demetrius Balark (14.0) and
Lawrence Domingo (17.5). They are retrieving 5.5 rpg apiece as well.
Junior
Jason Clardy leads the squad with 9.5 rpg while contributing 9.0 ppg. Going in with a 9.5 ppg mark and a perfect 4-for-4 at the free throw line is De La Cerda.
As a team, the Greyhounds are shooting 47.2 percent from the field, 32.9 percent from beyond the arc and 58.7 percent at the charity stripe. They are grabbing 49.5 rpg and hold a +8.0 rebounding margin. Although they have committed 40 turnovers on the year, Eastern has forced opponents to turn the ball over 39 times with 16 being the result of steals.
The ThunderWolves defeated Midwestern State and West Texas A&M at home in the annual Al Kaly Classic this past weekend. It is their first 2-0 start since the 2006-07 campaign. They also lead the all-time series over ENMU 16-8. They Greyhounds won the last meeting on Nov. 23, 2013 in Canyon, Texas. In Pueblo, Colorado, Eastern is 1-11 all-time with their lone victory coming on Mar. 3, 1970 in the NAIA District VII Tournament.
Leading the team in scoring and assists is Rico Spikes at 19.5 and 4.0, respectively. He is just 9-of-12 from the field but has converted 21-of-24 (87.5 percent) of his free throw attempts.
Both Tyrone Marshall and Bronson Moton are averaging 17.0 ppg and 7.5 rpg each. While making 14-of-17 shots at the free throw line, Marshall also leads CSUP with 3.5 bpg. Moton comes in with 1.5 bpg and 1.0 spg.
Starting both games has been Jed Knafelc and Odessa Lear. Knafelc is putting up 9.5 ppg, 2.5 apg and 1.5 rpg while Lear is averaging 8.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg and 2.0 spg.
Their top player off the bench is Steven Radakovic. He is scoring 8.0 ppg, is 6-for-8 from the field, grabs 2.5 rpg and is getting 1.0 spg.
As a team, the ThunderWolves are scoring 91.5 ppg with a 54.2 field goal percentage but converting only 29.5 percent of their shots from downtown. They are making 77.1 percent of their charity line shots. CSUP holds a slim +0.5 rebounding margin with 36.5 rpg while also getting 7.5 spg and 6.0 bpg. However, they are turning the ball over 22 times a contest and have a -4.0 turnover margin.
Coming off a sweep of their Skyhawk Classic with wins over St. Mary's and Texas-Permian Basin, FLC was picked to finish fourth in the RMAC.
Eastern leads the all-time series 11-7 but have not won since Nov. 23, 1993 at home. They are 2-5 all-time against the Skyhawks in Durango, Colorado with both victories coming in the 1937-38 season. The Greyhounds won games on back-to-back days on Feb. 18 and 19, 1938.
FLC is led by their center Alex Herrera at 24.0 ppg, the fourth highest in the RMAC. He also has a team-high 10.5 rpg, 4.0 apg and 4.0 bpg. From the field, Herrera has made 13-of-22 (59.1%) shots and is 21-for-31 (67.7%) on free throws.
Cade Kloster is scoring 12.0 ppg with a team-high four made three-pointers and is tied with Herrera for the team lead in assists. On the boards, he is grabbing 4.0 rpg. Also averaging double-digits in scoring is Jared Smith (11.0 ppg). He is also retrieving 6.0 rpg and has a squad-best 1.0 spg.
Both Rasmus Bach and Will Morse have started two games each. Morse is averaging 6.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg and 2.0 apg while Bach goes into the week with 5.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 1.0 apg and a perfect 4-for-4 at the free throw line.
Live stats and video will be available for both games with links available at the top of the article and on the men's basketball schedule page.
For the latest information on Greyhound basketball, follow
@ENMUSports on Twitter and visit the official website of ENMU Athletics at GoEasternAtheltics.com.
