PORTALES, N.M. – Eastern New Mexico men's basketball will host MSU Denver for a home nonconference matchup Wednesday night. Before the Greyhounds and Roadrunners battle it out at Steve Loy Family Foundation Arena, please take a look at the Starting Five:
1.) Records Shattered: Eastern New Mexico posted a 133-33 victory over Navajo Tech last week. Two-thousand kids joined the Greyhounds for the home opener and watched the program break several school records. Some of the records include points scored (133), assists (43), steals (26), and field goals made (58). The dominating performance included six players in double digit scoring.
Jose Murillo and
Cougar Downing led the way with 18 points each. ENMU managed to hold the Skyhawks to make 27.3% of their shots from the floor and did not allow a single offensive rebound. NTU turned the ball over 37 times and the Hounds scored 67 points off those turnovers.
2.) Double-Double: For a second-straight game, senior forward
Mario Whitley earned a double-double. Two weeks ago, he had a career-high 24 points and ten rebounds in a win over New Mexico Highlands. In last week's victory over Navajo Tech, he posted 15 points and ten rebounds. Whitley is shooting 22-of-39 (.564) from the field and has dished out eight assists while only turning the ball over five times. The Saginaw, Mich. native has scored in double figures four-straight times in his Greyhound career twice. If he scores ten or more points Wednesday night, we will accomplish the feat for a third time as a Hound.
3.) Stealing Time: ENMU ranks second in the Lone Star Conference and eleventh among DII programs with 13.0 steals per game.
Cooper Jackson leads the LSC with 4.33 steals per game and had seven in the win over Navajo Tech. Over his last two seasons at Barton Community College, Jackson had three games with seven or more steals. Only nine student-athletes competing for DII programs have at least seven steals in a game this season. The Kansas native is aiding the Greyhounds, forcing opponents to commit 22.33 turnovers per game, which ranks sixth nationally. Another key statistic for ENMU is that they are only allowing 60.3 points per contest.
4.) Bench Bonus: The Greyhounds scored 75 points off the bench in the win over Navajo Tech.
Jaden Clarke (17),
Andrija Maric (16), and
Brandon Kehres (14) all finished in double figures in the victory coming off the bench. Clarke is averaging 10.7 points per game this season without starting a single contest. Another key member for ENMU off the bench is
Andrija Maric who is posting 6.0 points and 3.3 rebounds a contest.
5.) Roadrunners Racing: MSU Denver is off to a quick start to the 2024-25 season. They are 3-0 against a loaded schedule featuring Lone Star Conference foes. So far, they have beaten Sul Ross State, UT Tyler, and Texas A&M-Kingsville. They will seek to start the season 4-0 over the LSC with a road contest versus Eastern New Mexico. The only single digit contest for the Roadrunners came against the Patriots in a three-point affair. MSU Denver is 4-0 all-time against ENMU, including 1-0 in games played in Portales. The top player for the visitor's is familiar with the Hounds as he played for Fort Lewis a year ago. Brayden Carter is averaging 14.7 points and 5.7 rebounds a game. His season-high is a 20-point performance in the season-opening win over Sul Ross State. The program is also earning an impressive 11.7 points and 10.7 rebounds per game from Caleb McGill.
