PORTALES, N.M. – No. 18 Eastern New Mexico men's basketball is set for another top 25 matchup as they host No. 24 DBU at Steve Loy Family Foundation on Thursday night. Tickets can be purchased HERE. Please read the Starting Five Preview for more information:

1.) Beat the Buffs: Eastern New Mexico is coming off an exciting 97-89 win over West Texas A&M. The victory broke a 16-game winning streak that WT held over ENMU prior. Eastern tied its best offensive field goal shooting percentage of the season by going 36-of-61 (59%) and finding ways to get every teammate involved. They also tied a season-high with 21 assists with Mo Austin leading the way with nine total. Austin led the offense with quick tempo and helped the Hounds close out the game over the final minutes. WT committed 14 turnovers and ENMU scored 18 points on those possession changes. One area that was a true game changer was the effectiveness of Austin Abrams. Abrams converted on 10-of-12 of his shot attempts and had his second best (24 pts) scoring output of the year. Eastern never let the Buffs get comfortable from where they like to shoot the ball. Instead, West Texas A&M went 11-for-36 (30.6%) from distance.

2.) Teamwork Matters: In Thursday's win over WT, ENMU had five student-athletes score 15+ points. The versatility of the lineup forces defenses to cover all parts of the Greyhound offense. Austin Abrams (24 pts), Cooper Jackson (20 pts), Jose Murillo (17 pts), Mo Austin (15 pts), and Treyvon Byrd (15 pts) worked well together offensively. Abrams was able to convert on several different shot types, including three three-pointers. Jackson earned several opportunities to go to the foul line. From the charity stripe, the Lawrence, Kan. native sunk 9-of-12 shots. Murillo increased his lead as the top field goal percentage shooter in the conference by making 7-of-9 from the floor. Byrd was truly all over the floor in the win as he pulled in nine defensive rebounds on top of his six field goals. Austin stayed true to his game and outran defenders to make layups and find the most effective way to score for the Greyhounds.

3.) Battle At The Top: Eastern New Mexico has a chance to be at the top of the Lone Star Conference with a win over the Patriots. DBU is the only team in the LSC with one loss in league play. ENMU has two losses in conference and can tie DBU at the top of the league with a victory. Both the Greyhounds and Patriots lead the league in steals per game. DBU boasts a nation leading 13.8 per game while Eastern is 13th nationally with 10.5. Another area where both teams standout is the Patriots coming into the contest with a +14.6 scoring margin and the Hounds holding a +11.4 mark themselves. It will be a true battle between teams who excel in similar areas. Some aspects where Eastern is ahead of DBU are blocks, rebounding, and turnovers. ENMU is in the top half of these categories, while the Patriots are in the middle of the conference to the latter part.



4.) Come Early, Come All: Eastern New Mexico Athletics is partnering with First Financial Credit Union and giving out a voucher to get a beanie to the first 500 fans through the door. The voucher will be passed out beginning at 4:30 (one hour before the women's game) and will be given to the first 500 entrants. At the end of the men's game, fans can redeem the voucher for a beanie sponsored by FFCU.

5.) Watching DBU: DBU does a lot of things well. They lead the conference in assists per game (16.5), bench points per game (36.90), scoring margin (+14.6), steals per game (13.8), turnover margin (+7.7), and turnovers forced per game (22.75). They also have returner Xavion Brown who is having himself an MVP type season. Brown leads the conference with 88 assists (4.4 per game). He is second behind Cooper Jackson with 52 steals. Tonight's game will feature the top five players in terms of total steals in the league. Jackson leads with 57 total and Brown has the aforementioned 52. Mo Austin is third in the LSC with 51 total. DBU's Trevor Frank is fourth with 46 and TJ Thomas is fifth with 36. Both teams will also play with pace as Eastern boasts 18.83 fastbreak points per outing and the Patriots snag 13.55 per game to their credit. Keep an eye out for aggressive defense and two teams vying for first place in the conference.