Match Info	Opponent Info
Cameron vs. UT Tyler CU: 2-3, 0-0 LSC | UTT: 3-0, 0-0 LSC Wednesday, Nov. 30th | 7:30 P.M. Tyler, Texas | Herrington Patriot Center		ROSTER	SCHEDULE	STATS
Midwestern State vs. UT Tyler MSU: 2-3, 0-0 LSC | UTT: 3-0, 0-0 LSC Friday, Dec. 2nd | 7:30 P.M. Tyler, Texas | Herrington Patriot Center		ROSTER	SCHEDULE	STATS

A PAIR OF GRITTY ROAD WINS

UT Tyler moved to 3-0 on the year with a pair of road victories prior to the Thanksgiving holiday over Arkansas Tech and Northeastern State. UT Tyler relied on a strong defensive effort and effective three-point shooting to win on the road by a 56-49 final over Arkansas Tech on Thursday night. The Patriots held Arkansas Tech scoreless for over five minutes late in the second half to extend what would end up being a 16-point lead with 1:56 left in the game thanks to four-straight unanswered three-point makes. UT Tyler made 10-of-24 (41.6 percent) from three-point range in the win to move to 2-0 on the season. The Patriots stayed steady defensively and executed better offensively to maintain a lead throughout the majority of the second half with a 71-67 victory over Northeastern State on Saturday afternoon for victory number three in a row to start out the season. UT Tyler knocked down 11 out of their first 15 shots from the field to begin a second half in which the Patriots would lead nearly throughout to collect another road win ahead of the start of Lone Star Conference play. That fast start opened up a 12-point lead which would prove vital as Northeastern State cut the deficit to a one-possession difference late, but couldn't overcome the fast offensive start to the half by the Patriots. Junior Jordan Hairston went for 15 points to lead UT Tyler while Mohamed Diallo (14) and Terrell Wilson (12) both reached double-digit scoring figures to provide the bulk of the Patriot offense for the afternoon. UT Tyler shot 60 percent (15-of-25) from the field in the second half, and 45.6 percent (26-of-57) for the game. The two wins allowed the Patriots to stay as one of just two unbeaten squads in the Lone Star Conference alongside Western New Mexico heading into the start of conference play this week.

WHAT COACH WILSON IS SAYING

On the three early tests that his team has passed to open up the season... "Mistake-filled, but some of that is to be expected. It's early in the year so there are some mistakes we are making particularly on the offensive end of the floor as it relates to ball security that we have to clean up in order to make progress. The two road wins, I don't think you can underestimate how difficult it is to win road games. We played two solid teams in their venue. I think overall if we can get to where we're cutting down on our mistakes with the basketball, particularly with things that are a little messy on both ends of the floor, we're 3-0 with two road wins and I think that's pretty significant." 

On what the team did last week preparation wise to prepare for the start of Lone Star Conference play... "Well we took some time off. We ate way too much food. And we addressed the truth. We took a deep dive into the first three games and did an analysis of what we did well and what we need to clean up. We watched and talked about our mistakes and minimizing those mistakes a little better than we have. So alot of mental preparation. For us it was pretty clear, if we cut down our turnovers and take care of the ball it gives us a chance to be alot better."

On the importance and difficulty of picking up wins in the Lone Star Conference... "League ball is different. It's a different dynamic and only eight teams are going to make the Lone Star Conference Postseason Tournament so every game is tough, but now you just have to figure out a way to win even earlier. In March they say "Survive and Advance", but in our league I think that's the mentality you have to have from the word go. You have to fight to get a win, particularly on your home court. This is not a forgiving league and if you don't win your home games it's going to be exponentially more difficult."

THE MATCH UPS

Cameron will begin Lone Star Conference play on Wednesday night in Tyler with a 2-3 record on the year under first year head coach Kevin O'Connor. The Aggies have displayed a much-improved team compared to a unit that went 5-18 overall and 3-13 in LSC play last season. Cameron has won two out of their last three games entering Wednesday night, and have suffered their last two losses by a combined four points to CSU-Pueblo and Northwestern Oklahoma State. Wednesday's LSC opener for both teams will pit the no. 1 field goal percentage offense in Cameron against the no. 1 field goal percentage defense in UT Tyler in the Lone Star Conference againt one another. The Aggies lead the LSC and rank 10th in Division II in three-point field goal percentage (43.0), and have three individuals in Reggie Prudhomme (14.6 ppg), Jaylan Thomas (13.2 ppg) and DeSean Munson (11.6 ppg) averaging double-digit scoring figures. UT Tyler is 4-1 all-time against Cameron, having won four straight in the series, all of which have taken place in Lawton, Okla. The Aggies will return to the HPC on Wednesday for the first time since the 2019-20 season, the site of their last win over the Patriots by a 71-52 margin.

Midwestern State will begin their LSC schedule on Wednesday night at DBU following a pair of wins in their most recent action at the NNU Thanksgiving Classic in Nampa, Idaho. The Mustangs picked up a pair of wins over Central Washington and Northwestern Nazarene after dropping their first three games to open up the 2022-23 season. Friday's meeting against UT Tyler will be a rematch of last year's LSC Championship First Round game between the two programs in which the Mustangs prevailed by a 66-62 final. The Mustangs have struggled offensively early on in 2022-23, ranking last in the LSC in both scoring offense (67.6 ppg) and field goal percentage offense (38.9 percent). Midwestern State has been able to stay in ball games thanks to strong rebounding efforts, ranking third in the LSC with an average of 39.8 rebounds per game. Midwestern State returns a pair of All-LSC selections from last season in Pierre Sanders and Jermane Carter, as well as a 2020-21 All-LSC selection in Luke Hamilton. Midwestern State holds the all-time series advantage over UT Tyler at 4-3, and used last season's postseason victory over the Patriots to snap a three-game winning streak for UT Tyler in the series.

A TOP SQUAD IN THE REGION

UT Tyler has appeared in each of the last two editions of the D2SIDA South Central Region rankings in the no. 10 and no. 8 spots thanks to the 3-0 start to the season. The Patriots enter conference play ranked no. 8 in the regional poll after receiving 11 votes to stand as one of five teams from the Lone Star Conference to appear in the rankings. Black Hills State received all six first-place for the second week in a row in the regional rankings after beginning the year with a 5-0 record. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) currently features four of the top five teams in the rankings after the first few weeks of the 2022-23 season.
 

Rank	School (First-Place Votes)	W-L	Points	Prev.
1	Black Hills State (6)	5-0	60	1
2	Colorado School of Mines	6-0	54	2
3	West Texas A&M	2-2	47	3
T4	Colorado Mesa	5-1	39	4
T4	Fort Lewis	6-0	39	5
6	Texas A&M International	5-1	27	7
7	UC Colorado Springs	6-1	25	6
8	UT Tyler	3-0	11	10
9	St. Edward's	5-1	10	RV
10	Texas A&M-Kingsville	4-2	9	9

EARLY SEASON OBSERVATIONS

Through just three outings in the 2022-23 season, a few themes of what to expect from this year's version of the Patriots have become abundantly clear. First and foremost UT Tyler will once again be amongst the best defensive teams in the Lone Star Conference, and already stand as the best field goal percentage defensive in the league by limiting their opposition to a 39.3 percent clip. Second, Rashun Williams will be a threat to score on any offensive possession, against any defender the Lone Star Conference will throw his way. Williams enters LSC play ranked fourth in the confernece with an average of 18.7 points per game and third in the league in both three point field goal percentage (47.7 percent) and three point field goals per game (3.0). And finally the Patriots will have many styles of play, rotations of players, and options off the bench to utilize throughout the season. Nine different players average double-digit minutes so far, and the variety of talent and skillset of the roster has been put on full display in the first three wins of the year. UT Tyler has the ability to go big with inside presences such as Milan Szabo, Mohamed Diallo and Kyle Frelow, has a crop of stretch players that have the ability to play both inside and out such as Williams, Quinn Smith and Adrian Walker and a stable of capable guards that each posses the ability to score at different levels in the game in Jordan Hairston, Terrell Wilson, Myja White, Jordan Hairston and DJ Jones. How the rotation, minutes and style of play for the Patriots pan out will only be determined by time, but make no mistakes this year's version of the Patriots has all the tools to take another step within in the Lone Star Conference.

ANOTHER FAST START

UT Tyler is 3-0 for the second consecutive season after beginning the 2021-22 season with seven straight victories, the best start to a season in program history. The 2022-23 Patriots will be looking to match, if not improve on that record start over the next few weeks heading into the turn of the calendar year. Two straight weekends on the road will follow this week's LSC opener, making for a difficult start to the conference schedule for the Patriots.

SELECTED NO. 9 IN LSC PRESEASON POLL

The University of Texas at Tyler men's basketball program has been selected ninth in the 2022 Lone Star Conference Men's Basketball Preseason Poll as announced by the conference office. The preseason poll reflects the opinions of LSC head coaches, sports information directors and various media representatives throughout the region. The Patriots received 314 total votes to appear in the no. 9 spot of the preseason poll. West Texas A&M earned 36 of the 39 available first-place votes and 619 total votes to come in as the clear preseason favorite. DBU appeared as the no. 2 ranked team in the preseason poll with 560 votes, while Lubbock Christian received a pair of first-place votes and 489 total votes to come in at no. 3. Midwestern State (no. 4), St. Edward's (no. 5), Texas A&M-Kingsville (no. 6), St. Mary's (no. 7) and Angelo State (no. 8) rounded out the top eight ahead of UT Tyler in the no. 9 spot.
 

2022-23 LSC Men's Basketball Preseason Poll
Rank	School	1st	Total
1	West Texas A&M	36	619
2	DBU		560
3	Lubbock Christian	2	489
4	Midwestern State		460
5	St. Edward's		428
6	Texas A&M-Kingsville		399
7	St. Mary's		380
8	Angelo State		364
9	UT Tyler		314
10	UT Permian Basin	1	310
11	UAFS		293
12	Texas A&M International		246
13	Western New Mexico		145
14	Oklahoma Christian		134
15	Eastern New Mexico		95
16	Cameron		68

SZABO IS ONE TO WATCH

Senior Milan Szabo of UT Tyler men's basketball was named a Preseason Player to Watch by the Lone Star Conference. Szabo was one of 14 players included on the list that includes student-athletes designated for the recognition by their member institution. Szabo was named the 2021-22 Lone Star Conference All-Academic Team for his combined efforts on the court and in the classroom and will return to the floor for the 2022-23 season as one of just four returners to the roster. The Levice, Slovakia native appeared in all 26 games in 2021-22 and made 25 starts while leading the Patriots with an average of 5.6 rebounds per contest. Szabo chipped in an average of 7.5 points per game and posted a double-digit scoring effort in eight contests throughout the season.

COACH WILSON

Head coach Louis Wilson is in his fourth season on Monday night at the helm of the UT Tyler men's basketball program in 2022-23, and eighth season overall as a head coach at the Division II level. The 2022-23 season will mark the 31st year of collegiate basketball coaching experience for Wilson, as he accumulated 23 years of experience at the Division I level as an associate or assistant head coach prior to his time in Tyler. He spent five years as head coach at Division II foe Adams State of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) from 2010-15, totaling a 95-46 record as head coach of the Grizzlies, and led the program to three consecutive appearances in the NCAA Division II National Tournament from 2010-13. Coach Wilson enters Monday night with a record of 39-39 in his three years as head coach of the Patriots.