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Reggie Miller brings the ball up the court against McMurry, Dec. 2020
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Men's Basketball

Wildcats prep for a cross-town matchup with Hardin-Simmons

ABILENE, Texas - The Wildcats will head into Wednesdays matchup with Hardin-Simmons with a 6-1 record. ACU followed up a tough loss at Texas Tech with a dominant win over another cross-town foe, McMurry on Saturday afternoon. The team continues their defensive dominance holding opponents to just 53.3 points per game, the eighth best mark in the country. ACU will put that to the test against a well-coached Cowboys program who comes into the game with a 4-2 mark on the season. 

FOLLOW THE GAME

SERIES HISTORY

The two teams have a brief history that expands from their first game in the 1945-46 season to the last time they played during the 1971-72 season. The Cowboys hold the 12-10 advantage and won the most recent game by a score of 55-52. Despite the two schools being just minutes apart, they will break a 49-year playing drought in Wednesday's matchup. 

ACU STORYLINES

  • Defense remains the theme for the Wildcats as they are one of the best in the country in a number of defensive categories: scoring defense (53.3, 8th), 3-pt. field goal percentage (22.4, 9th), turnovers forced per game (23.57, 2nd), turnover margin (+7.9, 12th), and steals per game (10.7, 9th)
  • The Wildcats have now had six different leading scorers in their seven games after Joe Pleasant led the way with 16 points against McMurry
  • The Wildcats scoring defense (53.3 ppg) is currently their best mark in a season since moving to DI, over 10 points better than their next highest mark of 63.6 ppg during the 2018-19 season
  • ACU has a deep bench and has played all 15 members of the team in four of seven games, they have played at least 12 guys in six of the seven games. 

JOE GOLDING WEEKLY PRESS CONFERENCE (DEC. 14, 2020)

SCOUTING HARDIN-SIMMONS

  • The Wildcats will see a familiar face on Wednesday when Chase Cobb returns to the ACU campus, Cobb was a member of the ACU team that won the Southland Conference championship and made their first-ever NCAA tournament
  • Cobb (12.0) is one of five players averaging double figures for the Cowboys. Kyle Brennon (14.2) leads the way for HSU with Steve Quinn (12.8), Neal Chambliss (11.0), and Aidan Walsh (11.0) each hitting the mark as well
  • The Cowboys are shooting just 31 percent from deep but are holding opponents to less than 28 percent from distance
  • After dropping two of their first three contests, HSU has now won three straight games kicked off by a narrow victory over Sul Ross State