Wildcats host Thunderbirds Saturday night in Moody

ABILENE – The Wildcats got off to a 1-1 start league play last weekend falling at SFA and earning a home win over Tarleton. The Wildcats made a furious comeback attempt against the Lumberjacks after falling behind by as many as 18 early before responding with a gritty win in a defensive slugfest against the Texans. WAC play is shaping up to be just as exciting as it was billed early in the season with a number of close games through a week and a half of action. Another dangerous team will visit Moody Coliseum on Saturday afternoon as Southern Utah will look to bounce back from their first conference loss of the season on Thursday night at Tarleton. 

The Thunderbirds are one of the best scoring teams in the nation, but the Texans held them to just 65 points and a 30 percent mark from long range. The Wildcats will need to replicate that defensive effort and get Southern Utah to play their style of basketball. The Texans forced 11 turnovers and earned the win, but ACU will likely want to force 18-plus turnovers and maximize their offensive possessions to earn an important home win. 

SERIES HISTORY VS. SUU

• ALL-TIME | First meeting
• LAST MEETING | n/a
• STREAK | n/a
• IN ABILENE | n/a
• IN NACOGDOCHES | n/a
• NEUTRAL | n/a
• POSTSEASON | n/a

ACU STORYLINES

• WILD, WILD WESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE | The major theme through the first weekend of action was home court matters in the WAC. With the new resume seeding system, home wins mean more than ever and through the first 12 games of the conference season only two road teams came away with wins. After the first leg of the second weekend of action though, we had three teams step up and grab wins on the road. NM State has yet to win a conference game, Sam Houston has dropped two of their first three contests, SFA and UVU are unbeaten, and the WAC looks like it is as competitive as ever. 
• WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR ME LATELY? | After a 2-4 start to the year and an 0-3 mark in Las Vegas, the Wildcats have turned it around, going 6-1 in their last seven games. The team's only loss came on the road to a one-loss Kansas State program. ACU has settled in on defense and are looking more balanced on the offensive end with each game played. Immanuel Allen and Tobias Cameron are each averaging double figures and nine players are scoring five or more points per game. The 'Cats seem to be hitting their stride and will look to earn two tough wins out of the gate in conference play.
• BALANCE IS KEY | Once again, Abilene Christian has found success when they are sharing the ball and getting contributions from each player on the court. Eight players are averaging six or more points per game and the team has had 11 different players go for double figures at some point this season. The balance doesn't just apply to scoring though as there are six players averaging three or more rebounds per contest as well. When the Wildcats are at their best they are sharing the ball, the team is averaging 16.5 assists per game which ranks as the 32nd best mark in the country. 
• PLEASANT MAKES HIS RETURN TO THE COURT | After his brief season debut in a home game against McMurry, Joe Pleasant saw his role grow during the Las Vegas/Arizona road trip. He saw his minutes increase in Las Vegas and earned his first start of the season at Northern Arizona. He has settled in to his starting role and has shot 50 percent from the field in eight-straight games while scoring in double figures in each of his last three.
• CAMERON CAN DO IT ALL | Tobias Cameron kicked off the season matching a career-high with 18 points in a win over Jackson State and closed non-conference play with another 18-point performance in a win over Howard Payne. Cameron has done a little bit of everything for the Wildcats this season and notched the first double-double of his career in a win over North American. He is shooting 58 percent from the field, leads the team in rebounding, and is second on the team in assists.
• WILDCATS OPEN MOODY WITH A WIN | The Wildcats opened the 22-23 season with a win over Jackson State in the newly renovated Moody Coliseum. In front of a crowd of nearly 2,500 people ACU jumped out to a 20-point halftime lead behind a hot shooting start and a stifling defense. The team had to fend off a furious comeback attempt by the Tigers as the Wildcats struggled to find their offense in the second half, but came away with a 65-56 victory to start the season 1-0.
• DANIELS, CAMERON EARN 100 CAREER WINS | With the team's 93-46 win over North American on November 30, Wildcats' Tobias Cameron and Damien Daniels earned their 100th-career wins in an ACU uniform. The two have been a key part of the Wildcats success over the past four seasons, tallying 20-plus wins in each one.

SCOUTING Southern Utah (10-6, 2-1 WAC)

• After earning wins at NM State and at home against UTRGV, the Thunderbirds dropped their first conference game with a 68-65 loss at Tarleton. The team shot just 30 percent from deep and the Texans held dynamic guard Tevian Jones in check, giving up just nine points to the senior.
• Despite the outing in Stephenville, SUU is still the top-ranked scoring offense in the country averaging 88 points per game. The team is also top-15 in the nation for rebounds per game, free throws made, and fastbreak points. 
• Jones leads the Thunderbirds offense with 19.3 points per game and is one of four players averaging double figures on the year. 

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