OKLAHOMA CITY – The No. 2 Mid-America Christian men's basketball will be hosting three opponents over the next six days at the Gaulke Activity Center as the Evangels will take on Randall (Okla.) at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Ecclesia (Ark.) at 7 p.m. on Thursday and Texas Wesleyan at 3:45 p.m. on Saturday.
LAST TIME OUT
Mid-America Christian (1-0) will be playing for the first time in 10 days as the Evangels are coming off a 108-73 victory over Manhattan Christian (Kan.) at the Gaulke Activity Center on Oct. 31.
The Evangels shot lights out in that contest, knocking down 41-of-63 (65.1 percent) from the field, 14-of-22 (63.6 percent) from the three-point arc and 12-of-16 (75 percent) from the free throw line.
Redshirt junior forward Malik Malone, garnering the SAC Player of the Week award, led the charge with a team-high 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting and went 2-for-2 from the three-point arc and the foul line. Malone finished with a double-double as he added 11 rebounds to go with a pair of blocks and two assists.
Caleb Riggs also had an impressive Evangels debut, scoring 17 points on 6-of-7 shooting, including knocking down 5-of-5 from beyond the arc.
Six different Evangels scored in double-figures in the contest, as MACU newcomer Jasiah Lewis finished with 15 points while Carlos Slaughter (12), Damarius Brooks (10) and Omar Boone (10) rounded out the double-figure scorers.
SCOUTING THE SAINTS
Randall has struggled in its start to the 2020-21 season as the Saints head into the week with an 0-3 record. Much like the Evangels, RU was last in-action on Halloween as the Saints dropped a 94-81 decision to Ottawa (Ariz.) in the finale of the Fultz Classic hosted by Arizona Christian in Phoenix.
Malik Martin leads the balanced Randall offense, averaging 10.7 ppg on a 41 percent shooting clip and is a perfect 8-for-8 on free throw attempts through the first three games. Jordan Marshall leads the Saints on the glass, averaging 6.3 rebounds per game to go with his 9.0 ppg clip. Jeremiah Coleman is the top passer on the team with six assists, averaging two per contest.
One of the bright spots for the Saints on defense has been Jamal Clark, who leads the squad with eight steals while six different RU players have notched a block.
HISTORY WITH THE SAINTS
Since Mid-America Christian moved up to the NAIA level in 2007, the Evangels have dominated the series, winning six of the last seven in that timespan. The two squads squared off twice last season, as MACU came away with a 71-53 win in Moore on Nov. 9 before following it up with a 104-55 victory at the Gaulke Activity Center just a week later.
Five Evangels cracked double figures in that dominant home win as Terrance Jones scored 19 points on 9-of-12 shooting to go with six boards and Dominick Ford scored 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including 2-for-3 from three and ripped down a team-best eight rebounds.
SCOUTING THE ROYALS
Ecclesia enters the week with an 0-2 record after coming off a hard-fought 86-84 loss at MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) on Nov. 3.
The Royals will come into the contest with a 74.0 ppg scoring average, led by Zachary McGee who has accumulated nearly half of the EC offense with a 31 ppg scoring average. McGee is shooting 54 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range while also knocking down a blistering 86 percent from the free throw line.
Oswaldo Terrazas will command the EC rebounding efforts, averaging 9.0 rpg while also tallying a team-best seven assists to go with two blocks and two steals on the defensive end.
HISTORY WITH THE ROYALS
Since the two teams started facing each other in 2017, the Evangels have controlled the three previous contests. In last season's meeting on Oct. 25, 2019, Mid-America Christian pulled away with a 107-73 win at the Gaulke Activity Center. While Cedric Wright finished with a team-best 26 points in the contest, Terrance Jones was stellar off the MACU bench, finishing with 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting to go with eight rebounds.
SCOUTING THE RAMS
Texas Wesleyan enters the week with a 3-0 overall record while the Rams are coming off a hard-fought 97-88 home win over Southwestern Christian last Thursday.
TWU is led by a newcomer in senior guard Vydal Bradford. The 6-5 wing that transferred in from Texas A&M-Commerce currently leads the SAC with 61 points through the first three games, averaging 20.3 ppg. Bradford was selected as the Sooner Athletic Conference Player of the Week after scoring 31 points against the Eagles last week.
Senior forward Sebastian Karwoski will lead the Rams on the glass, as he is currently topping the team at a 6.7 rpg rate. The passing efforts are well spread out among the TWU players as Davon Berry, Peyton Sallee and Marshall Calvin have each dished out eight on the season. Sallee will look to provide the Rams with some defensive leadership with a team-best six steals.
HISTORY WITH THE RAMS
After the two teams started playing each other in 2013, the series has been relatively even as Mid-America Christian holds a 9-6 edge in the series. During the 2019 campaign, the Evangels swept the season series, as MACU topped the Rams on the road 92-81 on Jan. 16 before grinding out a hard-fought 94-89 win in the Gaulke Activity Center on Feb. 15. Ashford Golden dropped a team-best 26 points in that victory, while Tony Dorsey finished with a season-high 21 points.
SENSATIONAL SHOOTING
Mid-America Christian shot the ball at a historic rate in its season-opening victory over Manhattan Christian on Oct. 31. By knocking down 65.1 percent of their shots in the 108-73 victory, the Evangels set an NAIA era record for the best shooting percentage in a single game, topping last season's 63 percent in a 91-81 win at Central Christian (Kan.) on Nov. 23, 2019. MACU also shot a blistering 63.6 percent from the three-point arc to set the fourth-highest three-point percentage in a single game, which was the highest percentage since MACU knocked down 9-for-12 (75 percent) in a 99-85 win over College of the Ozarks (Mo.) on Nov. 9, 2013.
THE MAKINGS OF MALIK MALONE
Redshirt junior forward Malik Malone had an impressive showing in his first ever game with the Evangels. By scoring 20 points and ripping down 11 rebounds in that win over the Thunder, Malone became the sixth player in the last eight seasons to earn at least one Sooner Athletic Conference Player of the Week award. Ashford Golden earned a pair last season as Malone also joined Olajuwon Gardner (2016-17), Nick Tate (2015-16), Semar Farris (2014-15) and Jarius Wilson (2013-14) to garner the league's weekly award.
STAT LEADERS
