OKLAHOMA CITY – After closing out the first half of Sooner Athletic Conference play with a massive win, the MACU Men's Basketball team will be looking to carry the momentum into the second half as the Evangels open it with a massive road match at UNT Dallas tonight with tip-off set for 8 p.m. inside Ellis Davis Field House.
 
SEASON REPORT

• Record: 11-5 (7-5 SAC)
• Last Game: Won vs. Wayland Baptist (Texas) – 71-67 – Jan. 11, 2025 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Stat Leaders:
  • Points: Josiah Fulcher (266, 16.6 ppg), Juwan White (198, 12.4 ppg)
  • FG Percentage (Min 3 FGM/G): Josiah Fulcher (52.9, 101-191), Keeshawn Mason (46.4, 70-151)
  • 3FG Percentage (Min 1 3FGM/G): Josiah Fulcher (41.5, 27-65), Magok Manyang (41.0, 32-78)
  • FT Percentage (Min 2 FTM/G): Josiah Fulcher (86.0, 37-43), Juwan White (83.0, 44-53)
  • Rebounds: Magok Manyang (101, 6.3 rpg), Tarrence Gaines (99, 6.2 rpg)
  • Assists: Juwan White (68, 4.3 apg), Josiah Fulcher (42, 2.6 apg)
  • Steals: Josiah Fulcher (26, 1.6 spg), Magok Manyang (18, 1.1 spg)
  • Blocks: Magok Manyang (14, 0.9 bpg)
• Team Notes:
  • Mid-America Christian put together a massive response its first home loss of the season last Thursday with one of its biggest wins of the season on Saturday. The Evangels defensively shut down one of the highest-octane offenses in SAC leader Wayland Baptist, holding the Pioneers to their second-lowest shooting percentage (37.9 percent) and fifth-lowest three-point percentage (31.3 percent) to come away with a crucial 71-67 victory.
  • While it was a tough night offensively for the team's top two scorers in Josiah Fulcher and Juwan White, who combined to score just 19 points on 5-of-14 (35.7 percent) shooting, the Evangels found an offensive spark in one of its best defensive players in Tarrence Gaines. The redshirt senior guard poured in a career-high 21 points on 5-for-10 from the field while going 3-of-7 from three and 8-for-9 from the free throw line.
  • Even though Fulcher was held to single-digit scoring for the first time all season with eight points, the senior guard was massive on the defensive end and the glass as he turned in a career-best 12 rebounds, 10 of which came on defense. The performance helped him garner the SAC Defensive Player of the Week honor after he tallied three steals and two blocked shots against Oklahoma Panhandle State last Thursday.
  • Senior forward Magok Manyang was also massive for MACU in the win as he recorded his second double-double of the season and the sixth in his two-year MACU career. Manyang turned in 15 points on a highly effective 3-for-4 shooting from the arc and 6-of-6 from the foul line to go with 10 rebounds and a pair of steals.

SCOUTING REPORT
UNT Dallas

• Record: 7-9 (4-9 SAC)
• Last Game: Lost at John Brown – 82-74 – Jan. 11, 2025 – Siloam Springs, Ark.
• Series vs MACU (2022-): MACU leads 8-0
• Last Game vs MACU: MACU won 76-74 – Nov. 14, 2024 – Gaulke Activity Center
• Series Streak: MACU won 8
• Players to Watch:
  • Greg Crawford – JR – G/F
    • 297 Points (18.6 ppg), 94-175 FG (53.7%), 100-140 FT (71.4%), 155 Reb (9.7 rpg), 24 Assists (1.5 apg), 20 Steals (1.3 spg), 12 Blocks (0.8 bpg)
  • Vernon Johnson – SR – G
    • 160 Points (10.0 ppg), 56-124 FG (45.2%), 13-36 3FG (36.1%), 35-51 FT (68.6%), 63 Reb (3.9 rpg), 39 Assists (2.4 apg), 29 Steals (1.8 spg)
  • Ashton Howard – SR – F
    • 119 Points (9.2 rpg), 49-119 FG (41.2%), 58 Reb (4.5 rpg), 35 Blocks (2.2 bpg)
• Team Notes:
  • Much like the women's team, the UNT Dallas men's basketball team opened the 2025 slate with an optimistic 75-64 home win against Southwestern Christian on Jan. 4, but have since hit a three-game slide. The latest result was a tough 82-74 road defeat to John Brown on Saturday. In that loss, UNTD was able to battle back to tie the game up at 72-all with 2:08 left, but the Golden Eagles ran away over the final two minutes, outscoring the Trailblazers 10-2 down the stretch while putting the game away from the foul line.
  • Since entering SAC play, UNTD has been a bit challenged to get things going on both the offensive and defensive ends as Trailblazers rank just ninth in scoring offense (71.0 ppg) while allowing the ninth most points (74.8 ppg).
  • Despite UNT Dallas' offensive and defensive struggles, MACU will need to contend with one of the league's best players in junior combo guard/forward, Greg Crawford. With a strong 6-5 build, Crawford has been able to bully his way in the low block and the midrange game as he is the only player in the SAC who ranks in the top five in both points (18.4 ppg, 4^th) and rebounds (9.7, 1^st) while shooting a blistering 53.7 percent from the field. The Houston native has gotten to the line often for the Trailblazers this season as leads the SAC in attempts (140) and has the second-most makes (100).
  • Even though MACU has an 8-0 lead in the all-time series, UNT Dallas rallied back to challenge the Evangels in their last meeting back inside the Gaulke on Nov. 14. In that game, Mid-America Christian held a 68-56 lead with 4:31 remaining before UNTD surged back behind a 13-4 run to cut it to a three-point game at 72-69 with nine seconds left on a Vernon Johnson free throw. However, the Evangels took care of business from the free throw line in the final seven seconds with Tarrence Gaines and Juwan White burying a pair of throws before UNTD got a relatively meaningless three-pointer at the buzzer to wrap-up the 76-74 final.