OKLAHOMA CITY – After getting its road win to start the second half of Sooner Athletic Conference play, the MACU Men's Basketball team will be seeking a huge win on Saturday afternoon as the Evangels host league co-leader Nelson for a 4 p.m. tip-off inside the Gaulke Activity Center.
 
SEASON REPORT

• Record: 12-5 (8-5 SAC)
• Last Game: Won at UNT Dallas – 69-65 – Jan. 16, 2025 – Dallas
• Stat Leaders:
  • Points: Josiah Fulcher (279, 16.4 ppg), Juwan White (219, 12.9 ppg)
  • FG Percentage (Min 3 FGM/G): Josiah Fulcher (51.7, 106-205), Keeshawn Mason (46.9, 75-160)
  • 3FG Percentage (Min 1 3FGM/G): Josiah Fulcher (40.6, 28-69), Magok Manyang (40.2, 33-82)
  • FT Percentage (Min 2 FTM/G): Josiah Fulcher (86.7, 39-45), Juwan White (84.2, 48-57)
  • Rebounds: Tarrence Gaines (104, 6.1 rpg), Magok Manyang (103, 6.1 rpg)
  • Assists: Juwan White (70, 4.1 apg), Josiah Fulcher (44, 2.6 apg)
  • Steals: Josiah Fulcher (26, 1.5 spg), Magok Manyang (18, 1.1 spg)
  • Blocks: Magok Manyang (14, 0.8 bpg), Tarrence Gaines (12, 0.7 bpg)
• Team Notes:
  • Mid-America Christian managed to stave off a second half comeback by UNT Dallas on Thursday night. Even though the Trailblazers managed to tie the game up at 42-42, the Evangels utilized a 9-0 run to break away and didn't look back before eventually pulling out the 69-65 road win.
  • Despite entering the contest with some tough shooting performances, shooting above 40 percent in just one of the last six games, senior guard Juwan White bounced back in a big way by scoring a MACU career-high 21 points on 8-of-12 from the field and went 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. It was the first 20-plus point game for the Dacula, Georgia native since he scored a career-high 22 points as a member of the Butler Community College squad against Cowley College on Jan. 29, 2020.
  • The victory marked MACU's first road win during its 2025 slate. The Evangels have struggled away from the Gaulke Activity Center with a 3-4 road mark, but have seen some improvements on the road toward middle portion of the schedule as MACU has won three of their last four contests away from home.
  • As the Evangels start the second half of SAC play, every win matters in an extremely competitive league with six teams already having eight or more conference wins and all sitting within 2.5 games of each other for the league lead. The victory allowed MACU to climb within a half-game of Texas Wesleyan and John Brown for the No. 4 spot in the SAC, which will become important down the stretch with the top four seeds hosting conference quarterfinal games.

SCOUTING REPORT
Nelson (Texas)

• Record: 13-5 (11-3 SAC)
• Last Game: Won vs. Oklahoma City – 85-61 – Jan. 16, 2025 – Waxahachie, Texas
• Series vs MACU (2005-): MACU leads 17-14
• Last Game vs MACU: Nelson won 73-66 – Nov. 16, 2024 – Waxahachie, Texas
• Series Streak: Nelson won 1
• Players to Watch:
  • CJ Hall – SR – G
    • 352 Points (20.7 ppg), 131-292 (44.9%), 25-76 3FG (32.9%), 65-83 FT (78.3%), 56 Reb (3.3 rpg), 55 Assists (3.2 apg), 29 Steals (1.7 spg)
  • Micah Clark – JR – F
    • 73 Points (14.6 ppg), 30-56 FG (53.6%), 12-24 FT (50.0%), 26 Reb (5.2 rpg), 8 Assists (1.6 apg)
  • Noah Jonker – JR – F
    • 149 Points (8.3 ppg), 61-91 FG (67.0%), 19-39 3FG (48.7%), 36 Reb (2.0 rpg)
• Team Notes:
  • Nelson has been one of the hottest teams in the SAC to start 2025 as the Lions hold a 5-0 record so far in the month of January and after playing the first four conference games of the new year on the road, Nelson looked sharp in its first game back home. On Thursday inside the Sheaffer Center, the Lions cruised to an 85-61 win over Oklahoma City.
  • In league play, the Lions have been downright dominant on both sides of the floor as Nelson possesses the second-best scoring offense (77.0 ppg) while posting the second-highest field goal percentage (46.9). Defensively, the Lions rank in a tie for the third-best scoring defense (68.1) while forcing the opposition into 15 turnovers per game, the highest clip in the SAC.
  • MACU will need to contend with one of the best pure scorers in the league in senior guard CJ Hall. Entering the contest, Hall is the SAC's leading scorer at 20.7 ppg while effectively shooting 44.9 percent from the field and posts a strong 78.3 percent from the foul line. Another factor that makes Nelson dangerous is the play of junior forward Micah Clark. After missing the 2024 portion of the season for the Lions, Clark has made an impact in the last five games, averaging 14.6 ppg on a stellar 53.6 percent shooting rate.
  • While Mid-America Christian holds a 17-14 edge in the all-time series since the 2005-06 season, the Evangels will be looking to avenge a tough 73-66 road loss to Nelson back on Nov. 16. The last time MACU faced off against Nelson inside the Gaulke, the Evangels put together a stellar second half performance to come away with a 78-68 victory. In that win, the Evangels utilized a balanced scoring effort that saw five players score in double-figures.