Date	Time	Opponent	Location	Venue	Links
Thursday, January 9	7:30 p.m.	Angelo State	San Angelo, Texas	Junell Center	Stats | FloSports | Game Notes

 
CANYON, Texas – West Texas A&M men's basketball looks to snap a three-game losing streak on Thursday, Jan. 9 when the Buffs take on the Rams of Angelo State. Tipoff between the Buffs and Rams is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. inside the Junell Center in San Angelo.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
The Athletic Communications Department from Angelo State will provide live stats and a pay-per-view web stream. Fans will need to purchase a monthly ($19.99) or annual ($107.88) subscription with FloSports, the official streaming provider of the Lone Star Conference. The subscription allows fans access to any content available on FloSports.
 
A LOOK AT THE BUFFS
The Buffs are led by junior guard Ahamed Mohammed who averages 17.3 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Noah Pagotto follows Mohammed with 15.5 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. Jailyn Sledge paces the team with 6.0 rebounds per game while making 24 steals and 11 blocks. Isaac Ayoubi leads the team with 40 assists.
 
SCOUTING ANGELO STATE
The Rams come off a 77-64 victory over Sul Ross State on Sunday, Jan. 5 to improve to 9-4 overall and 5-2 in Lone Star Conference play. Angelo State is led by head coach Vinay Patel who is in his third season in San Angelo and 11^th overall. Patel has produced a 175-117 record in his career and a 54-22 record as the head coach of the Rams.
 
On the season, Angelo State averages 70.5 points per game on 46.0 percent shooting from the field while giving up 63.4 points per game to opponents. Sterling Gaston-Chapman leads the offense as the only double-digit scorer, netting 13.4 points per game. Chapman also leads the team with 5.1 rebounds per game and 26 total assists. Kaden Evans paces the Rams with 22 steals while Damonze Woods has blocked nine shots.
 
THE SERIES
WT leads the all-time series with Angelo State 59-26 including 19-20 in San Angelo. The Buffs and Rams met three times last year with WT taking all three matchups. WT took down Angelo State 88-73 in Canyon before outlasting the Rams 94-90 in overtime in San Angelo. The final meeting saw WT roll past Angelo State 81-66 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Tom Brown is 19-5 against Angelo State in his tenure at the helm of the Buffs.
 
W, 81-66 – Canyon (NCAA), 2024
W, 94-90 (OT) – San Angelo, 2024
W, 88-73 – Canyon, 2024
W, 69-59 – Canyon (NCAA), 2023
W, 64-64 – Frisco (LSC), 2023
 
LAST TIME OUT
The West Texas A&M men's basketball team couldn't overcome a slow start and cold shooting on Sunday afternoon as the Lubbock Christian Chaps defeated the Buffs, 68-48. The Buffs fall to 9-4 overall and 4-3 in Lone Star Conference play while the Chaps improve to 10-4 and 5-1 in league action. Two Buffs reached double-digit scoring on Sunday afternoon led by a team-high 13 from Ahamed Mohammed. Bob Griechen also ended his day in double figures, scoring 10 points whle pulling in a team-high nine rebounds and a blocked shot. Griechen also converted three steals while Mohammed and Amir McMillian recorded an assist.
 
THE BROWN ERA
Head coach Tom Brown enters his 11th season at the helm of Buffalo Basketball, building the program into one of the elite NCAA Division II schools in the nation.  He has guided the Buffs to seven consecutive NCAA Tournaments including the Buffs first-ever NCAA Division II National Championship game in 2021. Under Brown, the Buffs are 275-66 since he took the reins in 2014 for an incredible winning percentage of 80.7%.  Brown registered his 250^th career victory on Jan. 13, 2024, after the Buffs defeated UT Permian Basin, 77-69, to become just the second coach in program history to reach the 250-win plateau. 

NABC TOP 25 POLL
The top three remained the same from the last poll with Nova Southeastern gathering all 16 first-place votes in this poll for a total of 400 points followed by Washburn (383) and Daemen (358). Minot State (346) and Ferris State (345) swapped spots from the previous poll as Minot State ranks fourth in this poll. Alabama Huntsville, West Liberty, DBU, Fairmont State, and Lake Superior State comprise the remainder of the top 10.
 
The South Central Region is represented by three teams in the poll with DBU leading the way. Colorado School of Mines (15^th) and MSU Denver (22^nd) also earned spots in the poll.  West Texas A&M received votes in the poll.
 
ON THIS DAY: JAN. 9
Friday's game marks the 23^rd time the Buffs have played on this date and first since 2021. WT is 12-10 in games on Jan. 9 including 2-0 under Tom Brown. The Buffs are 3-2 in their last five games on this date and 5-5 in their last 10.
 
L, 78-87 – #21 DBU, 2021
W, 98-84 – UT Permian Basin, 2020
L, 64-95 – Central Oklahoma, 2010
W, 79-64 – East Central, 2003
W, 75-60 – #22 Abilene Christian, 1999
 
LSC PRESEASON FAVORITE
WT earned the top spot in the poll with 28 first-place votes and 687 points followed by Dallas Baptist with 12 first-place votes and 671 points. Lubbock Christian (4 fpv, 628) took the third spot while Angelo State (555) and St. Edward's (545) make up the top five. Texas A&M International (1 fpv, 427), Eastern New Mexico (391), Cameron (386), UT Permian Basin (338), and Oklahoma Christian hold the sixth through 10^th spots, respectively. Midwestern State (318), St. Mary's (313), Texas A&M-Kingsville (198), UT Tyler (152), Western New Mexico (124), and Sul Ross State (63) finish out the poll.
 
THE LONE STAR
The 2024-25 LSC basketball schedule will feature 16 men's teams in two divisions with each team playing a double round-robin schedule within their division. Additionally, teams will play eight crossover competitions against teams from the opposite division for a total of 22 conference games.
 
The Lone Star Conference presents its 51st men's basketball tournament March 7-8-9, 2025, played at Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas. The eight-team bracket includes the East and West Division winners, who automatically receive berths, with the remaining qualifiers and seeding based on results versus all LSC teams. The Division II Men's Basketball Championship starts with regionals March 14-18 at campus sites and continues to the Elite Eight March 25-29 in Evansville, Ind.
 
2023-24 REVIEW
The Buffs returned to the Final Four in the 2023-24 season, capturing the program's fifth regional title. Despite seeing its run of consecutive Lone Star Conference tournament titles come to an end, WT earned the top seed in the South Central region, hosting the regional tournament for the second consecutive year. The Buffs swept their way through the regional tournament, defeating eight-seeded Angelo State and fourth-seeded and No. 12-ranked Dallas Baptist to reach the championship game. Facing off against third-seeded and No. 6-ranked Colorado Mesa, a big second half lifted the Buffs to the regional title with Larry Wise earning Tournament MVP honors. At the Elite Eight, WT defeated fifth-seeded and No. 14-ranked North Georgia 90-76 to advance to the Final Four where top-seeded Minnesota State outlasted the Buffs, 79-72.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
West Texas A&M is home to one of the finest multi-purpose facilities in the country as the First United Bank Center has served as the home of the Buffaloes since January 26, 2002. The Buffaloes are a staggering 272-58 inside of the FUBC during that time for a winning clip of 82.4%. The Buffs are an astounding 151-17 at the First United Bank Center under Tom Brown including three undefeated seasons at home.
 
HOME OF CHAMPIONS
West Texas A&M is home to one of the most successful athletic programs in all of NCAA Division II.
 
The Buffs and Lady Buffs finished third in the 2023-24 Division II LEARFIELD Director's Cup standings. It marked the sixth straight and eighth overall time that WT finished inside of the Top 10 including the fifth straight inside of the Top 5.
 
UP NEXT
WT completes its road trip with a 3 p.m. game against UT Permian Basin on Saturday, Jan. 11.
 
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