\n By: Everett Corder (everett.corder@lcu.edu)
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NO. 8 LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN\u00a0(26-4, 17-3 LSC)
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\nvs.\u00a0ST. EDWARD’S\u00a0(24-7, 13-7 LSC)
\nThursday, March 5 \u2013 Noon
\nRip Griffin Center (Lubbock, Texas)
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\nTIPOFF
\nThe madness of March for a college program begins this weekend for Lubbock Christian University this weekend as the Chaps take on St. Edward’s at noon on Thursday at the Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Lone Star Conference Tournament. LCU finished the regular season tied for second with Eastern New Mexico but will play as the No. 3 seed at the tournament because ENMU has the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Chaps ended the season on a strong note, winning their final six contests and 10 of their last 11 heading into the league postseason tournament.
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\nTOURNEY TIME
\nThis is LCU’s seventh straight season in the LSC Championship, which encompasses every year they have been in the league, and this is their second-straight season with a top four seed. Last year, the Chaps were the No. 2 seed and advanced all the way to the championship game, where they fell to the No. 1 seed DBU. In their seven appearances at the league tournament, they have met SEU in the first round a whopping five times. The Chaps are 8-6 all time in LSC tournament play. If the Chaps win on Thursday, they will advance to take on the winner of the game between ENMU and West Texas A&M at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. The last time LCU won a conference postseason tournament was 2001, when they won the Sooner Athletic Conference tournament, which was hosted that year inside the Rip Griffin Center. An 82-70 win against the University of Science and Arts clinched the title.\u00a0
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\nLONE STAR ALL-STARS
\nThere were four Chaparral players honored with Lone Star Conference postseason awards, led by Player of the Year Amondo Miller Jr.<\/a> and Newcomer of the Year Antonio Pusateri<\/a>. It is the second-straight season and the four time overall that LCU has had the league’s player of the year. Parker Hicks earned the award in 2021 and 2022, and Ethan Duncan<\/a> claimed it last season. The pair were also both recognized on the All-Conference First Team, and Pusateri also earned a spot on the league’s All-Defensive Team. Kendall Dow<\/a> was named to the All-LSC Second Team, and Lucas Mercandino<\/a> was named to the All-LSC Third Team.
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\nNATIONALLY KNOWN
\nLubbock Christian moved up another spot in the National Association of Basketball Coaches Top-25 poll and is now ranked No. 8. The Chaps have been nationally ranked every week this season, and they are one of just three Lone Star Conference teams in the rankings this week. Eastern New Mexico is at No. 12 after a loss last week and DBU has moved into the rankings at No. 23. St. Edward’s and Western New Mexico are the first two teams out in the poll. The Chaps have played seven games this season against ranked opponents and are 5-2 in those contests.
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\nAWARD CENTRAL
\nLubbock Christian University senior forward Amondo Miller Jr.<\/a> was named the Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week, the league announced on Monday. This marks the third time this season that Miller has won the conference’s weekly award. The Colorado native averaged 28 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists to lead the No. 9-ranked Chaps to an unbeaten week against Western New Mexico and Sul Ross State. Miller scored a career-high 38 points on 58.3 percent shooting in an 87-83 game with WNMU. His point total is the most by a player in the LSC this season \u2013 topping his 37-point performance in November. He also had three blocks and three steals on the week.\u00a0
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\nSHARP-SHOOTERS
\nAs a team, LCU now shooting 50.6 percent on the season, which ranks sixth in the nation and second in the conference. Lubbock Christian is also ranked fourth nationally in Effective FG%, which is a statistic that adjusts field goal percentage to account for the fact that three-point field goals count for three points, while all other field goals only count for two points. Their EFG% so far this season is .579. Pusateri leads the team and is third in the LSC in field goal percentage at .598, and Miller and Lucas Mercandino<\/a> are both shooting better than 48 percent as well.
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\nBEYOND THE ARC
\nLCU’s efficiency extends all the way out past the three-point line, where their 39.4 percent shooting ranks seventh in all of Division II and leads the LSC. Dow leads the league and ranks 25th nationally, shooting 41.5 percent from deep and is second in the conference with 2.8 made three-pointers per game. LCU matched a program record with 20 made three-pointers \u2013 including 12 in the second half \u2013 earlier this season against Fort Lewis. The Chaps have shot better than 50 percent from behind the arc three times this season, including a season-high 64.7 percent on Nov. 2 against Augusta.
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\nBOARDING SCHOOL
\nOn Saturday, Lubbock Christian was out-rebounded by an opponent for just the eighth time this season. They survived the game and improved to 6-2 in those contests. The Chaps have out-rebounded their opponent in 20 of 30 games this season, going 19-1 in those contests. They are averaging 36.2 rebounds per game. More than half of those rebounds come from just two players \u2013 Antonio Pusateri<\/a> and Amondo Miller Jr.<\/a> Pusateri is sixth in the nation in rebounds per game (10.9) and second nationally in double-doubles (20). He is on pace for 348 rebounds this season, which would be the third-most by a Chap in single-season history.
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\nIRON MEN
\nThree of the top five players in the Lone Star Conference in minutes per game are starters for LCU. Miller leads the team and the LSC, averaging 35:47 per game. Dow and Pusateri are not far behind at second and fifth, respectively. Dow has played the full 40 minutes in seven games this season. Only Leo Nordberg<\/a> (23.6) and Reagan Fielder (10.5) are averaging double-digit minutes off the bench, although Nordberg has moved into the starting lineup since Alex Anamekwe<\/a> was injured in the game against West Texas A&M and Fiedler has since been injured himself.
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\nSCOUTING THE HILLTOPPERS<\/p>\n
\n\tSEU enters the LSC Tournament as the No. 7 seed, finishing the regular season with a 24-7 overall record and a 13-7 showing in league play
\n\tSt. Edward’s leads the conference in assist to turnover ratio with a mark of 1.64
\n\tThe Hilltoppers stumbled to the finish line, losing three of their final four games of the regular season
\n\tBlake Nielsen leads the Hilltoppers and ranks third in the LSC in scoring with an average of 18.3 points per game
\n\tSEU ranks third in the conference in field goal percentage, shooting 46.4 percent as a team
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\nTHE SERIES WITH THE HILLTOPPERS
\nLubbock Christian and St. Edward’s have met 37 times in the history of the two programs, including a whopping five meetings at the LSC Tournament. The series started in 1985 with a Chaparral win, setting the tone for LCU controlling the matchup that they lead 25-12. The last Hilltopper win came in 2024, as the Chaps have won the last three meetings, including a 2024 matchup at the LSC Tournament.
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By: Everett Corder (everett.corder@lcu.edu)
Story Links
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