GAME NOTES: Delta State vs. West Alabama/West Georgia (1.21-23.16) CLEVELAND, Mississippi – Delta State University men's basketball plays host to West Alabama and West Georgia this week, as round two of Gulf South Conference games begins.
| STATESMEN GAME DAY INFORMATION |
|---|
| Date/Location | Jan. 21-23, 2016 | Walter Sillers Coliseum | Cleveland, Miss. |
| Tip-off Time | West Alabama – 7:30 p.m.
West Georgia – 4 p.m. |
| Records | Statesmen (13-4, 8-3 GSC) | Tigers (9-8, 5-6 GSC)
Wolves (11-5, 8-3 GSC) |
| Series History | UWA: DSU leads series 40-28
UWG: DSU leads 26-17 |
| Audio | Listen Here |
| Video | Watch Here |
| Live Stats | Follow Here |
TIP-OFF
Statesmen basketball bounced back from its fourth loss of the season with an 80-53 win over in-state rival Mississippi College on Jan. 16. Delta State is now 4-0 on the season in games following a loss.
DSU faces a tough home stand in West Alabama and West Georgia this week. The Green-and-White are 3-5 versus West Alabama under Coach
Jim Boone and 2-5 against West Georgia.
In their first meeting, the Statesmen beat West Alabama on Dec. 5, 2015.
Devin Schmidt led all scorers with 32 points. UWA's Simeon Dennis led the Tigers with 13 points. Delta State outshot West Alabama from the floor: 44.4 percent (20-of-45) to 38.8 percent (19-of-49).
The Statesmen opened conference play against West Georgia and fell to the Wolves on the road 85-67 on Dec. 3. Schmidt led DSU with 25 points, followed by
PJ Davis with a career-high 22 points. UWG's Iakeem Alston led three wolves in double-figures with 24 points.
As a team, the Statesmen average 65.8 points per game against West Alabama under Coach Boone and 70.9 points per game against West Georgia. Junior guard Schmidt averages 22.7 points per game against the Tigers and 20.8 points per game against the Wolves in the 11 combined games against the two squads.
Schmidt is averaging 24.8 points per game to rank second in the league, third in the South Region, and sixth in Division II. The Sevierville, Tenn., native currently has 1,533 career points and needs 37 in the games this week to move into third on DSU's all-time scoring list. He will pass Delta State Hall of Famer Twentis Magee ('95-'98) with 1,569 career points.
In the conference, DSU ranks first in scoring defense, allowing opponents to score 68.3 points per games, which ranks 28th in Div. II. The Statesmen also rank first in field goal percentage defense (41.1%) and 3-point field goal percentage (39.6%), 35th in Div. II.
