SAN ANTONIO – The University of the Incarnate Word men's basketball team prepares to complete its five-game home stand this week in a mid-season clash with Houston Baptist on Wednesday, Jan. 27, and Abilene Christian on Saturday, Jan. 30. Tip-off for both games at 7 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. CT, respectively. 

THE GAMES THIS WEEK 

• UIW wraps up its five-game home stand this week with a game against HBU on Wednesday, Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. CT, followed by ACU on Saturday, Jan. 30 at 6:30 p.m. CT.  
• HBU is coming off a narrow, 74-71, loss to McNeese on Jan. 23.  
• Abilene Christian defeated Central Arkansas, 93-58 on Jan. 23 and hosts SFA on Jan. 27 before visiting the Cardinals. 
• The Cardinals are playing the SLC's best shot blocking team (HBU, 4.36 blocks per game) and the league's best defensive team in ACU this week. ACU is limiting opponents to 57.8 ppg. 

TUNE IN 

• vs. HBU | Wednesday, Jan. 27, 7 p.m. 
  • Watch - https://portal.stretchinternet.com/uiw/ 
  • LiveStats - http://www.sidearmstats.com/incarnateword/mbball/ 
  • Tickets (Limited) - http://www.uiwtickets.com/  
  • Spectator Info. - https://uiwcardinals.com/sports/2020/11/25/2020-21-spectator-requirements.aspx 
• vs. ACU | Saturday, Jan. 30, 6:30 p.m. 
  • Watch - https://portal.stretchinternet.com/uiw/ 
  • LiveStats - http://www.sidearmstats.com/incarnateword/mbball/ 
  • Tickets (Limited) - http://www.uiwtickets.com/  
  • Spectator Info. - https://uiwcardinals.com/sports/2020/11/25/2020-21-spectator-requirements.aspx 

THE CARDINALS 

• UIW ranks second in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (38.7) and third in field goal percentage (47.5). 
• Senior Des Balentine and sophomore Drew Lutz are in a tie for the SLC's fourth-best assist average, dishing out 3.8 per game. 
• Balentine holds the SLC third-best mark with a 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio. 
• With 102 career made 3-pointers, sophomore Keaston Willis needs 12 more to move into a tie for ninth in program history. Willis is also ninth in career scoring average with 15.0 ppg.  
• Freshman Logan Bracamonte is making the most of his starting opportunity with a 15-point, eight rebound performance to lead the Cardinals against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. 
• In the last four games, Bracamonte is averaging 8.8 points, 43% shooting and 3.5 rebounds per game. 

THE CUNNINGHAM CULTURE 

• Since taking over as head coach in 2018-19, Dr. Carson Cunningham has guided the Cardinals to new heights in the classroom, in the community and on the court.  
• Overall team GPA rose from sub-3.0 in 2017-18 to 3.23 in 2018-19, 3.46 in 2019-20 and a Fall 2020 GPA of 3.35.  
• In 2018-19, the Cardinals registered the program's first 1,000 APR score.  
• In 2018-19, UIW completed 282 hours of community service. The team was also the top men's program at UIW by completing 261.5 service hours in 2019-20.  
• UIW had a five-win improvement in conference play, going from one (2018-19) to six (2019-20) - the highest conference wins total since the team went 7-11 in the 2016-17 season.  
• This season, the Cardinals are one of the top-50 teams in the country in 3-point field goal percentage (28th, 38.5), 3-point field goal defense (20th, 28.6) and field goal percentage (46th, 47.5). 

SERIES HISTORY vs. THIS WEEK'S OPPONENTS 

• UIW is 7-6 all-time against the Huskies. The Cardinals are 5-2 in matchups against HBU inside the McDermott Center. 
• UIW is 12-8 all-time against the Wildcats. The Cardinals are seeking to snap a six-game losing streak and their first win over ACU in the McDermott Center since Jan. 26, 2017. 

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES 

• HBU ranks third in the SLC, just behind UIW, in field goal percentage (38.3). 
• The Huskies are second in the conference shooting 74.5% from the free throw line. 
• Zach Iyeyemi recorded a career-high 17 points and three blocks against McNeese. 
• Pedro Castro leads the Huskies, averaging 14 points per game. Castro scored 16 points on 5-for-11 shooting and 4-for-6 from beyond-the-arc against McNeese on Jan. 23. 
• Castro leads the league in 3-point FG percentage (58.5), third in blocked shots (1.4 per game) and fifth in rebounds (7.1 per game). 

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS 

• Abilene Christian hosts SFA on Wednesday, Jan. 27 before playing the Cardinals on Saturday. 
• The Wildcats are the national leaders in forced turnovers per game (22.5) and turnover margin (8.4). 
• ACU ranks 12th in the NCAA Mid-Major Top-25 Poll. The Wildcats are just one game ahead of the Cardinals in SLC standings. 
• Kolton Kohl and Coryon Mason are the only two Wildcats averaging double-digit scoring, Kohl is averaging 10.8 ppg and Mason 10.7 ppg. 
• In his last three games, Kohl averaged 14.3 ppg on 76.0% shooting, 2.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. 

FOLLOW ALONG

For the most up-to-date information on UIW Athletics, visit uiwathletics.com, follow the Cardinals on Twitter @UIWAthletics and like UIW Athletics on Facebook. 
 
Follow the team on Twitter @UIWMBB and on Instagram @UIWMensBasketball.