EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Standing at 5-1 following a successful trip to the Cancun Challenge, the University of Evansville men's basketball team heads to New Mexico for a match-up against the Lobos on Wednesday evening.
After going 1-1 on the trip to Mexico, the Purple Aces stand at 5-1, a start they are enjoying for the fourth time in five years.
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In the win over Fresno State, Ryan Taylor scored 21 points and hit the game-winner before totaling 11 against Louisiana Tech. Taylor suffered a fractured foot in the opener against Fresno and could miss up to six weeks of play. With 21.3 points per game, Taylor is third in the MVC and 36th in the country.
Wednesday's game will mark the sixth for UE in the MVC/Mountain West Challenge, Evansville is 2-3 in the series, but has won the last two games.
Dainius Chatkevicius averaged 7.0 points and 7.5 rebounds in the two games played in Mexico. After registering four points and seven rebounds against Fresno State, Chavkevicius had 10 points, all in the second half, against La. Tech while grabbing 8 boards. In his first contest at Evansville, Chatkevicius posted 10 points, 6 rebounds and 3 blocks; his block total led the team.
In a 3-game stretch entering the trip to Cancun, Dru Smith dished out a total of 29 assists. His average of 6.0 leads the MVC and is 26th in the nation. He is also shooting a slick 62.9% through the opening six outings. Smith has tallied double figures in four games this season after doing so just four times in his whole freshman campaign.
New Mexico enters Wednesday's game with a 2-4 mark and have dropped their last four contests. In the weekend Emerald Coast Classic, the Lobos fell to TCU and Maryland. Three players have averaged double figures led by Chris McNeal, who has posted 17.2 points per game while Sam Logwood and Anthony Mattis stand at 16.0 and 10.3 PPG, respectively.
This will be the first meeting between the schools on the hardwood.
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