Men's Basketball 10/24/2019 3:56:00 PM

OCU men's basketball preview in Ohkay Owingeh Classic

Stars make debut under Holt

6 p.m. CDT (5 p.m. MDT) Friday, Oct. 25
vs. University of the Southwest (N.M.)
8 p.m. CDT (7 p.m. MDT) Saturday, Oct. 26
at Northern New Mexico
Eagle Memorial Sportsplex in Espanola, N.M.

THE MATCHUPS
• Oklahoma City will travel to Espanola, N.M., to take on University of the Southwest (N.M.) and Northern New Mexico in the Northern New Mexico Ohkay Owingeh Classic to open the men's basketball season
• The tournament runs Thursday through Saturday with each team playing two games

ABOUT THE STARS
• Anthony Davis, a 6-foot-7 senior from Lewisville, Texas, is one of two returning starters and comes off an all-conference season for OCU. Davis recorded 10.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, shooting 46.6 percent from the floor. He picked up three double-doubles during conference play and scored a season-high 21 points for the Stars against Mid-America Christian on Jan. 29 at Abe Lemons Arena
• The other returning starter for OCU is 6-3 senior Eric Wattree. Wattree, from Port Orchard, Wash., averaged 7.0 points per game a year ago, scoring a season-high 17 points on five 3-pointers at Wayland Baptist (Texas) on Feb. 16
• Oklahoma City begins the season receiving votes in the NAIA Division I Coaches' Preseason Poll. Oklahoma City has made 25 NAIA Division I Tournament appearances and won six national championships in 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2007 and 2008
• OCU has been picked to finish fifth in the Sooner Athletic Conference preseason poll. The Stars received 72 total points in the poll, collecting one second-place vote. In 2018-19, Oklahoma City finished tied for fourth in the SAC, winning the conference tournament title over John Brown (Ark.)
• In the two schools' only meeting, Oklahoma City routed University of the Southwest 101-61 on Nov. 1, 2008 at Abe Lemons Arena. OCU was ranked No. 1 in the NAIA at the time
• The Stars have won both all-time meetings with Northern New Mexico, including a 102-90 victory last season on Nov. 9 in the Mid-America Christian Classic. Trae Bryant posted 21 points off the bench for OCU

ABOUT THE MUSTANGS
• Emmanuel McNeil, a 6-6 junior from New York, averaged 13.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per game last season for University of the Southwest. McNeil set career highs in points (21) and rebounds (16) during the year
• Joshua Harris, a 6-3 senior from Austin, Texas, scored 14.2 points and collected 4.5 rebounds per game a year ago. Harris ranked 15th in the country in field-goal percentage (58.8 percent) and set a career high for points (27) and rebounds (13) in a contest vs. Our Lady of the Lake (Texas)
• Rontrell Hills, a 6-3 senior from Eastside, La., also averaged double-figures for the Mustangs, averaging 12.2 points per contest. Hills set a career-high 24 points during the season and also finished 28th in the country in steals per game (1.68)
• Red River Athletic Conference coaches predict University of the Southwest to finish 10th in the 10-team league according to the 2019-20 preseason poll

ABOUT THE EAGLES
• Naquwan Solomon returns as the leading scorer from last year's Eagles' squad. Solomon, a 6-5 senior from Brooklyn, N.Y., averaged 16.0 points and 5.8 rebounds during last season
• Bryce Simmons, a 6-0 senior from Killeen, Texas, scored 11.3 points per game for the Eagles during 2018-19 to rank third on the team
• Tyrique Weaver, a 6-7 junior from Dallas, returns after averaging 7.7 points. He finished third on the team in rebounds per game (5.2) as well
• The Eagles put together an 11-15 record last season as an NAIA Division II independent

MEET THE COACHES
Stan Holt (first season with OCU)
• Holt comes to OCU after five seasons at fellow SAC school Langston. He directed the Lions to national prominence, putting together four consecutive 20-win seasons. During his time there, Holt also won a conference tournament title in 2016 and reached the NAIA Division I Championship Tournament quarterfinals in 2017
• Langston produced five all-Americans and 18 all-conference performers under Holt
• Prior to his days at Langston, Holt spent time on the coaching staff at the University of Southern California. The Trojans appeared in back-to-back NCAA Tournaments during his tenure

Cory Hitchcock (first season with University of the Southwest)
• Hitchcock was named University of the Southwest's men's basketball head coach in April 2019 after serving as the Southwest women's basketball head coach in 2018-19. He led the Mustangs to an 8-17 record, their highest win total since 2015-16
• Before coming to Southwest, Hitchcock spent eight years as the Head Coach of the Boys Basketball Program at Glenwood Springs (Colo.) High School. He guided the Demons to 114 wins, four Western Slope League Championships and eight state tournament appearances
• In 2007-09, he served as an assistant coach for the women's basketball program at Grand Canyon (Ariz.). He helped guide the team to two PacWest championships and an appearance in the NCAA Division II National Tournament

Ryan Cordova (10th season with Northern New Mexico)
• Cordova, who was named the 2015 Association of Independent Institutions' Coach of the Year, returns eight players to the men's basketball team this season
• Also serving as the Athletic Director at Northern New Mexico College, Cordova has been successful in adding seven different sports in six years. His teams have had 24 academic all-Americans, three all-Americans and 28 AII conference players over the years
• Cordova began his coaching career at Fort Lewis College, serving as the assistant women's basketball coach from 1995-98 and assistant men's basketball coach from 1998-2000

ON THE AIR
• Northern New Mexico will provide live stats of each contest. Follow the Stars' season opener on live stats and OCU's contest against Northern New Mexico on live stats

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Players Mentioned

#3 Trae Bryant: G; 6' 1"; Senior

#23 Anthony Davis: F; 6' 7"; Senior

#22 Eric Wattree: G; 6' 3"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#3 Trae Bryant
: 6' 1"; Senior
: G

#23 Anthony Davis
: 6' 7"; Senior
: F

#22 Eric Wattree
: 6' 3"; Senior
: G

Players Mentioned

#3 Trae Bryant

#23 Anthony Davis

#22 Eric Wattree

Players Mentioned

#3 Trae Bryant

#23 Anthony Davis

#22 Eric Wattree