BEAUMONT, Texas – The Lamar University men's basketball team looks to get back to the .500 mark Wednesday when it hosts UT Rio Grande Valley at 7 p.m., in a game that has been a late addition to the Time Warner Cable SportsChannel. The game will air on the TWC SportsChannel Alternate station, channel 825.
 
The Cardinals enter Wednesday's contest looking to improve upon a 2-3 (.400) record that has seen them drop consecutive games to Rice and UC Riverside. The two setbacks were mirror images of each other which saw LU's opponent jump out to an early double-digit lead, only to be followed by the Cards going on run in the second half to take a slim lead. But in both contests Rice and UC Riverside hit key baskets down the stretch to record the victory.
 
The Cardinals will look to right the ship against a Vaqueros' squad that is 2-4 (.333) on the year, but has picked up its two victories in the previous four games. UTRGV's wins have come against Texas A&M-Kingsville and Southeast Missouri State, while the losses have come to Miami, North Florida, Portland State and Houston. All of the losses were by double-digits with the smallest margin coming last time out against Houston.
 
The Vaqueros head to Beaumont averaging nearly 72 points per game, led by three players in double digits, including Shaquille Hines who is averaging better than 17 points per game. Despite a 2-4 mark on the season, the Vaqueros are shooting nearly 45 percent from the field on the season, which includes a 35-percent clip from beyond the arc.
 
Through five games of the 2015-16 season, the Cardinals have been the Southland's top offense. Led by three players averaging better than 12 points per game, LU leads the league scoring 80.6 points per game. But during its recent two-game slide, it's not the offense that has hurt Big Red. Rice shot better than 50 percent against LU, while the Highlanders were over 50 percent in the opening half and finished the night at 47 percent.
 
"Anyone can go in a gym and shoot 50 percent by themselves," said LU head coach Tic Price. "We have to get better defensively. You can't play just 20 minutes and expect to win. You have to play the full 40 minutes."
 
Despite the new name, LU hopes the series against UT Rio Grande Valley (formerly UT Pan American) turns back in favor of Big Red. The Cardinals own a 10-game lead in the all-time series, despite some recent success by UTRGV. Playing the contest in Beaumont could be exactly what LU needs to turn its fortunes around. The Cardinals were 12-2 at home last season, while UTRGV struggled away from Edinburg posting a 1-15 mark. The Vaqueros are 0-3 on the road this season. LU has dominated the all-time series in Beaumont posting a 24-10 record (.706).
 
The game against the UTRGV is slated to tip off at 7 p.m. from the Montagne Center. The game can be viewed online by clicking here.
 
-LU CARDINALS-