BEAUMONT, Texas – Over the course of the past two games, the Lamar University men's basketball team has thrust itself into the heart of the Southland Conference tournament picture. Moving from a tie for 11^th to alone in eighth place is what the Red and White accomplished in its previous two games. With Abilene Christian coming to town, the Cardinals will now look to extend that win streak to three.
 
A victory Wednesday would mark the program's second three-game win streak for just the second time this season. Although shorthanded, the Cardinals have managed to win three of their past four games, including back-to-back road wins. But for LU (11-11/4-5 SLC) to get that third consecutive win, it will have to come against a vastly improved Abilene Christian squad that has its eyes on a regular-season title.
 
The Wildcats (18-4/7-2 SLC) entered the season with more excitement surrounding hoops than at any point since it made the jump to NCAA Division I level. ACU enters the week alone in second but two games back of league-leading Sam Houston State, and just a half game up on New Orleans.
 
The Wildcats have been cruising lately winning six of the past seven, with the lone loss a one-point heartbreaker at Stephen F. Austin. ACU has won its past two games and is coming off a seven-point decision over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi a week ago.
 
The league's third-best scoring offense, the Wildcats hang their hat on stellar defense play. ACU leads the Southland surrendering fewer than 64 points per game, while Big Red is second in the Southland averaging 78.9 points per contest.
 
The Cardinals have two of the league's top eight scorers (in seniors Josh Nzeakor and Nick Garth) but ACU sports three of the league's top 20 scorers.
 
The game sets up to be a good battle on the boards. The Cardinals lead the Southland pulling down nearly 40 rebounds per game, but ACU is tops in the conference in surrendering the fewest rebounds to its opponents.
 
The Cardinals are a game under .500 (14-15/.483) all-time against Abilene Christian. ACU has had the upper hand in the series lately winning the last four meetings, but three of the past games have been played in Abilene. Wednesday's contest will be the first trip to Beaumont for ACU since the 2015-16 season. The Cardinals are 8-5 (.615) all-time in games played in Beaumont. The rivalry between the two schools dates back to the 1961-62 season.
 
Wednesday's game is slated to tip off at 7 p.m. from the Montagne Center. It can be seen live on ESPN+ and heard live on Newstalk 560 KLVI.