TIPPING OFF
A brand new season has finally arrived and with it a optimistic return to normal as the Arkansas Tech men's basketball team is set to play a full 27-game slate in 2021-21 that will feature five non-conference games and a return to the 12-team round robin schedule for conference action that will see the Wonder Boys play a total of 22 league games and make their first trip across state lines into Oklahoma since 2019-20.
Up first on the docket for the Wonder Boys is a regional crossover weekend that will see Tech take on Fort Hays State and Emporia State. The Wonder Boys will open with Fort Hays State on Saturday night. FHSU is serving as the host venue for the weekend that will also see Southwestern Oklahoma take part as the second GAC team.
A day after opening their season with Fort Hays State, the Wonder Boys will take on Emporia State in a neutral site affair.
This particular weekend is a continuation of a similar crossover event with all four schools competing against one another in 2019-20. That year, the crossover took place on the campus of Arkansas Tech inside Tucker Coliseum.
Tech went 1-1 that weekend, losing to Fort Hays State, 88-78, and then beating Emporia State, 79-59.
TECH TIDBITS
The Wonder Boys finished last season with a 7-11 record and finished the regular season with a 5-10 mark in the GAC Eastern Division to earn the No. 4-seed in the GAC East. Tech would narrowly drop their first game in the modified conference tournament to Ouachita by a single point, 70-69.
Last year, the Wonder Boys averaged 69.7 ppg and rank ninth in the GAC. On the defensive end of the court, the Wonder Boys ranked sixth in the league in scoring defense, giving up an average of 72.5 ppg. In terms of field goal percentage and field goal percentage defense, the Wonder Boys were fifth in the conference as they shot at an overall clip of .442 (440-of-996) and limited their opponents to a .430 mark (448-of-1,043) to rank fifth.
From beyond-the-arc, the Wonder Boys shot at a clip of .368 (160-of-435) to rank third in the GAC while their opponents made three-pointers at a mark of .357 (156-of-437) to rank seventh. From the free throw line, the Wonder Boys shot .668 as a team (215-of-322) to rank 11th.
Individually, the Wonder Boys had two players average double figures in scoring. Tony Hall led the way at 11.8 ppg while Cejay Mann was next and rounded out double figure scoring at 11.3 ppg.
The Wonder Boys are coached by Mark Downey, who is in his second season back on the sidelines at Tech after a 10-year hiatus. In his first stint, Downey patrolled the sidelines at Tech for four seasons from 2006-07 - 2009-10. In his final season, Downey guided the Wonder Boys to a program-record 30 wins and during the course of that season, the Wonder Boys were ranked No. 1 in NCAA DII for the first time ever.
In his time at Tech, which is now in its sixth season overall, Downey has amassed an 84-54 record. Overall, Downey is in his 14th season as a head coach and has career record of 250-160.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
Fort Hays State ended their 2020-21 season 11-11 overall and played an exclusive MIAA schedule, finishing in a tie for seventh-place in the league standings with that .500 record. Despite tying for seventh, the Tigers were the odd team out of the MIAA Tournament as Rogers State and Emporia State, both with 11-11 records, won tie-breakers over FHSU.
Statistically last season, the Tigers averaged 75.1 ppg on offense to rank ninth in the MIAA and gave up an average of 73.7 ppg to rank fifth in the MIAA. In terms of field goal percentages, Fort Hays State shot at a .468 clip overall (570-of-1,218) to rank seventh and allowed opponents to shot at a mark of .463 (571-of- 1,233) to rank seventh.
From three-point range, the Tigers shot at a .371 clip (176-of- 474) to rank fifth in the MIAA and allowed opponents to shoot .338 (161-of-476) from range to rank fifth. At the charity stripe, the Tigers shot .800 (336-of-420) to rank second in the MIAA.
Individually, the Tigers had three players score in double figures in 2020-21 and were led by Jared Vitztum at 18.1 ppg. The two others in double figures were Quinten Rock and Kaleb Hammeke at 12.1 and 10.7 ppg, respectively.
The Tigers are coached by Mark Johnson, who is in his 21st season at Fort Hays State. In his time as a head coach at Fort Hays, Johnson has amassed a 384-197 record and had advanced the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament seven times.
SCOUTING THE HORNETS
Emporia State ended their 2020-21 season 11-12 overall and played an exclusive MIAA schedule, finishing in a tie for seventh-place in the league standings with an 11-11 record. That mark was good enough to get the Hornets into the MIAA Tournament as the No. 8-seed. Emporia would lose their first tournament game to top-seeded Northwest Missouri.
Statistically last season, the Hornets averaged 71.6 ppg on offense to rank 11th in the MIAA and gave up an average of 71.4 ppg to rank second in the MIAA. In terms of field goal percentages, Emporia State shot at a .479 clip overall (605-of- 1,264) to rank fourth and allowed opponents to shot at a mark of .439 (584-of-1,329) to rank second.
From three-point range, the Hornets shot at a .323 clip (159- of-493) to rank 12th in the MIAA and allowed opponents to shoot .363 (206-of-567) from range to rank eighth. At the charity stripe, the Hornets shot .698 (278-of-398) to rank 11th in the MIAA.
Individually, the Hornets had two players score in double figures in 2020-21 and were led by Juamah'Ri Turner at 18.8 ppg. The other scorer in double figures was Austin Downing at 13.5 ppg.
The Hornets are coached by Craig Doty, who is in his fourth season at Emporia State. In his time as a head coach at Emporia, Doty has amassed a 35-46 record. Prior to his time at Emporia, Doty spent two seasons as head coach at Graceland University where, in his final season, Doty led his team to a NAIA D-I National Championship. The four years prior to that, Doty guided Rock Valley College to a 113-28 overall record that included a pair of NJCAA D-III National Championships. Overall, Doty has a 197- 96 record as a head coach.
