GAME INFORMATION
ARKANSAS TECH WONDER BOYS 2-2 (0-0 GAC)	ARKANSAS-MONTICELLO BOLL WEEVILS 1-3 (0-0 GAC)
Thursday, November 30 | 7:30 p.m. Steelman Fieldhouse | Monticello, Ark. LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO GAME NOTES

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TIPPING OFF
The Arkansas Tech men's basketball team will begin their Great American Conference slate of games this Thursday night on the road at Arkansas-Monticello.
 
It will be the 170^th meeting all-time between Arkansas Tech and UAM in a series that dates back to 1929. Overall, Tech holds a commanding 108-62 lead in the series. Since the two became charter members of the GAC, the series is tied 14-14.
 
As conference foes, the two teams met twice last season in the regular season and Tech won both matchups, winning 75-67 at home and 49-48 on the road.
 
Tip-off for the game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. from the Steelman Fieldhouse in Monticello.
 

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TECH(NICALLY) SPEAKING
The Wonder Boys are off to a 2-2 start to their season and have won each of their last two games. Their most-recent win came last Wednesday as they beat UT Tyler on the road 88-81 in overtime. Prior to that, the Wonder Boys collected their first win of the season at home against Drury, 75-72.
 
Statistically, the Wonder Boys average 72.8 ppg and rank seventh in the GAC. On the defensive end of the court, the Wonder Boys rank eighth in the league in scoring defense, giving up an average of 76.3 ppg. In terms of field goal percentage and field goal percentage defense, the Wonder Boys are eighth in the conference as they shoot at an overall clip of .437 (104-of-238) and limit their opponents to a .465 mark (99-of-213) to rank ninth.
 
From beyond-the-arc, the Wonder Boys shoot at a clip of .381 (32-of-84) to rank fifth in the GAC while their opponents make three-pointers at a mark of .368 (35-of-95) to rank ninth. From the free throw line, the Wonder Boys shoot .638 as a team (51-of-80) to rank 10th.
 
Individually, the Wonder Boys have five players averaging double figures in scoring and are led by Taelon Peter and his 14.3 ppg. BJ Johnson is next in scoring at 13.5 ppg followed by Cassius Brooks at 12.5 pgg. Seybian Sims and Josh Mitchell round out double-figure scoring at 12.0 ppg and 11.3 ppg, respectively.
 
Mitchell is the team-leader in rebounding and is averaging 6.0 rebounds per game. In terms of assists, Brooks leads the team and is averaging 4.3 assists per game.
 
Defensively, the Wonder Boys are led in steals by Peter at 3.0 steals per game and in blocks by Mitchell at 1.5 blocks per game.
 
The Wonder Boys are coached by Mark Downey, who is in his fourth 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 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 eighth season overall, Downey has amassed a 112-89 record. Overall, Downey is in his 17th season as a head coach and has career record of 278-195.
 

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SCOUTING THE BOLL WEEVILS
UAM is off to a 1-3 start to their season and are coming off a home loss this past Saturday against Williams Baptist, 73-66. Prior to that, the Boll Weevils had collected their first win of the season at home against Hendrix.
 
Statistically, the Boll Weevils average 60.3 ppg and rank 12th in the GAC. On the defensive end of the court, the Boll Weevils rank first in the league in scoring defense, giving up an average of 62.3 ppg. In terms of field goal percentage and field goal percentage defense, the Boll Weevils are 12th in the conference as they shoot at an overall clip of .400 (92-of-230) and limit their opponents to a .449 mark (83-of-185) to rank seventh.
 
From beyond-the-arc, the Boll Weevils shoot at a clip of .280 (21-of-75) to rank 12th in the GAC while their opponents make three-pointers at a mark of .385 (30-of-78) to rank 10th. From the free throw line, the Boll Weevils shoot .655 as a team (36-of-55) to rank eighth.
 
Individually, the Boll Weevils have two players averaging double figures in scoring and are led by Isaac Jackson and his 14.8 ppg. Mario Fantina is next and rounds out double-figure scoring at 10.1 pgg. Josh Denton is just off the double-figure scoring pace at 9.9 ppg.
 
Jackson is the team-leader in rebounding and is averaging 4.9 rebounds per game. In terms of assists, Fantina leads the team and is averaging 2.5 assists per game.
 
Defensively, the Boll Weevils are led in steals by Denton and Edwin Louis at 0.9 steals per game and in blocks by Timur Krupalija at 0.6 blocks per game.
 
The Boll Weevils are coached by Chad Tapp, who is in his third season as head coach at UAM and his 14^th overall. In his time at UAM, Tapp has amassed a 22-38 record. Overall, with stops at Indiana-South Bend (2010-11 – 2012-13) and Lyon (2013-14 – 2020-21), Tapp has a career head coaching record of 187-198.