The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor men’s basketball team will tip off the 2017-18 season with a road game at former American Southwest Conference rival Schreiner University this Wednesday, November 15th. The Cru and Mountaineers will face off at 6:30 PM in Kerrville in the season opener for both teams.
UMHB returns ten lettermen and three starters from a team that finished 16-10 overall and advanced to the ASC Championship Tournament with a 9-7 league mark before falling in the tournament quarterfinals. The Cru brings back three ASC All-Conference selections in G Demarius Cress (Jr., Killeen), W Aubrie King (Sr., Mumford) and G Braden Hammond (Jr., Belton). Cress led UMHB in scoring at 19.9 points per game and he added 80 assists. King averaged 13.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per game while shooting 35 percent from three-point range. Hammond also averaged 13.5 points per game and edged Cress for the team lead in assists with 82. W Ryan Lang (So., The Woodlands) earned a spot on the ASC West Division All-Freshman Team last season after averaging 4.3 points and 2.7 rebounds per contest. UMHB was picked to finish third in the ASC West Division in the league’s annual Preseason Coaches and Media Poll. The Cru is under the direction of Head Coach Ken DeWeese. DeWeese is entering his 20th season at UMHB and has a record of 347-169 with the Cru.
“We are very anxious because our guys are a little tired of each other and tied of the coaching staff,” DeWeese said. “They are ready to get on the floor and play a game because they’ve been working a long time to get to this point and get into that routine again. Going to Schreiner will be good because it is always fun to see a former player out there coaching, but it is also a little difficult. We want to win the game, but we don’t want to beat him.”
Schreiner is coached by UMHB alum and former Cru basketball standout Connor Kuykendall. The Mountaineers finished 15-12 overall and went 11-3 in Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play. Schreiner returns ten lettermen from that team this season. G Keenan Gumbs led the Mountaineers in scoring at 14.0 points per game last year.
Following Wednesday night’s season opener, UMHB will play three straight home games. The Cru’s home opener comes with a 7:30 PM tip-off against another former ASC rival in Texas Lutheran on Saturday, November 18th.
