Texas
Know Your Non-conference Opponent: Texas Southern
Everything old will be new again on Monday, November 4, as Xavier’s season will open up with Texas Southern at Cintas. The cycle begins anew, hope springs eternal, everyone’s undefeated, et c., et c. Whatever your favorite cliche for the start of the season is, pick it and pretend it’s how I decided to start this post.
Texas Southern has been a school in some form since 1927. I only mention that to point out that Texas Southern is the fourth name by which the university has been called in that time. I won’t type any of the other three here, but just know that you can find them on Wikipedia and they stand as a monument to how times have changed in the last 100 years.
The Tigers were not good last year, starting the season off by going to New Mexico to get clubbed by 37 and never really recovering from there. They ended up going 2-9 in non-conference play, with half their wins coming against some school called Biblical Studies. A 12-6 SWAC campaign culminated in a conference tournament final loss and a first-round exit in the CIT.
Veteran head coach Johnny Jones is the head man for TSU, starting his seventh season with the program, having also done stints at Memphis, North Texas, and LSU. His teams have consistently played fast on offense and flown to the glass to collect their own misses. Those have been plentiful at TSU, where he has only had a team in the top 250 of EFG% once. They don’t shoot a lot of threes or shoot them very well. It has all added up to consistently bottom-tier offenses.
His defenses have been okay but nothing special, which is what you might expect from a team that lingers in the low-majors. The EFG% against numbers have actually been solid in Jones’s time at Texas Southern, but they’ve been let down pretty much everywhere else. They put teams on the line a ton and only have a mediocre TO rate to show for it. They also haven’t defended the glass well either. They’ve had some decent defenses when it all comes together, but that hasn’t been very often.
Key departures
Leading scorer PJ Henry is out the door, taking his 14.9/2.8/2.4 with him. He was a bit of a volume guy, posting a 98.9 ORtg and EFG% of 48.3%, but he distributed the ball without turning it over and posted good steal numbers on the defensive end. His backcourt mate Jonathan Cisse is also gone. He was second-leading scorer and led the team in assists on his way to a 13.5/3.4/2.8 game line. He was much more efficient than Henry largely due to being a slightly better shooter and getting to the free throw line a ton, where he shot 83%.
Wing Deon Stroud also graduated. He averaged 7.0/3.2/1.1 per game and was third on the team in shot attempts. His efficiency numbers were really brought down by some turnover issues and the fact that he took more than half his shots from deep despite connecting on less than a third of those attempts.
Key returnees
Texas Southern returns a lot of their secondary players, which in times past has been a key to developing a decent program. On the other hand, maybe these dudes didn’t hit the portal because there isn’t a lot of demand for a single-digit scorer from a team that finished 267th in the KenPom.
Anyway, Grayson Carter is a 6’10”, 240-pound forward who averaged 7.1/4.2/1.1 last season. He was second on the team in OReb% and block rate, but he spent so much time on the perimeter that he shot more threes than free throws. I’m not talking about a Matt Bullard style weapon here either; he was 15-52 from deep on the year.
The guy who led the team in OReb% and block rate was Kenny Hunter, a 6’8”, 236-pound paint monster. He wasn’t much of a defensive rebounder and didn’t get to the line much at all, but he stayed and scored near the rim and played good defense. His 4.3 fouls per 40 minutes were a concern that really hampered his ability to stay on the court.
Guards Zytarious Mortle and Jaylen Wysinger make up for in awesome names what they lack in productivity. They’re both volume scorers, though Mortle was a little less efficient and a little more of a black hole. Both struggled to defend without fouling and neither did much in terms of rebounding or distribution. Maybe they worked on it in the offseason.
Incoming players
College basketball free agent Alex Anderson joins Texas Southern this season, marking his fourth school in four years. From South Alabama to Alabama State to Incarnate Word, he has been a consistent offensive contributor who uses a ton of possessions. He has posted good assist rates but high turnover numbers, decent shooting efficiencies, and a knack for getting to the line. He’s got good size for a guard at 6’6”, 200, and uses that to get into the lane. He is 8-35 from deep on his career, which is not good.
Joining him as a newcomer in the backcourt is Jaylin Jackson-Posey, who has previously only played for two other schools (Stephen F. Austin and New Mexico State). He has been plagued by foul trouble his entire career and that has kept him from ever being able to establish an offensive rhythm. He is a career 33% shooter from behind the arc and an excellent free throw shooter, but he fouls like he gets fined for every one he doesn’t use and has struggled with turnover issues. Maybe dropping a couple of levels will let him shine.
Some JuCo guys fill out the ranks. Duane Posey is a 6’7” slashing wing from Northwestern State. He averaged 6.7/4.3/0.4 last year and only shot two threes. Oumar Koureissi is 6’11”, 220-pound big, late of Jacksonville by way of Nichols State. He grabbed 12 minutes per game at Nichols last year, giving back 4.1 and 2.6 on .418/.200/.714 shooting for the trouble. If he’s any more that depth, either something has gone wrong or he took a huge leap.
Outlook
You don’t bring in a buy game to open the season for the purposes of challenging your team right off, and that’s the role Texas Southern is filling for Xavier. The Jaguars should be scrapping around the top of the table in the SWAC, but that’s one of the worst leagues in the country. This game should pay some bills for them and give Xavier a 1-0 start to the season.
Texas
Goodwill Industries of Northwest Texas to host Job Fair on Nov. 11
LUBBOCK, Texas (News Release) – Goodwill Industries of Northwest Texas (GINWT) will be holding a Job Fair on Monday, November 11, 2024, at 6520 University, Ste. 11, Lubbock TX 79413 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
GINWT is hiring Assistant Store Managers, Cashiers, Retail Associates, and Donation Attendants for our location at 5710 Spur 327.
Full-time and part-time positions available with a starting pay of $12.75 an hour.
Come with your resume in hand and ready to fill out an application.
On-site interviews will be available.
For more information about Goodwill Industries of Northwest Texas or the Goodwill Career Resource Center, please call (806) 744-8419, email amarquez@ginwtx.org or visit goodwillnwtexas.org.
Copyright 2024 KCBD. All rights reserved.
Texas
Texas Land Commissioner Buckingham redraws Texas-Oklahoma border to ensure safe water for 2 million Texans
The Texas Land Commissioner announced the Red River Boundary Commission has redrawn the Texas-Oklahoma boundary in order to ensure safe water for more than 2 million Texans.
The redraw will secure and make available approximately 30% of the drinking water supply for the surrounding area.
“As Texas Land Commissioner, it is my honor to work on behalf of all Texans and bring solutions to the table to benefit our great state. This redrawn boundary line will ensure that millions of north Texans’ water comes from a secure source in Texas,” said Commissioner Dawn Buckingham.
“I am proud of the GLO’s surveying team for playing such a significant role in settling this boundary issue by using their mapping skills and expertise. Surveying has been a vital part of the GLO since the establishment of this agency in 1836.”
‘SHUT IT DOWN’: RED STATE MAKES MASSIVE LAND BUY TO RAMP UP BORDER WALL EFFORTS AMID MIGRANT SURGE
In a press release regarding the move, it was explained that the shift was prompted due to a discovery in 2009 of a pump station that was required to stop operation to prohibit further introduction of Zebra mussels in Texas.
The mussels are believed to have negative impacts due to power plants spending millions removing them from clogged water intakes.
OKLAHOMA INVESTIGATION FINDS LEADERS ‘GROSSLY NEGLIGENT’ IN MANAGEMENT OF PANDEMIC RELIEF FUNDS
It was during this pause in operation that a question arose regarding where the pump station was located. If the pump was in Oklahoma, operating it could violate federal law prohibiting the interstate transport of zebra mussels.
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“It was determined that the pump station that provides drinking water to certain parts of north Texas was inadvertently built straddling the state lines of Texas and Oklahoma,” it said.
“On October 30, 2024, the Red River Boundary Commission, composed of Texas and Oklahoma commissions, executed the Amended and Restated Texoma Area Boundary Agreement to correct the boundary issue and ensure the pump station is located wholly in Texas,” according to the statement.
Texas
Texas Rangers Spring Training Schedule, Including Game Times, Ticket Information
The Texas Rangers spring training schedule is set with the club announcing game times on Thursday.
The entire schedule is below.
The Rangers play 33 spring training games in 2025, including 31 Cactus League games in Arizona and two exhibition against the Kansas City Royals on March 24-25 at Globe Life field.
The Rangers spring schedule starts against the Royals at Surprise Stadium, the complex the club’s share, on Feb. 21.
Individual game tickets go on sale online at texasrangers.com on Tuesday. In person ticket sales will be available at the Surprise Stadium box office beginning Jan. 25. For more information on 2025 season and individual game tickets call 623-222-2222 or visit surprisestadium.com. Ticket information for the two exhibition games at Globe Life field will be announced at a later date.
Texas begins its 23rd spring training at Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Ariz., and will play 17 of its 31 Cactus League games in Surprise.
DATE, OPPONENT, SITE, TIME
Feb. 21, Royals, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
Feb. 22, Giants, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
Feb. 23, Cubs, Mesa (Sloan Park), 1:05 p.m.
Feb. 24, White Sox, Glendale, 1:05 p.m.
Feb. 25, Royals, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
Feb. 26, Guardians, Goodyear, 1:05 p.m.
Feb. 27, Mariners (ss), Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
Feb. 28, Cubs, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
March 1, Brewers, Phoenix, 1:10 p.m.
March 2, Diamondbacks, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
March 3, Royals, Surprise Stadium,1:05 p.m.
March 4, Athletics, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
March 5, Reds, Goodyear, 1:05 p.m.
March 6, Padres, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
; Dodgers, Glendale, 1:05 p.m.
March 7, Rockies, Salt River Fields, 6:40 p.m.
March 8, Royals (ss), Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
March 9, Diamondbacks (ss), Salt River Fields, 1:10 p.m.
March 10, Open Date
March 11, Angels, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
March 12, Reds, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
March 13, Giants, Scottsdale, 1:05 p.m.
March 14, Rockies, Surprise Stadium, 6:05 p.m.
; Padres, Peoria, 6:40 p.m.
March 15, Athletics (ss), Mesa (Hohokam), 1:05 p.m.
; Giants, (Spring Breakout Game), Scottsdale, TBA.
March 16, White Sox, Surprise Stadium, 1:05 p.m.
March 17, Open Date
March 18, Guardians, Surprise Stadium, 6:05 p.m.
March 19, Mariners, Peoria, 1:10 p.m.
March 20, Rockies, Surprise Stadium, 6:05 p.m.
; Padres, Peoria, 6:40 p.m.
March 21, Angels (ss), Tempe, 12:10 p.m.
March 22, Royals, Surprise Stadium, 12:05 p.m.
March 23, Open Date
March 24, Royals, Globe Life Field, 7:05 p.m. CT
March 25, Royals, Globe Life Field, 1:35 p.m. CT
Rangers home games are in bold; ss-split squad games.
Note: Surprise, Ariz., is one hour behind Texas time (Central time) through March 8 (Mountain time) and two hours behind beginning March 9 (Pacific time).
You can follow Stefan Stevenson on X @StefanVersusTex.
Catch up with Inside the Rangers on Facebook and X.
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