2021-22 Dixie State Trailblazers Men's Basketball (12-13 / 5-7 WAC)
Game No. 26
at New Mexico State (20-4 / 10-2 WAC)
Wednesday, February 16 / 7 p.m.
Pan American Center (12,572); Las Cruces, N.M.

 

Game Notes: DIXIE STATE - PDF | NM STATE
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OPENING TIP: Dixie State (12-13/5-7 WAC) will look to break into the win column and even its season series with WAC co-leader New Mexico State (20-4/10-2 WAC) when the Blazers travel to Las Cruces for a rematch vs. the Aggies on Wednesday night. Tip-off inside the Pan American Center (12,572) is set for 7 p.m.

DIXIE STATE VS. NM STATE: Dixie State is winless in its three meetings with NM State, though this will be the first game played between the two sides in the "Land of Enchantment."
    All three of the previous games have been played in the Burns Arena, including last Thursday's hard-fought 77-69 result.  
    The two teams also met up in the final two games of the 2020-21 regular season, which the Aggies won by counts of 76-66 (3/5) and 68-56 (3/6).

LAST TIME OUT: Hunter Schofield's lay-up and free throw with 17.6 seconds remaining, coupled with a stout defensive final stop, lifted Dixie State to a thrilling 61-60 victory over defending WAC champion Grand Canyon last Saturday night inside the Burns Arena.
    The win snapped the Blazers' three-game losing skid and was the first triumph over a previous year's NCAA tournament team in the program's four-year era.
    
JUDKINS NOW NO. 1 IN UTAH: Head Coach Jon Judkins became the all-time winningest head coach in Utah collegiate basketball history with career victory No. 583 in DSU's 114-49 home rout of SAGU-AIC back on Dec. 15.
    Judkins moved past legendary Utah head women's basketball coach Elaine Elliott (582-324) atop the state's all-time coaching victories list (men's and women's). That list also includes a pair of former Dixie State coaches in Dave Rose (1990-97 before moving on to BYU) and Stan Watts (1941-45 before moving on to Utah), along with such names at Stew Morrill (Utah State) and Rick Majerus (Utah).
    Judkins currently owns a 589-287 (.672) overall record during his time at both Dixie State and Snow College (1992-2005).
    Coach Judkins became the first men's coach in Utah collegiate basketball history to reach the 500-win plateau when Dixie State defeated Hawai'i Hilo (81-72) back on January 28, 2017. Prior to his arrival at DSU, Judkins spent 12 full seasons at Snow (UT) College, where he was 284-128 on the Badger sideline. Also of note, his older brother Jeff Judkins, who is currently the head women's coach at BYU, is sixth on the state's all-time collegiate wins list (451-202).

CHALK UP ANOTHER MILESTONE WIN FOR COACH: Coach Judkins also reached his second career milestone in as many games as he won his 300th game as Dixie State head coach in DSU's 78-69 victory at North Dakota (12/18).
    Coach Judkins is currently 305-159 (.657) in 16-plus years at Dixie State, including a 285-147 (.659) mark in the program's NCAA era.

HOME SWEET HOME: Saturday's big win vs. GCU clinched the program's first home winning season record in the new D-I era, and the 14th home winning season in 16 years of NCAA competition overall.
    DSU is currently 9-4 inside Burns Arena this year, and thanks to Saturday's win, improved to 149-40 (.788; 148-39 under Head Coach Jon Judkins).
    Last season the Trailblazers went 5-7 at home in their D-I debut, this after the DSU posted a 12-2 mark in its final D-II year in 2019-20. That 2020-21 record snapped a 13-year streak that saw the Blazers not finish above .500 at home. The last time the program did not finish with a home winning record was DSU's first NCAA season in 2006-07, when the it finished with a 2-5 home mark.  
    DSU has posted eight 10-plus win seasons during its four-year era, highlighted by a perfect 12-0 record in 2009-10, and 11-1 records in consecutive seasons in 2015-16 and 2016-17.

HOW ABOUT WHEN THE BAGS ARE PACKED?: Dixie State fell to 3-9 (3-8 in true road games) away from home this season after its loss at Stephen F. Austin (2/5).  
    DSU finished the 2020-21 campaign with a 3-6 overall road mark, which snapped an 11-year run that saw DSU post a winning road record. The last time Dixie State did not come away with a winning road record was all the way back in the 2007-08 season, when it went 4-11 away from home in the program's second year of Division-II competition.
    Dixie State is now 137-108 (.559) in 245 games away from home in its NCAA era under Coach Judkins, which includes a 109-86 record (.559) in true road games, and a 28-22 mark (.560) in neutral site games during Judkins' tenure. That neutral mark includes November's Texas State (11/19 in Northridge, Calif.) game, which served as the Blazers' first neutral court tilt in the program's new D-I era.
    DSU has won eight or more games away from home in 11 of its 15 NCAA campaigns overall, including a program best 15-5 record (10-2 in road contests) in 2010-11.

FROM WAY DOWNTOWN....BANG: After draining a combined 55 3-pointers over a four-game stretch prior to its non-conference finale at Southern Utah (12/22), Dixie State has hit only 72 combined treys over its last 13 games overall. DSU connected on 13 threes over its last three games, including just three trifectas (3-of-23, .130) at Stephen F. Austin (2/5), and six more (6-of-27, .222) vs. NM State last Thursday night. Meanwhile, DSU hit on 4-of-21 (.190) from beyond the arc vs. GCU on Saturday night.  
     DSU closed out its six-game homestand (11/27-12/15) with at least 10 made 3-pointers in three-straight games, this after only doing it just 21 total times the previous 417 NCAA era games overall. The Blazers knocked down 11 treys in the Saint Katherine win (12/4), and followed that up with a then-school record 16 3FGM vs. Denver at week later (12/11).  
    The Blazers then went off against SAGU-AIC (12/15), hitting a school record 21 3-pointers, which was one of five 3FG school records to fall that night. DSU also broke records for first half 3FGM (10), second half 3FGM (11), and for 3FG attempted (37). In addition, 11 different Trailblazers hit at least one 3-pointer, which was another school record.
    Dixie State has now hit at least one 3-pointer in 135-straight games. In addition, DSU has hit at least one three pointer in 336 of its last 338 games overall, and in 430 of the program's 434 NCAA-era games, which began in the 2006-07 season, with 24 total games of at least 10 3FGM.

NINETY AND NINE: For the first time in the program's NCAA era, Dixie State scored 97 or more points in three-straight games when the Blazers lit the scoreboard for 99 points twice against Bethesda (11/30 and 12/1), and 97 vs. Saint Katherine (12/4).
    Then after an 82-point night in the Denver win (12/11), DSU erupted for a season-high 114 points in the SAGU-AIC win (12/15), which is the second-most points in the program's NCAA era. In all, DSU averaged 93.5 points over its six-game homestand (11/27-12/18).
    Dixie State is 56-6 all-time when scoring at least 90 points, including a 43-5 mark in games of 90-99 points, and a 13-1 record when the Blazers eclipse the century mark.

BIG GAME HUNTER: Senior forward Hunter Schofield scored in double figures for the eighth time in his last nine starts with a game-high 18 points in last Saturday's win vs. GCU, including the eventual game-winning "And One" conversion with 17.6 seconds remaining.
    In fact, the senior also led or co-led the Blazers in rebounding (9), assists (3) and blocks (2) in a game-high 34:34 of action.
    Schofield is averaging 17.1 points over this current stretch, highlighted by becoming the first Trailblazer in the program's NCAA era to score 20 or more points in four-straight games.
    The senior started his 20-point run with a WAC season-high 25 at Seattle U (1/15), then followed that up with consecutive 22-point nights in home wins vs. Lamar (1/20) and UTRGV (1/22). Schofield began DSU's three-game road swing with a game-high 23 points in the win at Chicago State (1/29), but did see that streak end in the Sam Houston loss (2/3), though he did lead DSU in scoring with 15 points.
    Prior to DSU's win at CSU, Schofield was one of five Blazers in program history to score at least 20 points in three-straight games and was the second to do it twice (2019-20). Former Blazer swingman Tom Whitehead also achieved the feat twice in 2009-10 and again in 2010-11.
    Former DSU forward and assistant coach Kasey Winters was the first to do it in 2007-08, while Blazer All-American guard Trevor Hill added his name to that exclusive list in 2017-18, and former DSU forward Matt Conway followed suit a year later in 2018-19.

ON TARGET: Schofield entered some rarefied air in game one vs. Bethesda (11/30) when he went a perfect 9-for-9 from the floor en route to his 18-point night. The senior joined former Trailblazers Mark Ogden Jr. (9-of-9 vs. Holy Names; 12/20/14) and Steven Larson (11-of-11 at Montana State-Billings; 11/16/12) as the only other players in DSU's NCAA era to post a perfect shooting night with at least nine made field goals.

DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE: Schofield has also averaged 7.7 rebounds over his last nine games, including 6.2 defensive caroms, with two total double-doubles over this current stretch.  
    Schofield recorded his second double-double of the year with 16 points and 10 boards in the win at CBU (1/12), then just missed No. 3 at Seattle U (1/15) with eight rebounds to go with his 25 points.
    The senior did get his third double-double of the season, and eighth of his career, in the home win vs. Lamar (1/20) with game highs of 22 points and 12 rebounds, and followed that up with 22 more points and seven rebounds vs. UTRGV (1/22).
    Schofield has scored 10 or more points in 20 of his 25 starts this season, and in 31 of his last 39 games dating back to the 2020-21 campaign, with 10 games of 20 or more points over that period.
    Dixie State is 10-3 this season when Schofield scores 15 or more points, which includes a season-high 29 points in the home win over Southern Utah (11/12).

MR. 1100/400: Schofield became the fourth player in DSU's NCAA era to join the 1,000-point/400-rebound club, and was the first player to reach both numbers in the same game thanks to his banner day at Seattle U (1/15).
    Schofield, who became the eighth member of DSU's 1,000-point club, joined a more exclusive club last Thursday night vs. NM State when he hit a mid-range jumper with 18.9 seconds left to score his 1,100th career point. The senior is now one of five players to have reached that plateau and he is the first to do it in less than 100 career games (75 games).
      In addition, Schofield (1,118 pts/455 rbs - #5 all-time in both) is now one of only three players in DSU's four-year era in the program's 1100/400 club. The exclusive list includes former DSU All-Americans Zach Robbins (2009-15; 1,470 pts/932 rbs) and Hill (2014-18; 1,441 pts/596 rbs), who are ranked 1-2, respectively, on both career lists.
    Schofield enters the final six games of his storied career needing only 68 more points and 21 rebounds to vault into solo third place on both of those DSU career lists.
    In addition, Schofield is currently third on DSU's career scoring (14.7 ppg) and FGM (433) lists, sixth in rebound average (5.98 rpg), t-seventh in blocks (41), and eighth all-time in FG% (.506) and FTM (206).

GOODEN-PLENTY: Junior guard Cameron Gooden had a night in DSU's win at California Baptist (1/12), pouring in a game and career-high 26 points on 8-of-14 shooting with three 3-pointers (3-of-4 3FG). Gooden also went 7-of-9 at the foul line and finished with six rebounds and four assists in nearly 35 minutes of game action.
    He then followed that up with 10 points, five dimes, four boards and three steals at Seattle U (1/15).
    Gooden earned Dixie State's first WAC award this season when he was named WAC Player of the Week back on Dec. 13, after he scored a then-season high 22 points and dished out six assists in the Denver home win (12/11).
    Gooden earned All-Tournament Team honors at the CSUN Good Sam Empire Classic, highlighted by 20 points and a career-best eight rebounds at CSUN (11/13). The junior guard also led DSU in scoring against both Texas State (18 pts; 11/19) and at nationally-ranked USC (17 pts; 11/22) on that three-game SoCal trip.
    Gooden dished out a career-high nine assists and had 10 points in DSU's home win over Southern Utah (11/12), while he tied a WAC career-best with six dimes at Sam Houston (2/3). The junior has recorded four or more assists 24 times over his 46-game Trailblazer career.
    In addition, Gooden, who tallied 11 points and four dimes vs. NM State last Thursday night, has scored in double figures in 18 of 25 starts this season, with three 20-plus point nights, and in 31 of 46 games as a Trailblazer, while he has led or co-led the team in scoring 18 times overall.

BLAZING TRAILS:
* - Junior forward Dancell Leter has scored in double figures in 10 of his last 13 starts, including back-to-back 15 point outings in DSU's home split last week.
* - Leter tallied 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting and pulled down five rebounds vs. NM State on Thursday night ... he then followed that up with 15 more points (6-of-7 FT) with four caroms in the GCU win on Saturday.
* - Leter has scored 10 or more points in six-straight games and is averaging 13.8 ppg on 49.0 percent shooting (7-of-14 3FG; .500) over his current run ... Leter has also tallied 10 or more points 14 times overall this season, highlighted by a career-high 17 points vs. Weber State (11/27).
* - Leter recorded his first double-double as a Trailblazer after he went for 13 points and 11 rebounds at Chicago State (1/29) ... Leter had 8-and-8 at the intermission, and was sitting on those eight points until the 2:49 mark of the second half when he knocked down a dagger 3-pointer ... the junior then slammed home a breakaway jam after a Frank Staine steal on the Cougars' ensuing possession.
* - Speaking of Staine, the sophomore forward tied a season-high with 17 points to lead four Blazers in double figures in last Thursday's loss to NM State.
* - Staine also poured in 17 points at USC (11/22) ... the Inglewood native knocked down three 3-pointers to go with one rebound and a steal in 24 minutes in his return to his Los Angeles hometown area.
* - Staine posted his first double-double of the season, and the third of his collegiate career, with 11 points and a season-high 10 rebounds in the UTRGV win (1/22) ... that performance came on the heels of him going for 11 and 5 in the Lamar victory (1/20) two nights earlier.  
* - Staine led the Blazers with 15 points at UVU (1/8), and did the job on the defensive end as well with a career-high five steals, which is t-fifth on DSU's single game list ... Staine became the 12th different Trailblazer in the program's NCAA era to record five or more steals in a game, and he is the first to do it since Gooden collected five steals in DSU's loss at California Baptist last season (1/29/21).
* - Staine (73 steals) moved into DSU's top-10 career steals list with two steals at SFA (2/5) and picked off another steal last Saturday vs. GCU.
* - Staine has scored 10 or more points in 11 of his last 21 outings overall, including 15 points on 5-of-5 from 3-point country vs. SAGU-AIC (12/15).
* - In fact, Staine became the first player in Dixie State's NCAA era to hit his first five 3-point attempts.
* - Staine has vaulted into DSU's career 3FG shooting ranks, where he is currently sixth in 3FGM (97) and 3FGA (266), and is ninth in 3FG% (.364).
* - Freshman forward Trevon Allfrey just missed his third (and fifth career) double-digit scoring game this season after he finished with nine points on 4-of-7 shooting at SUU (12/22) ... Allfrey also collected three rebounds and blocked a shot in 10 minutes off the bench.
* - Allfrey recorded his first collegiate double-double with 15 points and a career-high 10 rebounds in the game one win vs. Bethesda (11/30) ... Allfrey went 5-for-5 from both the field and the charity stripe in 18 reserve minutes.
* - Meanwhile, junior guard Brock Gilbert tied a WAC career high with six points on 3-of-5 shooting in the GCU win last Saturday ... Gilbert also collected two rebounds, two assists and one steal in nearly 15 minutes of action.
* - Gilbert tallied six points on 2-of-4 from the perimeter vs. Abilene Christian (1/1) ... in fact, both of Gilbert's made threes, the only two DSU hit on the night, allowed Blazers' current streak of 135-straight games with a made 3-pointer to continue.   
* - Freshman guard Noa Gonsalves filled the stat sheet with eight points, three rebounds, two assists and one steal vs. UTRGV (1/22) ... Gonsalves also poured in eight points two nights earlier vs. Lamar (1/20) and blocked a career-high two shots, both of which came in the second half, including a highlight-reel smother block on a Cardinal fast break.
* - Gonsalves' consecutive eight-point outings were the most since he poured in a WAC season-high 11 on 4-of-6 shooting in a career-high 27 minutes of action off the bench in the Tarleton loss (12/30).
* - Gonsalves' 11 points were one off of his career high of 12 set in the road win at North Dakota (12/18), against which he went 5-of-7 from the floor with a pair of 3-pointers, on his way to WAC Freshman of the Week (12/20) honors.
* - Freshman guard Andre Mulibea scored five points to go with one assist and one steal in nearly 16 reserve minutes vs. NM State last Thursday ... the freshman also hit a big 3-pointer with 8:45 remaining in the GCU win that capped a 7-0 spurt which helped propel the Blazers onto their late-game theatrics.
* - Freshman post player Trey Edmonds played for a season-high 13 minutes at SFA (2/5) and responded with two points, six rebounds and steal ... Edmonds' six caroms were the most since he grabbed a career-high eight, to go with a career-best eight points, off the bench vs. SAGU-IAC (12/15).   
* - Edmonds tied a career high with two blocked shots and finished with two points in six minutes vs. NMSU on Thursday night ... the freshman also blocked two shots to go with two points and four boards in the UTRGV win (1/22),
* - After throwing down just three total dunks in 21 games last season, the Trailblazers already have 14 dunks through the first 25 games this year - all of which have come over the last 20 games ... Leter is the current team leader in dunks with seven, including that breakaway throw down in the final minutes at Chicago State (1/29).
* - DSU's bench combined to outscore the SAGU-AIC reserves by a whopping 64-18 margin (12/15) ... the 64 bench points eclipsed the previous season-high of 57 set in game one vs. Bethesda (11/30), against which the Blazer reserves combined to outscore their Flame counterparts by a 101-55 clip in the two wins.
* - Sophomore guard Isaiah Pope and junior forward Jacob Nicolds accounted for half of DSU's 30 bench points at Utah Valley (1/8) ... Pope tallied 13 points and pulled down four rebounds, while Nicolds added 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting with two 3-pointers and four caroms.
* - In fact, Pope's effort at UVU earned him the start at CBU (1/12), and he responded by filling the stat sheet with 10 points, five rebounds, four assists and one steal in 28 minutes ... Pope has started every game since and is averaging 9.0 ppg over his last 10 outings overall, including a season-high 17 points vs. UTRGV (1/22), and 12 points at Chicago State (1/29).
* - Through 25 games, DSU's bench has outscored its opponent reserves by a 602-535 margin (24.1 ppg-21.4 ppg), and in 13 of 24 games (with one tie) overall this season ... however that average has taken a hit over the Blazers' last three games as SFA's bench outscored DSU's reserves 31-8 (2/5), as did NM State on Thursday night by a 15-12 count ... GCU also owned a 20-12 edge in bench points in last Saturday's Blazer win.     
* - The eight bench points at SFA tied DSU's season-low, which was set in the come-from-behind win at California Baptist (1/12), thanks to the five DSU starters combining to score a season-high 71 of the team's 79 points ... the previous starting line-up season high for points was 66 set in the Saint Katherine win (97-65; 12/4).  
* - Last season DSU outscored its opponent reserves by a 466-406 margin (22.2-19.3 ppg) in 21 games (11-of-21 games) ... in 2019-20, DSU reserves outscored its opponents' reserves in 22 of 30 games played (748-571/24.9 ppg-19.0 ppg).
* - While the Blazer offense hitting on all cylinders in the sweep of Bethesda, the Dixie State defense came up just as clutch as the Trailblazers broke the program's NCAA era single-game steals record with 18 in game two win (12/1) ... DSU forced 23 Flames' miscues on the night, which led to 28 Blazer points.
* - The 18 steals eclipsed the previous record of 17 set twice, most recently at home vs. Dominican more than 10 years ago (2/10/11). DSU also had 17 steals at Adams State (11/18/06) in the program's third-ever NCAA game.
* - Since the 2016-17 season, Dixie State has shot 50 percent or better in just 49 of its last 156 games overall, and the Blazers have shot better than 50 percent only four times through 25 games this season.
* - The Blazers slugged through their two worst shooting performances of the season in Texas earlier this month ... DSU posted a then-season low 28.8 clip (17-of-59) in the loss at Sam Houston (2/3), and followed that up by shooting just 27.1 percent (16-of-59) at SFA (2/5).
* - DSU shot a season-high 57.6 percent (34-of-59) vs. Saint Katherine (12/4), and 51.9 percent vs. SAGU-AIC (12/15).
*- DSU only shot better than 50 percent twice last season, the first being a season-high 63.2 percent vs. Bethesda (12/19/20) ... that performance broke a string of 66 games between the last time the Trailblazers shot at least 60 percent from the floor (60.0% vs. Holy Names - 2/19/18).
* - Also dating back to the 2016-17 season, Dixie State has had 74 of its last 159 games decided by nine points or less, including 16 of 46 games to this point of the program's Division I transition, with seven of those occasions coming this season (4-3 overall), including Thursday's loss to NM State, and the GCU win on Saturday.
* - Dixie State crashed the boards in its sweep of Bethesda as the Blazers owned a plus-44 rebound margin in the two wins ... in fact DSU's 59 rebounds in game one (11/30) are the third-most in a single game in the program's NCAA era, while the 56 caroms in game two (12/1) are tied for seventh-most overall.
* - In addition, the two-game stretch also marked the first time in the program's four-year era that Dixie State posted consecutive 50-plus rebound games.
* - Dixie State has won the "Battle of the Boards" in 14 of 25 games this season (10-4), this after the Blazers were outrebounded 12 times in 21 games in their D-1 debut last season ... overall, the Blazers have outrebounded an opponent in 89 of its last 132 games going back to the 2017-18 campaign.
* - DSU attempted a season-low four free throws (3-of-4) in Thursday's loss to NM State ... the Blazers' previous season low was six charity tosses (3-of-6) in their home loss to Weber State (11/27).
* - DSU has attempted 20 or more 3-pointers in 19 times this season, including a WAC season-high 27 3FGA vs. NM State on Thursday night, and 21 more last Saturday vs. GCU.
* - In fact, DSU has now broken the school record for attempted 3-pointers with 568 through 25 games this season, besting the previous record of 565 set in 30 games during the 2019-20 season.
* - Meanwhile, DSU has hit on 178 (.313) of those attempts this season, which is currently No. 3 on the single season list ... DSU made 179 3FG in 2008-09 (27 games) and a record 205 treys in the 2019-20 campaign.

ABOUT THE NEW MEXICO STATE "AGGIES": NM State (20-4/10-2 WAC) enters Thursday's game as the hottest team in the WAC, having won five of its last six and 15 of its last 17 games overall. The Aggies are also coming off a split last weekend, which included a close 72-68 loss at Utah Valley last Saturday that came on the heels of their win in St. George two nights earlier.
    Chris Gans (115-29 at NMSU/136-41 career; Loras College, 1991) is in his fifth season at NM State, where he has led the Aggies to three WAC regular season crowns, two WAC tournament titles, and two NCAA Tournament appearances.  
    The Aggies are led by a pair of preseason all-WAC picks in junior guards Teddy Allen (6-6) and Jabari Rice (6-4). Allen currently leads the WAC in scoring (19.6 ppg) and is sixth in rebounding (7.2 rpg), while Rice is averaging 12.7 points (#16 in the WAC) and 3.1 assists (#9 WAC) per game. Allen poured in a game-high 20 points and had seven rebounds in last Thursday's win at DSU, while Rice posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards to with four assists.
    As a team, NM State averages 74.5 ppg on 46.3 percent shooting through 24 games while allowing 66.4 ppg. The Aggies also average 7.9 3FGM, along with 38.4 rpg, 14.1 assists, and 4.6 steals per game.

UP NEXT: Dixie State returns home for a Saturday showdown vs. in-state rival Utah Valley. Tip-off inside the Burns Arena is slated for 7 p.m.