ABILENE, Texas – The McMurry University men's basketball team will look to end its regular season on a high note as it hosts the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith on Saturday, March 2. Seniors will also be honored during the day.
 
The War Hawks are coming off their second-straight home defeat as they fell, 72-70, on a last-second tip-in to Newman University on Thursday. In the contest, Alfred Perez scored a career-high, 20 points, which marked the third straight game that he has led the team in points. He also pulled down 11 boards, registering his third double double of the season.
 
Takoby Jackson finished the game with 17 points and AJ Peralta added 10. As a team, the War Hawks shot 47 percent from the field and forced 20 Jet turnovers, but allowed Newman to shoot 57 percent in the loss.
 
UAFS, having already clinched the overall number one seed in the Heartland Conference, is coming off a 80-62 loss at St. Edward's. In the game, Dijon Farr scored 19 points while Djordje Stojanovic added 11 points in the game.
 
Going into the last game of the season, the War Hawks are being led by Jackson's 14.2 points per game. Perez is scoring at a 9.7 per game clip, while Antonio Bell is scoring 9.2 points per game. As a team, the War Hawks continue to lead the conference in opponents' points per game, holding its counterparts to just 63.8 per contest. They are also third in three-point percentage defense (.330) and second in opponents' overall field goal percentage (.406).
 
Overall, the Lions are coming into the contest as the Heartland's number one scoring offense, posting 76.8 points per game. They also rank fifth in field goal percentage (.446) and three-point percentage (.353). Individually, Jake Toupal leads the team and ranks seventh in the conference in points per game (13.8). Stojanovic and Corey Copeland are also averaging double figures, scoring 12.6 and 10.3 per game.
 
In the teams' last contest, the Lions walked away with a five-point victory, 66-61. In the game, UAFS saw four players score in double figures, led by 17 from Copeland. Toupal added 16 in the contest while Farr and Stojanovic scored 10 each. For McMurry, Kenny Williams carried the load in the game, scoring 28 of the teams 61 points. Jackson added eight and Connor Robinsons scored seven.
 
Both defenses locked down in the game as the Lions were held to 37 percent shooting, while the War Hawks shot 41 percent for the game.
 
The game is scheduled to being following the women's game, but before the contest, the team's five seniors will be honored as Dominick Walker, Brock Kimball, Jackson, Bell and Evan Fletscher will step on Ron Holmes court for the last time as players.