MSU Mustangs Basketball Season Begins, Defeat MACU

The Midwestern State men's basketball team kicked off the 2013-14 season under the dome of DL Ligon coliseum against the Mid-America Christian Evangels.

The Mustangs won the contest 85-79 with a leading effort from PG Monzaigo Williams, chipping in a game-high 19 points. The game was marred by fouls from both teams, a whopping 63 in total.

MACU started the game hot, taking an early 13-7 lead just seven minutes into the first half. Midwestern responded and took the lead into halftime 39-33. The second half found both teams scoring 46 a piece, despite the frequent stoppage of play due to fouls.

Mustang head coach Nelson Haggerty was happy to get the win, but knows that his team has a lot of room for improvement.

"These guys (MACU) were tough last year and we knew that they would put up a fight here in the opener," Haggerty said. "We have to continue to improve from week to week."

The Mustangs open the season ranked 8th in The Sporting News D2 Preview and #12 in the Division II Bulletin Top 25. However, MSU was only slated to finish second in Lone Star Conference play, behind Tarleton State.

"This definitely gives the team something to shoot for, and gives us (the coaching staff) a reason to stay hungry and fight for the LSC title and a national championship," Haggerty said.

The next MSU mens basketball home game is on Monday, November 4, at DL Ligon Coliseum. The opponent is Langston University. Tip-off is set for 7pm.

The MSU women's basketball team is opening their season tonight, October 31, versus the Texas Longhorns. The game will be played on the UT campus, at the Frank Erwin Center. Tip-off is set for 7pm and the game can be seen on ESPN's Longhorn Network.