The 2023-24 campaign was a banner one for two of the premier programs in men's and women's Lone Star Conference basketball. With recent men's LSC powerhouse West Texas A&M advancing to the NCAA Div. II national semifinals, and Texas Women's University reaching the National Championship Game, LSC programs were in the mix for the top prize in the division. 

Expect more in 2024-25 — even if the season as a whole promises to be unpredictable. 

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On the men's side, WTAMU saw its stranglehold on the LSC Tournament championship ended courtesy of Eastern New Mexico. The Greyhounds bested the Buffaloes in a 91-88 shootout to become the first program other than WTAMU to win the tournament since UT Permian Basin in 2017. 

Not that falling short in the LSC Tournament Championship Game marked an end to the Buffaloes' place among Div. II basketball's elite: They returned to the Elite Eight for the fifth time in program history and fourth since 2018. 

WTAMU's run to the national semifinals also marked its second time advancing that far ever, along with the 2021 Buffaloes runner-up campaign. Getting to a national championship for the first time in program history will require a new-look Buffaloes roster to step up in 2025. 

New Faces Seeking Similar Results at WTAMU 

WTAMU set a high standard for the entire LSC in the last six years under coach Tom Brown, who remains in Canyon for 2024-25. Gone from the 2023-24 Elite Eight roster, however, are LSC Player of the Year Larry Wise; LSC Defensive Player of the Year Ryland Holt; and LSC Freshman of the Year Kieran Elliott. 

The Buffaloes also replace guard Zach Toussaint — on the floor, anyway. Toussaint joins Brown's staff as a student assistant coach this season. 

With the departures of past leaders, the Buffaloes turn to both returners to now carry the banner; and newcomers to pick up the slack. All-LSC Honorable Mention selection Ahamed Mohammed is back and the top returning scorer at 10.4 points per game in 2023-24. 

Mohammed is also tops among returning Buffaloes in rebounds (4.7 per game), was second on the team in assists with almost three a contest, and led WTAMU averaging a steal per game. 

Brock Mishak, Noah Pagotto and Isaac Ayoubi, who all contributed off the bench, should see more prominent roles in the coming campaign. 

Dallas Baptist, ENMU Built for Title Contention 

Last season's LSC East Division winner and NCAA Tournament qualifier Dallas Baptist reloads for 2024-25. Guard Cameron Kahn is poised to contend for All-American and LSC Player of the Year honors, coming off a 2023-24 in which his 19.5 points per game paced the Patriots to 87.3 points a contest. 

DBU's scoring output ranked 12th nationally and second in the LSC behind only Eastern New Mexico's 90 points per game. Credit in part the Patriots' ability to turn defense into offense, forcing almost 20 turnovers a game, fourth-most in Div. II, which they converted into 23.4 points. 

Kahn contributed to that end as one of five Patriots who averaged more than a steal per outing. Kahn's returning backcourt mate, Ricky Lujan, was also one of DBU's leaders in swipes with 53 in 30 games. 

Lujan and Kahn are among the top and most versatile backcourts in Div. II basketball. Meanwhile, defending LSC Tournament champion Eastern New Mexico builds around its front court leaders. 

Mario Whitley, coming off a 10.9-point, 7.3-rebound per game 2023-24; and Jose Murillo, who averaged 8.6 points, 5.5 boards and 1.5 blocked shots a contest anchor the Greyhounds in 2024-25. 

The two interior standouts set the foundation for a roster welcoming plenty of new faces, including Northeastern Oklahoma A&M transfer Treyvon Byrd, and Div. I import Austin Abrams (Stonehill) and Cougar Downing (Arkansas-Little Rock). Should the newcomers mesh effectively, expect ENMU to again be at the forefront of a competitive LSC championship race. 

More Names to Know in 2024-25

Keep an eye on Lubbock Christian as another potential challenger for the LSC crown, thanks to Chaps veteran guards Najeeb Muhammad and Ethan Duncan. The two All-LSC honorees averaged 13.6 and 14.8 points per game and were reliable 3-point shooters at 39.2 and 44.2 percent. Duncan's 111 made triples exceeded the next-most prolific long-distance shooter in the LSC. 

DJ Armstrong of UT Permian Basin shot 40 percent from downtown and made 80 in 2023-24. He's part of a proven Falcons perimeter rotation also returning Maison Adeleye. Forward Alex Matthews, whose 13.4 points per game paced six UTPB scorers averaging in double-figures a season ago, also returns. 

St. Edward's, coming off a 21-win campaign, welcomes back big man Sean Elkington as its centerpiece for the new season. Elkington put up 17.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore. 

Frontcourt mate Blake Nielsen, who averaged 11.5 points and 5.4 rebounds an outing, also returns for a Hilltoppers team that could make serious noise in the wide-open LSC. 

2024-25 LSC Women's Basketball 

The 2023-24 campaign was an especially memorable one for Texas Women's. 

On the way to 34 wins, the Pioneers went an outstanding 20-2 against the LSC regular-season slate, then claimed TWU's first league tournament championship since 2011. The Pioneers continued their excellence in the NCAA Tournament with four straight double-digit-point wins, including in the program's first-ever Final Four contest, on the way to the National Championship Game. 

While TWU fell short to Minnesota State, the Pioneers broke through and should again be in the upper echelon of the national scene in 2024-25. TWU returns linchpin forward Ashley Ingram, dangerous 3-point shooter Leila Patel, and all-around perimeter playmaker Jada Celsur to form the nucleus of a title team. 

The Pioneers are looking to become the latest LSC representative to claim the national championship, joining recent powerhouse Lubbock Christian. 

Expect the three-time NCAA Tournament champion Lubbock Christian Chaps under the direction of coach Steve Gomez to bounce back in a big way from their relative slide to 21-10 a season ago. 

An Intriguing Player of the Year Chase 

Texas Women's forward Ashley Ingram can claim back-to-back LSC Player of the Year honors, but can expect stiff competition from Lubbock Christian's Grace Foster. 

Ingram led TWU to its LSC championship with averages of 18.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists and more than a steal per game. The all-around playmaker Ingram shot better than 59 percent from the floor and 83 percent at the free-throw line with attempting more than eight per game. 

Ingram's presence on the inside made Texas Women's one of the best rebounding teams in the nation. 

Lubbock Christian's Grace Foster, meanwhile, leads the Chaps with a dynamic all-around game. The Swiss Army knife forward led LCU with averages of 16.4 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, and was also a leading distributor and defensive presence. 

With Foster's all-around game setting the tone, the Chaps figure to be one of the leading challengers to Texas Women's pursuit of an LSC championship — and in turn, a national title. 

UT Tyler's Continued Ascent 

Coach Rebecca Alvidrez has overseen one of the most remarkable turnarounds at any level of college basketball. Before her arrival in 2021, UT Tyler went 3-37 in the previous two seasons with just one LSC win. 

Beginning immediately in the 2021-22 season, the Patriots soared to a 19-9 finish and have been on an ascent ever since. The 2022-23 Patriots finished 27-8 overall, 18-4 in LSC, and reached the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. 

UT Tyler again won 27 games in 2023-24 and went 18-4 in the LSC, which included handing Texas Women's its lone divisional loss. TWU ended UT Tyler's season later down the road in an NCAA Tournament regional final, but the Patriots were again on the doorstep of the Elite Eight. 

They head into this season with the pieces necessary to make another Elite Eight push, and perhaps further, boasting one of the most tenacious defenses in the country. 

UT Tyler held opponents to 56 points per game a season ago, a byproduct of giving up just 35.9 percent field-goal shooting for the season. 

Look for that to continue in 2024-25, thanks in part to UT Tyler having one of the longest lineups in the nation. 

The Patriots return 6-foot-1 Ella Bradley, a versatile playmaker who can continue in all phases. On the inside, UT Tyler adds 6-foot-3 College of Southern Idaho transfer Jill Lungren Phipps and 6-foot-4 freshman Chibuzor Emmanuel. 

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