THE AGENDA
The OUAZ men's basketball team is back in action on Wednesday when they travel across the valley to play at Benedictine Mesa in the first of two meetings between the schools this season. This week's game will be played at Heap Gymnasium on the Mesa Community College campus. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
 
Live video – for $7.95 – and stats will be available during the game through the Benedictine Game Central portal. The video will be available on the NAIA Network which can be found on Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, and Roku devices by searching NAIA. Links for all live features are available at OUAZSpirit.com/live.
 
The latest news and information on OUAZ men's basketball can be found at OUAZSpirit.com, by downloading the OUAZ Athletics app from the Apple and Android app stores, and by following the Spirit on social media by searching OUAZSpirit and OUAZMBB.
 
ABOUT THE SPIRIT
OUAZ opened the 2018-19 season in New Mexico where the Spirit dropped a pair of games at the Okay Owingeh Classic. The season began with a 65-63 loss to Southwest on October 26. The next night, OUAZ fell to tournament host Northern New Mexico, 113-74.
 
Through two games, the Spirit are averaging 68.5 points per game and shooting 33.9 percent from the field. They make 5.5 threes per game by shooting 26.8 percent from beyond the arc. OUAZ grabs 39.0 rebounds per game and records 6.5 assists per game.
 
At the defensive end, the Spirit are allowing 89.0 points per game with opponents shooting 40.1 percent from the floor and 29.8 percent from three. The opposition collects 55.0 rebounds per contest and forced the Spirit into 20.0 turnovers while committing 13.5 per game.
 
Brian King Jr. had 17 points in both games during the opening weekend to lead the team in scoring. He also collected a team-high 15 rebounds at the tournament to lead the Spirit in that category. King shot 40.0 percent from the field and he converted 14 of 16 at the foul line.
 
Tanner Riley averaged 14.0 points per game in New Mexico, including a 23-point outing against Southwest. He shot 40.0 percent and led the team with five steals.
 
OUAZ finished its inaugural season of 2017-18 with a 15-12 overall record. The Spirit closed the year by winning 11 of their final 12 games played. They were 5-2 in games played at home with an 8-6 mark in road games and 2-5 at a neutral site.
 
This season, OUAZ welcomes back nine players that played in a game last season. That group includes four of the teams six leading scorers and five guys that started at least one game.
 
ABOUT BENEDICTINE MESA
Benedictine enters Wednesday's game with a 3-0 record this season. After defeating Johnson & Wales (Colo.) 100-73 in their home opener, the Redhawks secured road wins at Westcliff (84-66) and Life Pacific (73-67). They are averaging 85.7 points per game and shooting 48.0 percent from the field. Michael Carter Jr. averages 16.0 points per game to lead four BenU players that are scoring in double figures at this point of the season.
 
OUAZ and BenU split a pair of games last season with each team winning on the road. The Spirit picked up a 92-86 win in Mesa on February 8. Tanner Riley led the Spirit returners with 35 points in the two games against the Redhawks last season.
 
JOINING THE GSAC
OUAZ will play a full Golden State Athletic Conference schedule this season as a first-year member of the NAIA. The Spirit are not eligible for GSAC or NAIA postseason play during this first year of membership. The preseason coaches' poll had OUAZ picked to finish last in the 10-team league.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
The Spirit will head to California next week to play two games at the Bulldog Tipoff Classic hosted by Redlands. OUAZ will face Augsburg on November 16 and then play Cal Miramar on November 17.