📆 Saturday – January 3, 2026
🆚 University of the Incarnate Word
⏰ 4 pm CT
🏟️ McDermott Convocation Center – San Antonio, Texas
📈 LIVE STATS
📺 ESPN+
📆 Monday – January 5, 2026
🆚 Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi
⏰ 7 pm CT
🏟️ Sharp Gymnasium – Houston, Texas
📈 LIVE STATS
📺 ESPN+
🗒️ Game Program (Sunday)
Houston Christian University opens 2026 with a return to Southland Conference action, as it takes on longtime rival University of the Incarnate Word on Saturday afternoon in San Antonio before hitting the Sharp Gymnasium hardwood on Monday night to take on Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. After scattering the first four games of conference play in December, HCU's tilts versus UIW and TAMUCC begin nine straight weeks and 18 games of Saturday/Monday conference play leading into the conference tournament in Lake Charles, Louisiana beginning the second week of March.
HCU put up a valiant effort in its first game following a 12-day Christmas break before falling to third-ranked Iowa State University 89-61 in Hilton Coliseum this past Monday evening. The Huskies kept things tight and trailed by just 10 midway through the second stanza before the Cyclones pulled away down the stretch in the final non-conference game of the season for both teams.
A late first half run pushed the Cyclones to their first double-digit lead of the night just before the final media of the first half, and the hosts took a 41-28 lead into the intermission. Down 16 with 13 minutes to play, the Huskies fought back and after a jackhammer dunk by
Mambourou Mara was followed by a three-ball from
Ryan Bartley, HCU trailed by just 10, 59-49 with 9:51 to play. Iowa State then responded with a 10-0 run to extend things out and cruised to the win from there.
Demari Williams had a career-high 19 points to lead a group of four Huskies in double-digits and also chipped in a team-best five rebounds.
Ryan Bartley had 14 points while
D'Aundre Samuels hit for a season-best 14 as well.
Kylin Green chipped in 10 points.
Craig Doty, the ninth head coach in program history, is now in his second season at the helm after guiding HCU to a 12-20 overall mark and 9-11 ledger in Southland Conference action in 2024-25. It was announced earlier in the week that
Doty has signed a contract extension through the 2029-30 season.
The Huskies doubled their success rate from the previous season, going from six total wins to 12 and from four victories to nine in conference play, finishing seventh in the league after being picked to finish last. HCU advanced to the Southland Tournament and saw
Bryson Dawkins named All-Conference as just the second player in program history to pick up SLC First Team honors.
Elijah Brooks, who missed the first four games of the season and also did not play at Iowa State, leads HCU at 12.3 points per night while also chipping in 4.5 boards, 3.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game.
Kylin Green is just behind him at 12 points to go with 4.2 boards and a Southland Conference leading 5.3 assists per game. He had a career-high 24 points in the loss over Thanksgiving week to Bellarmine and also registered a career-best 13 assists in the victory over ULM on November 13, the most in a game for HCU since Mike Moss had 13 against Chicago State in 2011. He flirted with a triple-double in the overtime home loss to Southeastern, finishing with eight points, nine boards and 10 assists, and is averaging 6.3 assists through four conference games.
A slow start to the season saw
Ryan Bartley score just 20 total points and shoot 2-16 from deep over the first four games of the season. Since then, Bartley has gone 20-46 for 44% over a nine-game stretch, averaging 11.5 ppg while posting seven double-figure scoring games with a season-best 16 in the conference opening victory at New Orleans and a career-high 4-8 showing from the arc in a home loss to McNeese.
Bartley is now averaging 9.6 points per game overall and shooting 36% from long distance on the season but leads the Huskies in scoring at 12.8 on a 44% clip from deep in four conference games.
Trent Johnson is scoring 9.2 points while chipping in 4.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists on the campaign. He still leads the Huskies at a 42% clip from the arc while also hitting 89% from the stripe.
Demari Williams has provided a spark off the bench as of late. He had a career-best 19 points in the loss at No. 3 Iowa State just a couple of games after posting a new career-high eight boards in the loss to McNeese at home. He is averaging 10.8 points and 3.8 rebounds in 21.6 minutes in his last five, and 13.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in 25 minutes per over his last three.
HCU and UIW renew their long-standing rivalry on Saturday, the most played series in program history. The Cardinals lead the all-time series 26-16, but the Huskies have taken 14 of the last 20 meetings, and lead the series 15-11 since the two schools joined the Southland. The two schools split their meetings last year, each protecting home court. HCU won 81-76 in Houston before UIW returned the favor with a 74-64 win in San Antonio.
Head Coach Shane Heirman is in his third year at the helm in the Alamo City, and has the Cardinals sitting at 7-6 overall and 2-2 in conference play following Tuesday's 79-70 home win over Southeastern Louisiana.
The Cardinals are second in the Southland in scoring, putting up 82.8 points per game. They are led by a trio of players in double-digits with the SLC's leading bucket-getter Davion Bailey pacing the offense. The 6'4 grad guard averages 21.8 points on the season while shooting 39% from the arc, fifth-best in the league. He is averaging 21.3 points on 41% three-point shooting in four conference games thus far.
Tahj Staveskie, a 6'1 graduate transfer guard from Cleveland State is averaging 17.7 points per game to go with 4.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists, second in the league. 6'7 junior forward Jordan Pyke is averaging 14.3/5.5 overall but has bumped up to 17.5 ppg and 6.5 rebounds in SLC play. Harold Woods, a 6'5 senior transfer from Northeastern leads the Cardinals in rebounding at 7.3 per game.
Monday sees TAMUCC come to Houston following their Saturday contest in the Valley against UTRGV. The Islanders head to Edinburg at 6-7 overall and 2-2 in SLC play following an 83-69 New Year's Eve home victory over New Orleans. The game against HCU on Monday night will be TAMUCC's fourth in eight days.
The Islanders are led by third-year head coach Jim Shaw. Corpus leads the all-time series with HCU 25-11 after taking two of three meetings in 2024-25. HCU won 76-72 in Houston in January before TAMUCC won 68-62 on the island in February to split the regular season pair. The Islanders then handed HCU a 62-48 defeat in the first round of the Southland Conference Tournament in Lake Charles.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi averages 76.5 points on the season but 67.7 through four conference games. The Islanders have a three-headed attack on the offensive end with 6'1 senior guard Nick Shogbonyo and 6'8 senior forward Sheldon Williams each averaging 11.3 points. Shogbonyo is averaging 3.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists while shooting 42% from deep, while Williams leads the team in rebounding at 7.2 per. Mason Gibson, a 6'0 grad transfer from Midwestern State, rounds out the trio at 10.6 points overall. He is scoring 13.8 points while shooting 63% from the arc in conference action.
The Huskies are 6-9 all-time on January 3, last playing on this date in 2022 in a 94-63 home win over Ecclesia. HCU is 8-7 in games played on January 5 with a 106-79 loss at Northwestern State in 2022 being the last time to play on the 5th. From 2015-2020, the SLC schedule fell on January 5 with HCU winning three in a row from 2015-2017, the last being an 81-74 win over Southeastern in Sharp Gym.
Houston Christian University tips off with UIW in the McDermott Convocation Center at 4 pm on Saturday afternoon before a 7 pm start time in Sharp Gymnasium on Monday against TAMUCC. The Huskies will hit the road for it's next two, heading to the Piney Woods next Saturday to take on Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches before a Monday trip to the Golden Triangle to face Lamar in Beaumont.
#DawgsUp
