With only two games remaining SMU heads to Hattiesburg, Miss. to take on the Conference USA No. 2 team, Southern Miss, Wednesday night.
The Mustangs are currently wrapping up the C-USA ranking in the last place spot with a 3-11 record.
In recent matchups with Southern Miss, SMU has won two of the last three games.
During last season’s battle on the hardwood, SMU had the second best shooting performance in school history. Stand out Papa Dia had a perfect performance shooting 10-for-10 from the field with 23 total points. Robert Nyakundi had 16 points during the game while Collin Mangrum followed closely with 15 points and Rodney Clinkscales with 12 points from the field.
Senior sharp shooter Robert Nyakundi is currently 19th in NCAA and leading C-USA in three-point percentage at 43 percent. This is Nyakundi’s second season in a row to lead the league from behind the arc. Last season, Nyakundi finished second in the NCAA in three-point shooting at 49 percent.
London Giles and Jeremiah Samarrippas have led the pack for the SMU newcomers.
Giles is the Mustang’s second -best shooter with a season total 108 points thus far. Also playing well on the defensive side of the court, Giles leads the stampede in steals averaging 1.2 per game
Playing at the point, Samarrippas is ranked fifth in C-USA averaging nearly seven points per game and 4.3 assists.
As a young team, three of SMU’s top-five scorers are playing in their first season as a part of the Mustang nation.
Giles follows behind Nyakundi with 10.8 points while Jalen Jones is in third with 8.1 points and sophomore transfer from University of Texas Shawn Williams is fifth with 6.1 points.
Overall, the Mustangs lead C-USA in defensive scoring this season, setting a new program record for the second straight season after holding opponents to 61.3 points per game in 2010 to 2011.
Wednesday night’s game will mark the first time SMU has played on Leap Day since a victory over Texas in 1984.
Tip off is scheduled for 7 p.m.