Inside The Mustangs

SMU Survives Maniacal 4-Day Stretch, Now Stares Down No. 15 Texas A&M

What did head coach Rob Lanier learn about his team in first three games to help prepare Mustangs for battle with Aggies in Moody?

Kent Smith

SMU Survives Maniacal 4-Day Stretch, Now Stares Down No. 15 Texas A&M
SMU Survives Maniacal 4-Day Stretch, Now Stares Down No. 15 Texas A&M /
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DALLAS – The message coming out of a slow start against Southwest Assembly of God University earlier this week was to up the intensity from the opening tip, and SMU head coach Rob Lanier's message was well received as the Ponies made it out of a busy opening week, 3-0. 

In what is the best start to a season since SMU began 5-0 in 2020, the Mustangs came out against Western Illinois with high energy on both ends of the floor and quickly put away what became a 90-53 blowout win over the Leathernecks. The following night against Lamar, the third game in four days, SMU used defense to help get off to a hot start yet again, jumping out 20-7 in the first half, then weathered a run that cut the lead to seven early in the second half before finally cruising to a much closer than it actually was, 78-67 final.

"I am proud of these guys because I am exhausted," Lanier said. "It's one thing to be in a conference tournament with teams you are familiar with and you're there at a different time of year. We had three days of practice in preparation for Monday, and a day of preparation for yesterday and then today. That's a lot in one week. I had never done that before. I will never do it again, but I am proud of these guys that they had the toughness to play as hard as they did tonight after playing so hard last night."

One characteristic that stood out over the three games that is potentially both a strength and a weakness was the inside game. Points in the paint made up a high percentage of SMU's scoring as strong rebounding by an active front court and a relentless attack of the rim by guards Zurich Phelps, BJ Edwards and Chuck Harris kept opponents off balance all week.

Against Western Illinois, the Mustangs put 46 on the board from the paint and 21 on fast breaks. The aggression inside consistently paid off as SMU forced its way to the free throw line 91 times, including a 28-of-38  night at the line against Lamar.

However, the reliance on the inside game opens a potential weakness for teams like Tuesday's opponent, No. 15 Texas A&M, to exploit. Much of the success on the inside is because the early schedule presents teams that are smaller down low. It's also out of necessity because of the inability to find consistent shooting on the outside despite getting several wide open looks.

The Ponies have only hit 16 of their 66 three-point attempts, which is actually an improvement after the opener against Southwest Assembly of God where SMU shot 2-of-18 from beyond the arc. However, it's not something that worries Lanier just yet because of what he's seen in practice.

"We stat, between the two scrimmages [against Power Five Schools] and every 5-on-5, we stat," Lanier said. "We're shooting 40% from three as a team and there are six guys at 40% or higher and Ricardo [Wright] was 39% in his career. Chuck [Harris] has been a 40% shooter for three years in the Big East."

Perhaps the biggest concern about such a grueling stretch is whether the team could get to the other side healthy. Fortunately for the Mustangs, there was only one scary moment and it turned out to not be as bad as it initially looked. Emory Lanier, Rob's son, collapsed near the right block during a defensive rebound situation with just over 10 minutes left in the half against Western Illinois Wednesday night. He began clutching his knee and was eventually helped off the court under the aid of trainers.

The staff put a heavy knee brace on, but minutes later, Lanier was on a bike just behind the baseline trying to loosen it enough to get back in the game. He managed to reach a point where he played another six minutes in the second half, admitting it would probably be sore once the adrenaline wore off later that night. 

He then returned Thursday to score 11 points against Lamar, including 3-of-4 from three. On display was a toughness that allowed his father to focus on the team while the trainers looked at his son when the potential injury first took place.

"Emory's a tough kid," Lanier said. "He's got a pretty good pain tolerance. If it were serious, my parental instincts would have picked up on it. My sense was that he was OK, that he was just hurt and he wasn't injured on his reaction because he does have some physical toughness. If it was serious, it would have been obvious."

Now the Mustangs get to see how they perform with three off days to prepare for what should be the first wild atmosphere of the season at Moody Coliseum when Texas A&M comes to Dallas Tuesday night. There are a handful of single tickets available for the game, but very few. 

Fans who would like to see the game against the Aggies who don't have tickets yet can win a pair by following the instructions provided below.

PONY EXPRESS:

DFW AREA 4-STAR PROSPECT BECOMES FIRST SIGNEE SPECIFICALLY FOR ACC PLAY AT SMU

BUSY WEEK AHEAD FOR ROB LANIER'S MUSTANGS, FACING LAMAR AND TEXAS A&M NEXT WEEK

IT WASN'T PRETTY, BUT SMU SURVIVED RICE DESPITE LOSING STARTING QUARTERBACK

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Kent Smith
KENT SMITH