GUNNISON, Colo. --- The Western Colorado men's basketball team opens its season this week as the Mountaineers travel to take on University of Texas - Permian Basin 6 p.m. (MT) Friday in Odessa, Texas, and No. 7 West Texas A&M 4 p.m. (MT) Saturday in Canyon, Texas.

THE MOUNTAINEERS HEADING INTO THIS SEASON | 2018-20 SEASON STATS
Western Colorado started last season with a 77-72 home win over then No. 4 West Texas A&M, but the Mountaineers finished the season with a 6-22 mark, including 3-19 in RMAC play - a mark they are eager to improve in 2019-20.

WCU returns four players that started 15 or more games last season - including seniors James Willis and Monroe Porter. Willis averaged 7.6 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game while he was third on the team in 3-pointers made with 36. Porter averaged 6.7 points and led the team at 6.4 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 0.5 steals per game while he was second on the team in assists at 2.6 per game.

The top returning scorer for the Mountaineers is sophomore Cole Sienknecht as he averaged 12.7 points per game in his freshman campaign - connecting on 70 of 173 3-pointers (40.5 percent). Jackson Ehrlin also returns after starting 25 of the Mountaineers' 28 games as he averaged 8.8 points and 6.1 rebounds while shooting a team-best 55.4 percent from the field.

Other WCU returnees including Joran Ticeson, Will Willis, Cameron McCurry (redshirted last season), Alex Woodruff (a Bethel College transfer who redshirted at WCU last season) and Brian Read.

There are a lot of new faces for the Mountaineers as well, including Umpqua Community College transfer Connor Shaw as he averaged 15.4 points per game last season. The rest of the roster is comprised of five freshmen: Two redshirt freshmen in Kevin Jimenez and Cade Wood  and three true freshmen in Matthew Ragsdale, Avery Rembao and Josh Tomasi.

UTPB HEADING INTO THIS WEEK | SEASON STATS
The Falcons opened the season last weekend with a trio of games in Anaheim, California, falling to Concordia Irvine (92-86) and Ferris State (111-91) before defeating Wayne State (82-62). 

Six-foot-1 senior guard Pat Dembley leads the team in scoring early in the season at 21.3 points per game to go along with 5.0 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 2.3 steals while shooting 42.1 percent from 3-point range (8-for-19) and getting to the free-throw line just over seven times a game and hitting at a 90.9 percent clim. Jordan Horne is averaging 13.7 points and 5.3 rebounds while Carson Newsome (12.0) and Donoven Carlisle (11.3) are also averaging double figures with Carlilse leading the team at 5.7 rebounds per contest.

WEST TEXAS A&M HEADING INTO THIS WEEK | SEASON STATS
The Buffs, picked to finish first in the Lonestar Conference, began their season at the SCB Hall of Fame Classic in St. Joseph, Missouri, last week and defeated No. 6 Lincoln Memorial 99-89 in overtime Friday and USC Aiken 91-80 on Saturday.

Six-foot sophomore guard Joel Murray has led WTAMU in the first two games with 27 points in each contest, including a 27-point, eight-rebound, eight-assist, two-steal performance against USC Aiken. Qua Grant (a 6-foot-1 sophomore) is averaging 20.5 points, including going for 23 points and 12 rebounds in the win over Lincoln Memorial.