MAGNOLIA, Ark. – Just three weeks remain in the NCAA DII regular season as the madness that is March will soon beckon eight Great American Conference men's and women's programs to Shawnee, Oklahoma, for the league's annual postseason party. However, much is to be decided in the way of tournament seeding and this weekend's matchups inside the W.T. Watson Center between Southern Arkansas and a pair of Sooner State foes in visiting Southeastern Oklahoma State and East Central are pivotal for the hosts as both programs are looking to stay in the hunt as the regular season wanes.
 
The Mulerider Women (10-11, 5-10 GAC) tip-off at 5:30 p.m. and will be followed by the Mulerider Men (12-9, 8-7 GAC) at 7:30 p.m. Fan Appreciation Night festivities begin at 5 p.m. for SAU students and all fans in attendance will be treated to free Super Dogs™ and the best concession stand popcorn in the country. Live coverage links for both contests are available at www.MuleriderAthletics.com
 
The SAU Women are currently two games back of the eighth and final postseason berth. Both Southeastern Oklahoma and East Central are 7-8 in league play and are tied for the eighth and final tournament spot. SOSU topped the Mulerider Women 85-66 on January 8 in Durant two days after ECU edged SAU 84-82 in Ada. Southern Arkansas enters mid-February having lost three of its last four games with only three of their final seven regular season games being played in Magnolia.
 
Three Mulerider Women are scoring in double figures led by senior forward Kisi Young's 13.9 ppg with six more players averaging at least 5.0 ppg for a scoring offense that ranks second nationally at 83.8 ppg. Chaos has been in full force for Southern Arkansas this season as the Muleriders, through 21 games, rank seventh in DII in total steals (280), eighth in steals per game (13.3) and tenth in turnovers forced per game (23.95). The up-tempo style has the team positioned second in the nation in offensive rebounds per game (18.9) and fifth in the country in three-point field goals attempted (610), three-point field goals made (194), three-point field goal percentage (31.8%) and free throws attempted (496).
 
SOSU averages 64.4 ppg and holds top 75 marks nationally in field goal percentage (42.5%) and field goal percentage defense (37.9%). Kamryn Cantwell leads the team in scoring at 15 ppg. Briley Moon follows with 13.7 ppg. Both players rank in the top five in the GAC in minutes played.
 
ECU has committed the 17^th fewest turnovers in the country through this point in the season at just 248. The team's 79.7% clip from the free throw line is the eighth-best effort in DII. Madison Rehl leads ECU in scoring at 14.4 ppg.
 
The Mulerider Men sit in sixth place outright in the league standings. (RV) Southeastern Oklahoma, who topped the Muleriders 103-73 on January 8 in Durant, are 11-3 in league play; one game out of first place. East Central is two games back of SAU in the win column at 6-7 in GAC action. The Tigers beat the Muleriders 81-77 on January 6 in Ada. SAU has won two of its past three and Thursday night's battle will be the first of three straight home games in the span of five days for the Mulerider Men.
 
For the SAU Men this season, the calling card has been cleaning the glass and defending the perimeter. SAU ranks 12^th in DII in offensive rebounds per game (13.52), 23^rd in rebound margin (+6) and 35^th in total rebounds per game (39.38). All three marks lead the GAC. The Muleriders hold the 27^th-best three-point field goal defensive statistic at 30.5%. Senior forward Devante Brooks is averaging a double-double this season with 17.1 points and 11.3 rebounds per contest. His 14 such performances are the third-most in the country, while multiple rebounding marks by Brooks including offensive and defensive rebounds per game, total rebounds and total rebounds per game rank in the top 15 in the country.
 
The Savage Storm are one of the more disciplined teams in DII as SOSU leads the country in fewest fouls per game with less than a dozen. The team's assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.95 leads the country as do its 8.8 turnovers committed per game. Southeastern Oklahoma leads the GAC in 19 major statistical categories. Adam Dworsky, Jett Sternberger and Ante Brzovic are all averaging over 17 ppg. All three players rank in the top six in the GAC in minutes played. Dworsky's 142 assists are the fourth-most nationally.
 
ECU ranks 15^th nationally in defensive rebounds per game at 28.79 and the Tigers are averaging 74.7 points per game; the fourth-highest scoring average in the GAC. Josh Apple's 15.4 ppg leads the team and his 6.33 rebounds per contest is currently the third-best average in the league.