2021–22 Western Athletic Conference men's basketball season

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2021–22 WAC men's basketball season
Logo WAC.png
LeagueNCAA Division I
SportBasketball
Number of teams13
TV partner(s)ESPN, ESPN+
Regular season
WAC Tournament
WAC men's basketball seasons
← 2020–21
2022–23 →
2021–22 WAC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
New Mexico State 14 4   .778 27 7   .794
Seattle 14 4   .778 23 9   .719
Stephen F. Austin 14 4   .778 22 10   .688
Grand Canyon 13 5   .722 23 8   .742
Sam Houston State 13 5   .722 19 14   .576
Abilene Christian 11 7   .611 25 11   .694
Utah Valley 10 8   .556 20 12   .625
Tarleton State* 9 9   .500 14 17   .452
California Baptist* 7 11   .389 18 16   .529
Dixie State* 6 12   .333 13 17   .433
Texas–Rio Grande Valley 3 15   .167 8 23   .258
Chicago State 3 15   .167 7 25   .219
Lamar 0 18   .000 2 27   .069
* ineligible for the 2022 NCAA Tournament due to transition from Division II
2022 WAC Tournament winner

The 2021–22 WAC men's basketball season began with practices in October 2021 followed by the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season in November 2021. The conference is scheduled to begin play in December 2021. This is the WAC's 60th season of basketball.[1] On July 1st, 2021, The WAC officially welcomed four new members: Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston, and Stephen F. Austin to grow and revitalize the conference.[2] All four were perviously in the Southland Conference. The WAC now has 6 full members in Texas, making it the largest DI conference in the state. Each WAC member will play an 18-game conference schedule.

The WAC Tournament is scheduled for March 9–12, 2022 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Pre-season[]

WAC Media days[]

The WAC's 2021 WAC media days were October 19-21, 2021 on the (WAC Digital Network).[3]

The teams and representatives in respective order were as follows:

  • UTRGV – Matt Figger (HC), Marek Nelson (F), Ricky Nelson (G)
  • NM State - Chris Jans (HC), Johhny Mcants (F), Jabari Rice (G)
  • Tarleton - Billy Gillispie (HC), Shakur Daniel (G), Freddy Hicks (G/F)
  • Sam Houston - Jason Hooten (HC), Demarkus Lampley (G), Savion Flagg (G/F)
  • Lamar - Alvin Brooks (HC), Kasen Harrison (G), Lincoln Smith (F)
  • Abilene Chrisitan - Brette Tanner (HC), Coryon Mason (G), Reggie Miller (G)
  • Seattle U - Jim Hayford (HC), Darrion Trammell (G), Riley Grigsby (G/F)
  • Dixie State - Jon Judkins (HC), Cameron Gooden (G), Hunter Schofield (F)
  • Chicago State - Gerald Gillion (HC), Bryce Johnson (G), Coreyoun Rushin (G)
  • SFA - Kyle Keller (HC), Gavin Kensmil (F), Roti Ware (G), David Kachelries (G)
  • Utah Valley - Mark Madsen (HC), Fardaws Aimaq (C), Trey Woodbury (G)
  • California Baptist - Rick Croy (HC), Ty Rowell (G), Dan Akin (F)
  • Grand Canyon - Bryce Drew (HC), Javon Blacksher (G), Gabe McGlothan (F)
Men's Basketball Coaches Preseason Poll
Place Team Points First place votes
1. New Mexico State 138 8
2. Grand Canyon 131 3
3. Stephen F. Austin 106 1
4. Utah Valley 103 --
5. Abilene Christian 92 1
6. Seattle U 90 --
7. Sam Houston 86 --
8. California Baptist 84 --
T-9. Tarleton State 48 --
T-9. UTRGV 48 --
11. Lamar 41 --
12. Dixie State 35 --
13. Chicago State 12 --

Source:[4]

Men's Basketball Media Preseason Poll
Place Team
1. New Mexico State
2. Stephen F. Austin
3. Grand Canyon
4. Abilene Christian
5. Utah Valley
6. California Baptist
7. Sam Houston
8. Seattle U
9. Tarleton State
10. Lamar
11. UTRGV
12. Dixie State
13. Chicago State

Source:[5]


WAC Preseason All-Conference[]

First Team

[6]

Name School Yr. Pos. Ht., Wt. Hometown (Last School)
Fardaws Aimaq Utah Valley R-So. C 6'11”, 245 Steveston-London Secondary
Jovan Blacksher Jr. Grand Canyon Jr. G 5'11", 165 Shadow Mountain High School
Montre' Gipson Tarleton Sr. G 6'8”, 259 DeSoto, TX (Ranger College)
Gavin Kensmil SFA Sr. F 6'7”, 260 Paramaribo, Suriname (Iona)
DeMarkus Lampley Sam Houston Sr. G 6'2”, 175 Phenix City, AL (Wallace State CC)
Jabari Rice NM State R-Jr. G 6'4”, 180 Thurgood Marshall High School
Ty Rowell Cal Baptist R-Jr. G 6'2”, 185 Walnut Grove Secondary School
Darrion Trammell Seattle U So. G 5'10”, 165 Marin City, CA (City College of San Francisco)
Second Team

[6]

Name School Yr. Pos. Ht., Wt. Hometown (Last School)
Teddy Allen NM State R-Jr. G 6'6”, 210 Phoenix, AZ (Nebraska)
Johnny McCants NM State R-Sr. F 6'7”, 230 Oñate High School
Coryon Mason Abilene Christian Sr. G 6'0”, 190 Douglass High School
Reggie Miller Abilene Christian Sr. G 6'0”, 160 Klein Forest High School
Reed Nottage Cal Baptist So. G 6'7”, 220 Newington College
Roti Ware SFA Sr. G 6'3”, 190 Morton, MS (East Central Community College)
Trey Woodbury Utah Valley Jr. G 6'4”, 200 Las Vegas, NV (UNLV)
Holland Woods II Grand Canyon Sr. G 6'1”, 190 Phoenix, AZ (Arizona State)
Preseaon Player of the Year

Fardaws Aimaq

Regular season[]

Before the season, the WAC announced a new media deal in which most regular season conference games games would be broadcast on ESPN+, with select regular season games and all conference tournament games airing on ESPN Linear Networks.[7]

Early season tournaments[]

Team Tournament Finish
Dixie State Good Sam Empire Classic at CSUN 4th
New Mexico State Myrtle Beach Invitational 4th
Sam Houston Jacksonville Classic 6th
Stephen F. Austin Cancun Challenge 2nd
Utah Valley So Cal Challenge 1st

Records against other conferences[]

2021–22 records against non-conference foes through (December 29, 2021):

Regular Season

Power Conferences & Gonzaga Record
ACC 0–1
Big East 0–0
Big Ten 0–3
Big 12 0–7
Pac-12 2–8
SEC 0–2
Gonzaga 0–2
Power Conference Total 2–23
Other NCAA Division 1 Conferences Record
America East 0–0
American 0–2
A-10 1–1
ASUN 2–1
Big Sky 5–4
Big South 1–1
Big West 6–3
CAA 1–0
C-USA 4–3
Horizon 1–0
Ivy League 0–0
MAAC 0–0
MAC 1–3
MEAC 2–0
MVC 1–5
Mountain West 3–6
NEC 0–0
OVC 3–0
Patriot League 0–2
SoCon 0–1
Southland 4–3
SWAC 7–1
The Summit 6–2
Sun Belt 4–7
WCC (except Gonzaga) 6–1
Other Division I Total 0–0
Division II Total 4–0
NCAA Division I Total 61–69

Record against ranked non-conference opponents[]

This is a list of games against ranked opponents only (rankings from the AP Poll):

Date Visitor Home Site Significance Score Conference Record
Nov. 9, 2021 Dixie State No. 1 Gonzaga McCarthey Athletic CenterSpokane, WA L 63-97 0-1
Nov. 12, 2021 Tarleton State No. 3 Kansas Allen FieldhouseLawrence, KS L 62-88 0-2
Nov. 22, 2021 Dixie State No. 24 USC Galen CenterLos Angeles, CA L 71-98 0-3
Nov. 24, 2021 California Baptist No. 8 Texas Frank Erwin CenterAustin, TX Abe Lemons Classic L 44-68 0-4
Nov. 24, 2021 Tarleton State No. 20 Michigan Crisler CenterAnn Arbor, MI L 54-65 0-5
Nov. 26, 2021 UTRGV No. 14 Illinois State Farm CenterChampaign, IL L 85-94 0-6
Nov. 29, 2021 Tarleton State No. 3 Gonzaga McCarthey Athletic CenterSpokane, WA L 55-64 0-7
Nov. 29, 2021 Sam Houston No. 7 Texas Gregory GymnasiumAustin, TX L 57-73 0-8
Dec. 1, 2021 No. 12 BYU Utah Valley UCCU CenterOrem, UT UCCU Crosstown Clash W 72-65 OT 1-8
Dec. 3, 2021 UTRGV No. 7 Texas Frank Erwin CenterAustin, TX L 58-88 1-9
Dec. 18, 2021 California Baptist No. 8 Arizona McKale CenterTucson, AZ L 60-84 1-10
Dec. 18, 2021 SFA No. 7 Kansas Allen FieldhouseLawrence, KS L 72-80 1-11
Dec. 21, 2021 Chicago State No. 9 Iowa State Hilton ColiseumAmes, IA L 48-79 1-12

Team rankings are reflective of AP Poll when the game was played, not current or final ranking

† denotes game was played on neutral site

Conference schedule[]

This table summarizes the head-to-head results between teams in conference play.[8]

  Abilene Christian California Baptist Chicago State Dixie State Grand Canyon Lamar New Mexico State Sam Houston Seattle U Stephen F. Austin Tarleton State UTRGV Utah Valley
vs. Abilene Christian 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. California Baptist 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. Chicago State 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. Dixie State 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. Grand Canyon 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. Lamar 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. New Mexico State 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. Sam Houston 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. Seattle U 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. Stephen F. Austin 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. Tarleton State 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0
vs. UTRGV 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0-0
vs. Utah Valley 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0-0
Total 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 0–0

Points scored[]

Team For Against Difference
Abilene Christian 927 667 +260
California Baptist 976 826 +150
Chicago State 777 949 -172
Dixie State 1,053 982 +71
Grand Canyon 867 694 +173
Lamar 823 938 -115
New Mexico State 994 888 +106
Sam Houston 942 864 +78
Seattle U 992 846 +146
Stephen F. Austin 929 861 +68
Tarleton State 810 805 +5
UTRGV 867 927 -60
Utah Valley 907 768 +139

Through December 29, 2021[9]

Rankings[]

    Improvement in ranking
  Drop in ranking
RV Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25
NV No votes received
  Pre Wk
2
Wk
3
Wk
4
Wk
5
Wk
6
Wk
7
Wk
8
Wk
9
Wk
10
Wk
11
Wk
12
Wk
13
Wk
14
Wk
15
Wk
16
Wk
17
Wk
18
Wk
19
Final
Abilene Christian AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
California Baptist AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Chicago State AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Dixie State AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Grand Canyon AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Lamar AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
New Mexico State AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Sam Houston AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Seattle U AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Stephen F. Austin AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Tarleton State AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
UTRGV AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
Utah Valley AP NV NV NV NV NV NV NV NV
C NV NV NV RV NV NV NV

Head coaches[]

Coaching changes[]

Many coaching changes were made during the offseason. UTRGV Coach Lew Hill shockingly passed away during the previous season on February 7th, 2021.[10] Jai Steadman then acted as interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Several months later, UTRGV announced Matt Figger as Hill's permanent replacment.[11] Chicago State head coach Lance Irvin was fired in the offseason, posting a 7-54 overall record during his tenure.[12] The Cougars tabbed Samford assisant coach Gerald Gillion to be their new head coach.[13] Former Abilene Christian head coach Joe Golding left his position to take on a new position at UTEP, and his replacement was announced to be Brette Tanner, who was the associate head coach for ACU for 7 seasons.[14] Lamar head coach Tic Price was fired shortly after the season ended,[15] and Lamar hired Alvin Brooks, a former Lamar player himself, as their new head coach.[16]

Coaches[]

Note: Stats shown are before the beginning of the season. Overall and WAC records are from time at current school.

Team Head coach Previous job Seasons at school Overall record WAC record WAC titles NCAA Tournaments NCAA Final Fours NCAA Championships
Abilene Christian Brette Tanner (Associate HC) 1st 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0 0 0 0
California Baptist Rick Croy Buffalo (assistant) 3rd 50-35 (.588) 23-21 (.523) 0 0 0 0
Chicago State Gerald Gillion Samford (assistant) 1st 0-0 (–) 0-0 (–) 0 0 0 0
Dixie State Jon Judkins Snow College 2nd 8-13 (.381) 4-10 (.286) 0 0 0 0
Grand Canyon Bryce Drew Vanderbilt 2nd 17-7 (.708) 9-3 (.750) 1 1 0 0
Lamar Alvin Brooks Houston (associate HC) 1st 0-0 (–) 0-0 (–) 0 0 0 0
New Mexico State Chris Jans Bowling Green 5th 95-27 (.779) 50-9 (.847) 3 3 0 0
Sam Houston Jason Hooten (Assistant HC) 12th 0-0 (–) 0-0 (–) 0 0 0 0
Seattle U Jim Hayford Eastern Washington 5th 64-55 (.538) 25-27 (.481) 0 0 0 0
Stephen F. Austin Kyle Keller Texas A&M (assistant) 6th 0-0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0 0 0 0
Tarleton State Billy Gillispie Ranger College 2nd 10-10 (.500) 5-7 (.417) 0 1 0 0
UTRGV Matt Figger Austin Peay 1st 0-0 (–) 0-0 (–) 0 0 0 0
Utah Valley Mark Madsen LA Lakers (player development) 3rd 22-30 (.423) 14-14 (.500) 1 0 0 0

Notes:

  • Overall and WAC records, conference titles, etc. are from time at current school and are through the end the 2020–21 season.
  • Records and season totals only include time spent at Division I as head coach.
  • NCAA Tournament appearances are from time at current school only.
  • NCAA Final Fours and Championship include time at other schools.

Post season[]

WAC Tournament[]

The conference tournament is scheduled to be played from March 9–12, 2022, at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, NV. However, the site for the first round of games has yet to be determined. Ten members will be invited to the tournament, with the top six seeds receiving at least one bye. Dixie and Tarleton are ineligible for the tournament until 2022-23 due to Division I transitions.

NCAA Tournament[]

Teams from the conference were selected to participate:

Seed Region School First Four First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four Championship
TBD
Bids W-L (%): 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) TOTAL: 0–0 (–)

National Invitation Tournament[]

Number from the conference were selected to participate:

Seed Bracket School First Round Second Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
Bid W-L (%): 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) 0–0 (–) TOTAL: 0–0 (–)
Index to colors and formatting
WAC member won
WAC member lost

Awards and honors[]

Players of the Week[]

Throughout the conference regular season, the WAC offices name a player of the week, and a freshman of the week each Monday.

Week Player of the Week School Freshman of the Week School Ref.
Nov. 15 Brandon Betson Chicago St. Taran Armstrong California Baptist [17]
Nov. 22 Fardaws Aimaq Utah Valley Taran Armstrong California Baptist [18]
Nov. 29 Fardaws Aimaq Utah Valley Viktor Rajković Seattle U [19]
Dec. 6 Fardaws Aimaq Utah Valley Taran Armstrong California Baptist [20]
Dec. 13 Cameron Gooden Dixie State RayQuan Taylor UTRGV [21]
Dec. 20 Teddy Allen New Mexico State Noa Gonsalves Dixie State [22]
Dec. 27 Emeka Udenyi Seattle U Marchelus Avery New Mexico State [23]
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD
TBD

Totals per School[]

School Total

All-Americans[]

All-WAC[]

First Team
Name School Pos. Yr. Ht., Wt. Hometown (Last School)
  • ‡ WAC Player of the Year
  • ††† three-time All-WAC First Team honoree
  • †† two-time All-WAC First Team honoree
  • † two-time All-WAC honoree
Second Team
Name School Pos. Yr. Ht., Wt. Hometown (Last School)
Honorable Mention

All-Newcomer Team[]

Name School Pos. Ht., Wt.

† WAC Player of the Year

Honorable Mention

All-Defensive Team[]

Name School Pos. Yr. Ht., Wt.
  • † WAC Player of the Year
  • ‡WAC Defensive Player of the Year
  • †† two-time WAC All-Defensive Team honoree
Honorable Mention

2022 NBA draft[]

Round Pick Player Position Nationality Team School/club team

Home game attendance[]

Team Stadium Capacity Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5 Game 6 Game 7 Game 8 Game 9 Game 10 Game 11 Game 12 Game 13 Game 14 Game 15 Game 16 Game 17 Game 18 Game 19 Total Average % of Capacity
Abilene Christian Teague Center 1,000[24] 414 605 598 842 603 513 321 474 807 1098 1179 726 444 1088 - -
California Baptist CBU Events Center 5,050 4,308 4,957 2,631 3,004 2,229 2,248 3,401 2,606 2,220 1,892 - -
Chicago State Emil and Patricia Jones Convocation Center 7,000 300 350 597 267 262
Dixie State Burns Arena 4,779 4,105 2,352 1,501 1,672 2,017 1,276 512 967 719
Grand Canyon GCU Arena 7,000 7,145 7,305 6,854 6,872 6,529 6,844 6,715 N/A 6,817
Lamar Montagne Center 10,080 2,586 3,532 1,512 1,543 - - - -
New Mexico State Pan American Center 12,482 5,056 8,089 4,739 N/A 4,086 4,315 N/A
Sam Houston Bernard Johnson Coliseum 6,110 1,017 741 301 N/A 197 214
Seattle U Redhawk Center/Climate Pledge Arena 999/18,100[25] 503†† 2,302‡ 524†† 1,082‡ 450†† 314†† 775‡ 1,334‡ 1,998‡ 495‡ - - -
Stephen F. Austin William R. Johnson Coliseum 7,203 1,442 1,537 1,878 1,901 1,702 1,431 1,550
Tarleton State Wisdom Gymnasium 3,000 838 2,112 712 848 802 1,423
UTRGV UTRGV Fieldhouse 2,500 1,711 873 1,681 1,189
Utah Valley UCCU Center 8,500 N/A 1,386 7,503 1,363 1,472 1,267 -
Total 93,803

Bold – At or exceed capacity

  • †Season high
  • ††Redhawk Center
  • ‡Climate Pledge Arena

References[]

  1. ^ "2020-21 WAC Timeline". wacsports.com.
  2. ^ "WAC Officially Welcomes 'Texas Four' to Conference".
  3. ^ @WACsports (October 19, 2021). "First up in our #WAChoops preview is @UTRGV_MBB! @Kendrasheehan_ speaks with Coach Matt Figger, Marek Nelson and Doc Nelson about their season" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  4. ^ "WAC Coaches Select NM State, SU's Trammell as Preseason Favorites". wacsports.com. Archived from the original on 2021-10-19.
  5. ^ "WAC Media Select NM State, UVU's Aimaq as Favorites". wacsports.com. Archived from the original on 2021-10-19.
  6. ^ a b "WAC Media Select NM State, UVU's Aimaq as Favorites".
  7. ^ "WAC Reaches New, Expanded Media Rights Agreement with ESPN". espnpressroom.com. Archived from the original on 2021-08-24.
  8. ^ "2021-22 WAC Men's Basketball Standings".
  9. ^ "Sortable Team Stats". Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  10. ^ Sheinin, Dave (February 11, 2021). "A rare disease, a covid diagnosis, a painful decision: The death of basketball coach Lew Hill". Washington Post.
  11. ^ "UTRGV Athletics Taps Matt Figger to Lead Men's Basketball Program".
  12. ^ "BREAKING: Chicago State and Lance Irvin agree to mutually part ways".
  13. ^ "Chicago State Names Gerald Gillion Head Men's Basketball Coach".
  14. ^ "Brette Tanner named new men's basketball head coach".
  15. ^ "Tic Price fired after 7 seasons as LU basketball coach".
  16. ^ "Lamar welcomes back alum Alvin Brooks as Head Men's Basketball Coach".
  17. ^ "TicketSmarter WAC Men's Basketball Players of the Week Announced". wacsports.com. November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
  18. ^ "TicketSmarter WAC Men's Basketball Players of the Week Announced". wacsports.com. November 22, 2021. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
  19. ^ "TicketSmarter WAC Men's Basketball Players of the Week Announced". wacsports.com. November 29, 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
  20. ^ "TicketSmarter WAC Men's Basketball Players of the Week Announced". wacsports.com. December 6, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  21. ^ "TicketSmarter WAC Men's Basketball Players of the Week Announced". wacsports.com. December 13, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  22. ^ "TicketSmarter WAC Men's Basketball Players of the Week Announced". wacsports.com. December 20, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  23. ^ "TicketSmarter WAC Men's Basketball Players of the Week Announced". wacsports.com. December 27, 2021. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  24. ^ Abilene Christian is scheduled to play in the Teague Center for 2021-22 due to ongoing renovatons at Moody Coliseum
  25. ^ Seattle U uses two home arenas: Redhawk Center, which is located on campus, and the newly renovated Climate Pledge Arena in uptown Seattle.
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