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STORY LINES
• The Mules hit the road for the first of two straight road games. UCM travels to Maryville, Mo. on Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. showdown with Northwest Missouri State.
• The Mules are coming off an 81-63 win over Missouri Western on Wednesday night at the UCM Multipurpose Building.
• The Bearcats are coming off a 104-69 win at Southwest Baptist on Thursday night.
• This game matches the top two scoring defenses in the MIAA. UCM leads the league allowing 69.2 points per game, while the Bearcats give up 70.0 points per contest.
• Central Missouri was the preseason No. 3 pick in both the MIAA Preseason Coaches' and Media Polls.

QUICK HITS
• This is the 109th season of Central Missouri Mules basketball.
• Central Missouri is third all-time in NCAA Division II men's basketball with 1,599 wins.
• In the Mules' 14 wins this season they are averaging 82.8 points per game and shooting 50 percent from the field.
• In the Mules' three losses they are averaging 75.3 points per game and shooting 43 percent from the field.
• The Mules were 22-8 a season ago, the sixth 20-win season under Kim Anderson and the 22nd in school history.
• The 2012-13 season was the 10th straight season of at least 18 wins for UCM, the longest active streak in the MIAA. The longest streak in league history is 11 seasons, held by Northwest Missouri from 1997-2008.
• Central Missouri finished 13-5 in MIAA play last year and captured a share of the MIAA regular season championship for the second straight season. It was the fifth conference crown under Anderson and 23rd in school history.
• UCM returns one all-MIAA performer from a season ago. Charles Hammork was an honorable mention All-MIAA pick last season after averaging 11.6 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. He was also an MIAA Tournament All-Tournament Team selection in helping the Mules to the conference tournament title.
• Three of the top nine single-season scoring leaders in UCM history have come during the 11-year tenure of head coach Kim Anderson.

SERIES HISTORY VS NORTHWEST MISSOURI
• This will be the 209th all-time meeting between the Mules and the Bearcats. Central Missouri leads the series 124-84.
• The Mules have won nine straight games in the series and are 15-8 against Northwest Missouri during the Kim Anderson era.
• The series is tied 51-51 in games played in Maryville. UCM is 5-5 at Bearcat Arena under Anderson and the Mules have won three straight games in Maryville.

LAST MEETING WITH NORTHWEST MISSOURI
• The Mules outlasted the Bearcats 79-76 in overtime to win the MIAA Tournament Championship on March 10, 2013 at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City.
• The game was a back-and-forth battle with neither team leading by more than eight throughout the game.
• The Bearcats scored with two seconds left in regulation to force overtime. NWMSU led by three in the extra period, but UCM finished the game on a 12-6 run to win the tournament title.
• Widgett Washington led Central Missouri with 20 points, while Dominique Long had 16 and Charles Hammork chipped in 10 points and six rebounds. Washington was named the Tournament MVP and Hammork joined him on the all-tournament team.
• UCM shot 40 percent for the game, including 47 percent (9 of 19) from three-point range. The Bearcats shot 45 percent from the floor and 53 percent from beyond the arc.

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
• Northwest Missouri enters the game at 12-5 overall and 7-1 in MIAA play following a 104-69 win over Southwest Baptist on Thursday night in Bolivar.
• The Bearcats have won four in a row and are 4-1 since the first of the year.
• NWMSU averages 82.2 points per game offensively on 50 percent shooting. The Bearcats shoot 45 percent from three-point range and 75 percent at the free throw line.
• Opponents are averaging 69.6 points per outing and shooting 46 percent from the field. The Bearcats hold the opposition to just 39 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
• Northwest Missouri is out-rebounding opponents by four boards per game, but only averages 33.9 rebounds per contest.
• They've dished out 58 more assists than their opponents and forced 42 more turnovers.
• Five Bearcats average in double figures led by Dillon Starzl's 15.2 points per game. DeShaun Cooper is averaging 13.9 points per contest, while Conner Crooker averages 13.3 per outing. Bryston Williams averages 11.4 per game and Grant Cozad chips in 11.3.
• Starzl also leads the team in rebounding pulling down 5.4 boards per game.

LAST TIME OUT • CENTRAL MISSOURI 81, MISSOURI WESTERN 63• 1/15/14
WARRENSBURG, Mo. -- Dillon Deck had 20 points and 12 rebounds to help lead Central Missouri to an 81-63 win over Missouri Western on Wednesday night at the UCM Multipurpose Building. The win improves UCM's record to 14-3 overall and 6-2 in MIAA play.
    The Mules jumped out to a narrow lead early on. They extended the lead to four at 13-9 with 13:55 left in the first half. The lead stayed at four until a quick 4-0 spurt by the Griffons (7-9, 2-6 MIAA) tied the game at 21-21 with 8:10 left in the opening stanza.
    A three by Jon Gilliam and a jumper from Daylen Robinson gave UCM a 26-21 advantage with 6:20 remaining. A 6-2 mini run by Missouri Western made it a one point game, but back-to-back buckets by Deck pushed it to a five point UCM lead. Charles Hammork's layup with 1:59 left in the half gave the Mules a six point lead, but Cortrez Colbert's layup with :14 left made it a 36-32 game at halftime.
    The Mules opened the second half on a 9-2 run to open a 45-34 lead with 16:35 remaining in the game. UCM pushed the lead to 13 on a couple of different occasions, but a 12-4 run by the Griffons made it a five point game, 57-52, with 7:58 left in the game.
    Missouri Western closed to within four with 5:09 to play, but a three-point from Ryan Magdziarz ignited a 15-4 run for Central Missouri. The run ended with a three from Preston Brunz and a layup from TJ White and the Mules led 75-60 with 1:20 remaining in regulation.
    Central Missouri iced the game away at the free throw line and secured the 18-point win.
    Deck finished with his second double-double of the season. Hammork also had 20 points in the game to go along with six rebounds and four assists. Magdziarz finished with 17 points on 6 of 8 shooting and a career-high seven rebounds. Robinson ended the game with 11 points and four assists.
    The Mules were 29 of 63 from the field for 46 percent and made 7 of 21 from three-point range for 33 percent. UCM was 16 of 23 at the foul line for 70 percent.
    Ryan Devers led three Griffons in double figures with 16 points. Kalvin Balque had 15 points and Colvert finished with 13. MWSU was 21 of 48 from the field for 44 percent and 7 of 16 from beyond the arc for 44 percent. The Griffons made 14 of 20 at the charity stripe for 70 percent.
    UCM out-rebounded MWSU 42-26 and held a 38-18 advantage in points in the paint. The Mules forced 12 Griffon turnovers and held a 13-4 lead in points off turnovers.

THE MULES IN MIAA PLAY
• Central Missouri is 149-65 in MIAA play during the Kim Anderson era and 6-2 this season after the 81-63 win over Missouri Western.
• The Mules were 13-5 in conference play last year and won a share of the MIAA regular season title.
• The Mules' best MIAA record under Anderson was an 18-2 mark during the 2009-10 season.
• The Mules have captured five MIAA regular season championships and four MIAA tournament titles under Kim Anderson.

MULES IN NON-CONFERENCE ACTION
• The Mules are 109-28 in non-conference games during the Kim Anderson era after the win over Culver-Stockton on December 16.
• Central Missouri is 53-1 in the last 54 non-conference games at home.

THE MULES AT HOME
• Central Missouri is 149-21 at the Multipurpose Building under Kim Anderson after beating Missouri Western 81-63 on Wednesday night.
• The Mules were 13-0 at home last season and have won 22 straight games at the Multi dating back to the 2011-12 season.
• Over the last nine years, UCM is 132-11 at home, including 53-1 against non-conference opponents and 79-10 in MIAA play.
• The Mules are 460-88 in their 38th season playing home games at the Multi.

THE MULES ON THE ROAD
• UCM is 66-55 on the road during the Kim Anderson after the loss at Emporia State on Saturday night.
• The Mules are 3-3 on the road this season after going 4-5 on the road last season.

MULES IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
• The Mules dropped out of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC)/Division II Poll after being ranked No. 24 last week.
• Central Missouri has been ranked in 135 polls in the history of the program, that number ranks seventh in NCAA-II history.

A UCM WIN WOULD...
• Give the Mules a 15-3 overall record and a 7-2 mark in MIAA play.
• Give Central Missouri 1,600 wins in program history, just the third program in NCAA-II with 1,600 wins.
• Give the Mules 10 straight wins over Northwest Missouri, including four in a row in Maryville.

A UCM LOSS WOULD...
• Drop the Mules to 14-4 overall and 6-3 in MIAA play.
• Snap a nine-game winning streak against the Bearcats and a three-game winning streak in Maryville.
• Drop the Mules to a game and a half out of first place in the MIAA standings.

ANDERSON LEADING THE WAY
• Now in his 12th season leading the Mules, Central Missouri head coach Kim Anderson has compiled a career record of 258-93 (.735).
• His .731 winning percentage entering the 2013-14 season ranks seventh among all active NCAA Division II coaches.
• He has led UCM to five MIAA regular season titles, more than any other coach in school history, four MIAA tournament championships, two Regional championships and two Final Four appearances.
• Anderson recorded career win No. 200 with a 65-61 win against Washburn on February 9, 2011.
• Anderson is one of only five coaches in Central Missouri history to record 100 or more career wins - Anderson (258), Tad. C. Reid (178), Earl Keth (159), Jim Wooldridge (131) and Lynn Nance (114).
• Three of the top nine single-season scoring leaders in Central Missouri history have come during the tenure of head coach Kim Anderson.

MULES BASKETBALL HISTORY
• In the 109th season of UCM basketball the Mules have compiled a 1,599-922 (.634) record in 2,521 total games.
• The Mules are the third winningest program by victories in NCAA-II history.
• The Mules have won 20 or more games 22 times in the history of the program.
• Central Missouri has won 30 or more games in a season twice, both during the Kim Anderson era.
• UCM has won or shared 23 MIAA regular season championships and five MIAA tournament titles.

THE NEXT LEVEL
• In the Kim Anderson era, 22 former players have gone on to play professional basketball.
• Three players are either currently playing professionally or on a professional roster; Michael Hicks (Poland, Polpharma-Pakmet), Sanijay Watts (Germany, Dorsten) and Zack Wright (Germany, Brose Basket).

A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN ATHLETICS
• Central Missouri has won a combined 193 MIAA regular-season conference championships in 14 league sports to lead all schools.
• Last season, UCM captured three MIAA regular season titles and one tournament championship.
• Since 1983, the tenure of Athletic Director Jerry Hughes, UCM has won or shared 139 MIAA championships, more than any other league school.
• Central Missouri has won five national championships since 1980 (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, and women's bowling in 2003) and seven national championships overall.

A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN THE CLASSROOM
• The 550 Central Missouri student-athletes received 375 Academic Awards from the MIAA office for the 2012-13 academic year.
• 305 UCM student-athletes were named to the MIAA Academic Honor Roll with a 3.0 GPA or higher.
• 37 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Scholar Athletes with at least a 3.5 GPA and having earned all-MIAA honors in their respective sport.
• 33 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Academic Excellence Award winners with a 4.0 GPA.
• UCM had eight student-athletes earn Academic All-America honors in their respective sports, including Brent Vogel being named the Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year for Men's Track & Field.

MULES BASKETBALL ON THE AIR
• Central Missouri basketball is broadcast live on the new 44,000-watt 98.5 "The Bar, 1450 KOKO and online at warrensburgradio.com. All games are broadcast by 1450 KOKO/98.5 "The Bar" Sports Director, Greg Hassler.
• The Kim Anderson Show presented by Bob Showers of Ameritas Investment Corp. airs on Monday nights at 7 p.m. on 98.5 The Bar and 1450 KOKO as well as warrensburgradio.com.
• The Central Missouri Sportspage is your weekly one-hour look at UCM athletics each Thursday night at 7 p.m. on KMOS-TV.

LIVE VIDEO STREAMING
• Live video coverage for every Central Missouri home game will be available through America One Sports. All home games and road MIAA games will be available on a pay-per-view basis. The cost is $8 per game, $30 for a 30-day pass or $89.95 for an all-season pass for UCM men's and women's basketball. Fans can access webcasts through the AmericaOneSports link on the UCM Athletics website or by going to AmericaOneSports.com

UPCOMING
• The Mules head to Jefferson City on Wednesday, Jan. 22 to take on Lincoln. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. at Jason Gym.
• UCM returns home to for three straight home games beginning with Lindenwood on Saturday, Jan. 25 at 3:30 p.m.