TIP-OFF• The 19th-ranked Central Missouri Mules return home to host Lindenwood on Saturday in the first of three straight home games. Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m. at the Multi.
• Saturday is the Hall of Fame Game with the 2015 class of the UCM Athletic Hall of Fame being introduced at halftime. The Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on Saturday morning.
• The Mules are 20-4 overall this season and 11-4 in MIAA play after a 67-47 win at Lincoln on Wednesday night. UCM comes in on a four-game winning streak.
• Lindenwood is 16-8 overall and 11-4 in league play after a 93-46 blowout win over Southwest Baptist on Wednesday. The Lions have won three of their last four.
• The Mules were 30-5 a season ago when they captured the NCAA-II National Championship. It was the third 30-win season in program history, the seventh 20-win season in the last 12 years and the 23rd in school history.
• UCM's win over Southwest Baptist last Thursday gave the Mules their 18th win of the season, marking the 12th straight season of at least 18 wins for UCM setting a new MIAA record. The old streak of 11 straight seasons of 18 or more wins was held by the Mules and Northwest Missouri (1997-2008).
• Central Missouri finished 16-3 in MIAA play last year and captured a share of the MIAA regular season championship for the third straight season. It was the sixth conference crown in the last 12 years and 24th in school history.
QUICK HITS• This is the 110th season of Central Missouri Mules basketball.
• Central Missouri is third all-time in NCAA Division II men's basketball with 1,635 wins.
• The win over Lincoln on Wednesday night gave the Mules their third straight 20-win season and the 24th in program history.
• The Mules are averaging 75.1 points per game and shooting 50.7 percent from the field. The opposition is averaging 67.2 points per game and shooting 43 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from beyond the arc.
• In their 20 wins, the Mules are averaging 76.8 points per game and shooting 52.7 percent from the field, while holding opponents to 65.6 points per game and 41.3 percent shooting.
• In the four losses, UCM scores 66.8 points per contest and shoots 42 percent from the field, while opponents are averaging 75.8 points per outing and 51 percent shooting.
• The Mules have won two NCAA Men's National Championships (1984 & 2014) and four National Championships overall (1937 & 1938 NAIB).
MULE TIDBITS•
TJ White has recorded his first three career double-doubles this season to lead all Mules.
•
Dillon Deck has one double-double this season and seven during his two-year UCM career.
•
Brennen Hughes recorded his first double-double of the season last Thursday at Southwest Baptist. Hughes scored a team-high 17 points and pulled in 10 rebounds.
• Five Mules have recorded double-doubles this season (Deck, Dickerson, Hughes, White and Wolf).
• Ten different Mules have scored in double figures this season ... nine different Mules have led the team in scoring.
•
Rakeem Dickerson,
Preston Brunz and
TJ White are second and tied for third, respectively, in the MIAA in assist-to-turnover ratio.
•
Brennen Hughes (63.8) and
Dillon Deck (60.5) are first and second in the conference in field goal percentage.
SERIES HISTORY• This will be the eighth all-time meeting between Central Missouri and Lindenwood. The Mules lead the series 5-2.
• Lindenwood won the first meeting this season, 82-68, back on January 24 in St. Charles to snap UCM's three-game winning streak in the series.
• The Mules swept both meetings last season, including a 77-58 win in Warrensburg.
• The Mules are 4-0 against the Lions in Warrensburg and 2-0 since LWU joined the MIAA.
LAST MEETING WITH LINDENWOOD• Lindenwood shot 54 percent from the field and beat No. 22 Central Missouri 82-68 back on January 24 in St. Charles.
• The opened the game on a 7-0 run, but an 8-1 run by the Lions tied the game. Lindenwood closed the first half on a 12-5 run to open a 38-30 lead at halftime.
• The Mules shot 46 percent from the field and 42 percent from three-point range in the loss.
•
Preston Brunz and
Kyle Wolf led UCM with 11 points each, while
Brennen Hughes finished with 10 points.
• The Mules turned the ball over 13 times compared to just seven for Lindenwood.
• The Lions had four players in double figures led by Darris Smith's 28 points and Cory Arentsen's 22.
SCOUTING THE LIONS• Lindenwood enters the contest as part of the three-way tie atop the MIAA standings at 16-8 overall and 11-4 in league play. The Lions have won three of their last four games and 12 of their last 14.
• Lindenwood is averaging 74.4 points per game and shooting 49.6 percent from the field. The Lions shoot 45 percent from three-point range and 74 percent at the foul line as a team.
• The Lions are averaging nearly nine made three-pointers per game.
• They are giving up 65.8 points per outing and 45.6 percent shooting to the opposition. They allow just 35 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
• Cory Arentsen leads the team in scoring at 15.5 points per contest and Darris Smith chips in 13.0 per outing. Arentsen scored 22 in the first meeting this season, while Smith scored a game-high 28 points.
• Sam Mader scores 8.4 points per outing and pulls down a team-best 5.2 rebounds per game.
• The Lions have six players averaging at least 6.7 points per contest.
• They out-rebound opponents by nearly 1.5 boards per game. They turn the ball over 11.2 times per game and force the same amount.
LAST TIME OUT • CENTRAL MISSOURI 67, LINCOLN 47 • 2/11/15JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - 19th-ranked Mules shot 56 percent from the field and blew past the Lincoln Blue Tigers 67-47 on Wednesday night at Jason Gym. Nine of the 11 Mules who played in the game scored. The win gave the Mules (20-4, 11-4 MIAA) their third straight 20-win season and the 24th in program history.
   Lincoln (4-20, 1-14 MIAA) jumped out to an early 7-2 lead, but the Mules used a 20-2 run to grab a 22-9 lead with 9:08 to play in the half. A bucket by the Blue Tigers made it 22-11, but the Mules went back on another run to blow the game open. UCM scored 12 of the next 13 points to open a 34-12 lead with 3:41 left in the first half.
   Lincoln cut the lead to 17 near the end of the first half, but a pair of free throws from
Kyle Wolf gave UCM a 37-18 lead at halftime.
   The Mules opened the second half on a 14-6 spurt and had their largest lead of the night at 51-24 with 13:01 to play in the game. The lead never dipped below 20 the rest of the game as the Mules cruised to their fourth straight win.
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TJ White led the Mules with 12 points and seven rebounds, he was a perfect 4-of-4 from the field and 4-of-4 at the foul line.
Kyle Wolf finished with 11 points in the balanced UCM attack.
   The Mules were 24-of-43 from the field and hit 6-of-19 threes for 32 percent. UCM was 14-of-17 at the charity stripe for 82 percent and the Mules had 16 assists on their 24 made baskets. The UCM defense came up with eight steals, five blocks and forced 12 LU turnovers.
   Lincoln shot 21-of-52 from the floor for 40 percent, but just 4-of-19 from beyond the arc for 21 percent. They were 1-of-3 at the foul line. Blake Ralling led three Blue Tigers in double figures with 12 points. Joshua Buie had 11 and Aaron Spudich finished with 10.
   The Mules outrebounded LU 31-23 and held a 32-26 advantage in points in the paint.
THE MULES AT HOME• Central Missouri is 165-23 at the Multipurpose Building over the last 13 years and 11-2 under
Doug Karleskint after the win over Missouri Southern on Saturday.
• Over the last nine years, UCM is 148-13 at home, including 59-1 against non-conference opponents and 89-12 in MIAA play.
• The Mules are 476-90 in their 39th season playing home games at the Multi.
MULES ON THE ROAD• The Mules are 6-2 on the road this season after the 67-47 win at Lincoln on February 11.
• UCM was 8-4 on the road last season, including 7-3 in MIAA play.
MULES IN NEUTRAL SITE GAMES• UCM is 3-0 this year and 53-20 in neutral site games over the last 13 years after the 90-84 overtime win over Quincy on Nov. 25 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
• The Mules were 9-1 in neutral site games last season.
MULES IN MIAA PLAY• The Mules are 11-4 in conference action under
Doug Karleskint after the win over Lincoln on Wednesday. UCM sits in a three-way tie atop the conference standings.
• Central Missouri is 170-70 in MIAA play over the last 13 seasons.
• UCM has won or shared 24 MIAA regular season championships and five MIAA Tournament titles.
MULES IN NON-CONFERENCE ACTION• The Mules are 9-0 in non-conference games this season and 124-29 over the last 13 seasons after the win over Culver-Stockton on December 15.
• The Mules went 14-2 in non-MIAA games last year.
• Central Missouri is 58-1 in the last 59 non-conference home games at the Multipurpose Building.
A UCM WIN WOULD...• Give the Mules an 21-4 record overall and 12-4 in MIAA play and keep UCM in first place in the league standings.
A UCM LOSS WOULD...• Drop the Mules to 20-5 overall and give UCM an 11-5 record in MIAA play and drop them a game back of first place in the league standings.
• Snap UCM's current four-game winning streak.
BLOCK PARTY• Senior
Dillon Deck has 60 blocked shots in his UCM career, fourth most on UCM's career blocks list. He is 16 blocks shy of tying Kelvin Richardson (1995-96) for third place on UCM's career list.
• He blocked 32 shots last season, the eighth most in a single season in Central Missouri history.
• His 28 blocks this season are two shy of cracking the single-season top 10 list.
MULES SECURE SPOT IN MIAA TOURNAMENT• With the win over Missouri Southern on February 7, the Mules clinched a spot in the MIAA Postseason Tournament. The Mules have made the MIAA Tournament every year since it's inception, the only school to do so.
• This year's tournament will begin on Monday, March 2 with seeds Nos. 5-12 playing play-in games at the higher seeded school. The winners of those four games will advance to play at Kansas City's Municipal Auditorium March 5-8 along with the top four teams in the league, who all receive byes to Kansas City. Men's quarterfinal action will tip-off on Thursday, March 5.
KARLESKINT ERA OFF TO A GOOD START•
Doug Karleskint is 20-4 in his first season as the head coach at Central Missouri and 110-38 (.743) overall in his fifth season as a head coach.
• He became the first Mules' head coach to start his first season at UCM 7-0.
• Karleskint became the fourth Mules' head coach to win at least 20 games in his first season.
• He spent the previous five seasons at Arkansas Tech, including the last four as head coach. He compiled a 90-34 (.726) record with the Wonder Boys with four conference championships and four trips to the NCAA-II National Tournament, including a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2012.
MULES IN THE POLLS• The Mules moved up six spots to No. 19 in the latest NABC/Division II Rankings released on Tuesday.
• The Mules have been ranked in 149 polls in the history of the program, the seventh most in NCAA-II history.
• The Mules re-entered the Division II Media Poll sponsored by D2SIDA at No. 20 this week. The poll is in its first year of existence and is voted on by a panel of Division II Sports Information Directors.
MULES BASKETBALL HISTORY• In the 110th season of UCM basketball, the Mules have compiled a 1,635-928 (.638) record in 2,563 total games.
• The Mules are the third winningest program by victories in NCAA-II history.
• Central Missouri is one of just three NCAA-II programs with 1,600 all-time wins.
• The Mules have won 20 or more games 24 times in the history of the program, including this season.
• Central Missouri has won 30 or more games in a season three times, including last year.
• UCM has won or shared 24 MIAA regular season championships and five MIAA tournament titles.
THE NEXT LEVEL• In the past 12 years, 21 former UCM players have gone on to play professional basketball.
• Four players are either currently playing professionally or on a professional roster;
Charles Hammork (Kosovo, Ylli Therande), Michael Hicks (Poland, Polpharma-Pakmet), Sanijay Watts (Germany, Dorsten) and Zack Wright (Germany, Brose Basket).
A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN ATHLETICS• Following the fall sports seasons, Central Missouri has won a combined 202 MIAA regular-season conference championships in 14 league sports to lead all schools.
• Last season, UCM captured seven MIAA regular season titles, the most of any school in one season in league history, and the second time Central Missouri has accomplished the feat.
• Since 1983, the tenure of Athletic Director
Jerry Hughes, UCM has won or shared 146 MIAA championships, more than any other league school.
• Central Missouri has won six national championships since 1980 (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, women's bowling in 2003 and men's basketball in 2014) and eight national championships overall.
A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN THE CLASSROOM• Central Missouri had 220 student-athletes named to the 2013-14 MIAA Academic Honor Roll with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher.
• 41 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.
• 17 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Academic Excellence Award winners with a 4.0 GPA.
• UCM had 12 student-athletes earn Academic All-Region awards in their respective sports with seven of those earning CoSIDA Academic All-America honors.
MULES BASKETBALL ON THE AIR• Central Missouri basketball is broadcast live on 98.5 The Bar, 1450 KOKO and online at warrensburgradio.com. Games are broadcast by 1450 KOKO/98.5 The Bar Sports Director, Greg Hassler and Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations,
Mike Knipper.
• The
Doug Karleskint Show, Live from Traditions Restaurant presented by Bob Showers of Ameritas Investment Corp. will air on Monday nights at 6 p.m. on 98.5 The Bar and 1450 KOKO as well as warrensburgradio.com.
LIVE VIDEO STREAMING• Live video coverage for all Central Missouri home and away MIAA games will be available through Stretch Internet on a pay-per-view basis. The cost is $9.95 for a day pass or $89.95 for an all-season pass for UCM basketball. With a day pass, fans can access any MIAA game being broadcast that day. Fans can access webcasts through the GameCentral by Stretch Internet link on the UCM Athletics homepage or through the "Video" links on the Mules Basketball schedule page. Fans can also go directly to
portal.stretchinternet.com/ucmo/
UPCOMING• The Mules continue their home stand on Saturday, February 21 hosting Southwest Baptist at 3:30 p.m. at the Multi.
