TIP-OFF• The Central Missouri Mules hit the road for two key MIAA contests this week. UCM is at Pittsburg State on Thursday night and at Missouri Southern on Saturday afternoon.
• The Mules are 9-3 overall on the season and 3-3 in MIAA play after a 70-64 win over Southwest Baptist on Monday night in Warrensburg.
• Pittsburg State enters the game at 7-7 overall and 2-6 in MIAA play after a 91-75 loss at Nebraska-Kearney on Monday night.
• Missouri Southern is 8-6 overall and 5-3 in league play after falling at Fort Hays State 84-83 on Monday.
• The Mules were 25-7 a season ago and advanced to the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament. It was the eighth 20-win season in the last 11 years and the 24th in school history.
• Central Missouri finished 14-5 in MIAA play last year and finished as the regular season runner-up.
QUICK HITS• This is the 111th season of Central Missouri Mules basketball.
• Central Missouri is third all-time in NCAA Division II men's basketball with 1,649 wins.
• Last season was the 12th straight season of at least 18 wins for UCM, an MIAA record.
• Last season was the third straight 20-win season for UCM and the 24th in program history.
• The Mules have won two NCAA Men's National Championships (1984 & 2014) and four National Championships overall (1937 & 1938 NAIB).
MULE FEED• The Mules are averaging 77.2 points per game while shooting 46.8 percent from the field. Opponents are averaging 69.4 points per game on 42.2 percent shooting.
• The Mules are shooting 38.1 percent (90-of-236) from three-point range compared to 31.4 percent (74-of-236) for the opposition.
• The Mules are seventh in the MIAA in scoring offense (77.2 ppg) and third in scoring defense (69.4 ppg). They are eighth in the league in field goal percentage (46.8), and third in field goal percentage defense (42.2) and first in three-point field goal percentage defense (31.4).
• Ten different players have scored in double figures for the Mules and six different players have led the team in scoring.
•
Marquiez Lawrence (14 points, 10 rebounds) recorded the first double-double of the season for Central Missouri in the win over MidAmerica Nazarene. He has three double-doubles on the season.
SERIES HISTORY VS. PITTSBURG STATE• This will be the 112th all-time meeting between Central Missouri and Pittsburg State with the Mules holding a 70-41 advantage in the series.
• The Mules beat the Gorillas 66-54 last year in Warrensburg. Central Missouri has won four straight and 18 of the last 20 in the series.
• PSU holds a 27-22 lead in games played in Pittsburg, but the Mules have won seven of the last eight games at John Lance Arena.
SERIES HISTORY VS. MISSOURI SOUTHERN• This will be the 60th all-time meeting between Central Missouri and Missouri Southern. The Mules hold a 36-23 advantage after winning two of three meetings last year.
• The Mules swept the regular season series, but the Lions won 81-74 in the MIAA Tournament Semifinals in Kansas City.
• MSSU holds a 14-12 advantage in games played in Joplin, but UCM has won three of the last four at the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center.
LAST MEETING WITH PITTSBURG STATE• The Mules held Pittsburg State to 39 percent shooting and shot 47 percent of their own in a 66-54 win.
• The Mules were led by
Preston Brunz's 14 points and three assists.
Dillon Deck had 13 points off the bench and
Jordan Epps had 12.
• UCM forced 16 PSU turnovers and turned those in to 18 points.
• The Mules shot a season-best 90 percent at the free throw line, 17-of-19.
•
TJ White and Epps each recorded three steals in the game as the Mules had eight as a team. White also had a team-high six rebounds.
LAST MEETING WITH MISSOURI SOUTHERN• Missouri Southern shot 53 percent from the field en route to an 81-74 win over the Mules in last year's MIAA Tournament Semifinals.
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Brennen Hughes led UCM with 18 points and a game-high nine rebounds.
Preston Brunz chipped in 16 points and five boards, while
TJ White had 12 points and eight rebounds and
Rakeem Dickerson added 11 points.
• The Lions forced 13 UCM turnovers in the game and turned those in to 20 points.
• Taevaunn Prince led Missouri Southern with a game-high 22 points as five Lions finished in double figures.
• The win for MSSU stopped a five-game winning streak in the series for the Mules.
• The Mules shot 46 percent for the game, but were just 4-of-19 from three-point range. UCM had six assists on 26 made baskets.
SCOUTING THE GORILLAS• Pittsburg State enters the game at 7-7 overall and 2-6 in MIAA play, having lost six straight games.
• PSU is led by sixth-year head coach Kevin Muff, who has an 83-74 record during his tenure in Pittsburg.
• The Gorillas average 76 ppg and shoot 48 percent from the floor and 41.4 percent from three-point range. They shoot 73.3 percent at the foul line and have attempted 52 more foul shots than their opponents.
• They allow 77.4 points per game, 48.5 percent shooting and 44.1 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
• Josiah Gustafson leads PSU in scoring at 15.8 points per contest, he also has a team-best 5.1 rebounds per outing.
• Trey Starks (13.3 ppg) and Dakota Jones (10.7) are also averaging in double figures.
• Javis Flynn is averaging 9.0 points per game and 5.4 assists per contest.
• The Gorillas are averaging 13.7 assists and 13.7 turnovers per game.
SCOUTING THE LIONS• Missouri Southern enters the weekend at 8-6 overall and 5-3 in league play after losses at Nebraska-Kearney (113-100) and Fort Hays State (84-83). The Lions will host SBU on Thursday before playing the Mules on Saturday.
• MSSU is led by second-year head coach Jeff Boschee. He has a 28-17 record leading the Lions.
• Missouri Southern is averaging 82.9 points per game on 47.1 percent shooting, including 39.2 percent from three-point range.
• Opponents are averaging 79.8 points per outing, 46.4 percent shooting overall and 35 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
• Taevaunn Prince leads the team in scoring at 25.6 points per game, tops in the MIAA. He is averaging a double-double with a team-best 10.9 rebounds per outing, also best in the league.
• Charlie Brown (14.4 ppg) and Austin Wright (12.1) are also averaging in double figures.
LAST TIME OUT • CENTRAL MISSOURI 70, SOUTHWEST BAPTIST 64• 1/4/16WARRENSBURG, Mo. – The Mules snapped a two-game losing streak and a three-game home court losing streak with a 70-64 win over Southwest Baptist on Monday night. The Mules built a 15-point second half lead then held off a late Bearcat rally to earn their ninth win of the season.
   The Mules (9-3, 3-3 MIAA) were ice cold to start the game as the Bearcats (7-5, 2-4 MIAA) took an early five-point lead. The Mules were 2-for-8 to start the game as SBU took a 9-4 lead by the 13:59 mark. The lead grew to six at 11-5 with 12:31 to play in the half, but
Brad Woodson hit a three and
Spencer Reaves made a jumper to pull UCM within 11-10 at the 11:00 mark.
   A Logan Hovey layup pushed the SBU back to three, but
Brett O'Neil hit back-to-back threes to give UCM the lead and
Tereke Eckwood scored on a layup to give the Mules an 18-13 advantage with 6:52 on the clock. The buckets ignited an 18-5 run that gave the Mules a 28-18 lead late in the first half. They would go into the break leading 30-22.
   The teams traded baskets in the early going of the second half before a layup from
D'Marnier Cunningham and two
Brad Woodson free throws gave UCM a 39-28 lead. After an SBU bucket O'Neil buried another three to give the Mules a 12-point lead.
   Nate Nahirny drilled a triple to pull SBU within nine, but
Jakob Lowrance scored off an assist from Cunningham and
Kyle Wolf drained a pair of threes to make it 50-35 with 11:50 to play. The lead was still 15 at the 9:03 mark when the Bearcats began to chip away at the lead. SBU got the lead under 10 at 59-51, but four straight free throws from Cunningham made it 63-51 with 1:34 to play. The lead was 11 with 1:19 to play, but four straight from the Bearcats made it 64-57.
   A three from Nahirny with :17 to play pulled the Bearcats to within four at 68-64, but Cunningham made two more foul shots to give UCM the 70-64 final edge.
   The Mules shot 42 percent from the floor, going 22-of-52, including 10-of-24 from three-point range. UCM was just 16-of-28 for 57 percent from the free throw line. Cunningham and Lowrance led UCM with 12 points apiece, while Wolf finished with 11 and Woodson had 10.
Marquiez Lawrence finished with 10 rebounds.
   Logan Hovey led SBU with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Brian Patterson had 17 and Cartier Dean 13. SBU was 24-of-51 from the floor for 47 percent. They were 5-of-15 from beyond the arc and 11-of-17 from the charity stripe.
   The Mules had 15 assists in the game and forced 21 SBU turnovers.
THE MULES AT HOME• The Mules are 7-3 at home this year after the win over SBU, it snapped a three-game home losing streak.
• Central Missouri went 14-2 at home last season.
• Over the last 11 years, UCM is 158-16 at home, including 64-1 against non-conference opponents and 94-15 in MIAA play.
• The Mules are 486-93 (.839) in their 40th season playing home games at the Multipurpose Building.
MULES ON THE ROAD• The Mules are 2-0 on the road this season after the 73-72 win at Emporia State on Saturday.
• UCM was 6-3 on the road last season and were one of only three teams with a winning record on the road during MIAA play.
MULES IN MIAA PLAY• The Mules are back to .500 in MIAA play at 3-3 this season after the win over Southwest Baptist on Monday night.
• UCM finished the 2014-15 regular season 14-5 in conference action under
Doug Karleskint and second in the final league standings.
• Central Missouri is 176-74 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 6-0 in non-conference action after the wins over SE Oklahoma State and MidAmerica Nazarene.
• The Mules were 11-0 in regular season non-con games last season and are 132-31 over the last 13 seasons.
• Central Missouri is 64-1 in the last 65 non-conference home games at the Multipurpose Building.
UCM DURING THE KARLESKINT ERA•
Doug Karleskint has a record of 34-10 (.773) in his second season as head coach at Central Missouri and a 124-44 (.738) overall mark in his sixth season as a head coach.
• He became the first Mules' head coach to start his first season at UCM 7-0 when he accomplished the mark last season.
• His 25 wins last year were the most by a first-year head coach in Central Missouri history.
• Karleskint became the fourth Mules' head coach to win at least 20 games in his first season.
• Before coming to UCM, 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 BASKETBALL HISTORY• In the 111th season of UCM basketball, the Mules have compiled a 1,649-934 (.638) record in 2,583 total games.
• The Mules are the third winningest program by victories in NCAA-II history.
• Central Missouri is one of just four 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 each of the last three seasons.
• Central Missouri has won 30 or more games in a season three times (2006-07, 2008-09, and 2013-14).
• 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• Entering the 2015-16 academic year, Central Missouri had won a combined 205 MIAA regular season conference championships in 14 league sports to lead all schools.
• Last season, UCM captured five MIAA regular season titles, and three MIAA Tournament crowns.
• Since 1983, the tenure of Athletic Director
Jerry Hughes, UCM has won or shared 151 MIAA championships, more than any other league school.
• Central Missouri has won eight national championships since 1980 (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, women's bowling in 2003, men's basketball in 2014, and women's indoor and outdoor track & field in 2015) and 10 national championships overall.
A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN THE CLASSROOM• Central Missouri had 218 student-athletes named to the 2014-15 MIAA Academic Honor Roll with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher.
• 29 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 six student-athletes earn Academic All-Region awards in their respective sports with three of those earning CoSIDA Academic All-America honors.
• Since the year 2000, UCM is tied for sixth in NCAA-II with 49 Academic All-Americans.
MULES BASKETBALL ON THE AIR• Central Missouri basketball is broadcast live on 1450 KOKO, 98.5 The Bar, 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, presented by Bob Showers of Ameritas Investment Svc Corp., live from Traditions Restaurant airs on Tuesday nights at 6:30 p.m. The Show is hosted by Greg Hassler and is broadcast live from Traditions Restaurant at Mules National Golf Club.
UPCOMING• The Mules return home for two straight games, hosting Lindenwood on Wednesday, Jan. 13 at 7:30 p.m. and Lincoln on Saturday, Jan. 16 at 3:30 p.m.
