TIP-OFF• The Central Missouri Mules head to Lindenwood on Wednesday night for the first of two straight road games to close out the regular season. Tip-off at Hyland Arena in St. Charles is set for 7:30 p.m.
• The Mules are 13-13 overall on the season and 7-13 in MIAA play after suffering their sixth straight defeat against Missouri Southern last Saturday.
• Lindenwood is 15-11 overall and 11-9 in league play after a 77-61 loss at Nebraska-Kearney on Saturday. The Lions have dropped five straight games.
• 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 1,653 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 71.3 points per game while shooting 45.8 percent from the field. Opponents are averaging 69.5 points per game on 43.3 percent shooting.
• The Mules are shooting 35.9 percent from three-point range while the opposition shoots 34.9 percent.
• The Mules are 13th in the MIAA in scoring offense and third in scoring defense. They are fifth in the league in field goal percentage and third in field goal percentage defense and second in three-point field goal percentage defense.
• Eleven different players have scored in double figures for the Mules and six different players have led the team in scoring this season.
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Marquiez Lawrence (17 points, 11 rebounds) recorded his fifth double-double of the season on Saturday against Missouri Southern.
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Jakob Lowrance recorded his first career 20-point game in the loss at Southwest Baptist. He finished with 21 points on the night.
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Spencer Reaves had the first 30-point performance of his UCM career when he scored 33 points against Pittsburg State on Feb. 17.
SERIES HISTORY• This will be the 10th all-time meeting between Central Missouri and Lindenwood. The Mules lead the series 7-2.
• UCM won the first meeting this season, 54-41, back on Jan. 13 in Warrensburg.
• The teams split the season series last year with each team winning on their own home floor. Lindenwood won 82-68 in St. Charles on Jan. 24 with the Mules winning 58-53 in Warrensburg on Feb. 14.
• The Mules are 1-2 against the Lions in St. Charles with all three meetings coming since LWU joined the MIAA.
LAST MEETING WITH LINDENWOOD• The Mules held Lindenwood to 34 percent shooting and 31 points below their season average in a 54-41 win on Jan. 13 at the Multi.
• Lindenwood led 15-13 with 7:04 to play in the first half, but UCM closed the frame on a 16-0 run and led 29-15 at halftime.
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Tereke Eckwood scored four straight points out of the intermission to give the Mules a 33-15 advantage and a 9-3 spurt over a six minute span midway through the second half gave UCM a 47-28 lead with just over six to play.
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Spencer Reaves led UCM with 20 points and seven rebounds.
D'Marnier Cunningham had seven points and six assists.
• UCM shot 34 percent from the field and made 8-of-22 three-point attempts. The Mules were also 10-of-12 at the free throw line.
• Lindenwood was 16-of-46 from the field and made just 3-of-14 from beyond the arc.
• Chandler Diekvoss led LWU with nine points, while LJ McIntosh had eight. Stanislas Heili had seven points and nine rebounds.
SCOUTING THE LIONS• Lindenwood enters the mid-week game at 15-11 overall and 11-9 in MIAA play having lost five straight games. The Lions are 8-4 at home this season.
• LWU is led by first year head coach Lance Randall. His career mark in five seasons as a head coach is 93-55.
• The Lions are last in the MIAA in scoring at 69.2 points per game, but first in scoring defense at 65.6 per contest.
• They are seventh in field goal percentage (45.7) and three-point field goal percentage (36.6), while ranking first in field goal percentage defense (40.6) and seventh in three-point field goal percentage defense (36.6). The Lions are also fourth in the MIAA in free throw percentage (75.9).
• Lindenwood is third in the league in rebounding at 35.9 boards per contest and first in rebound margin at plus-5.3.
• Cory Arentsen leads the team and is third in the MIAA in scoring at 22.6 points per game. Since being held to one point in the game in Warrensburg, Arentsen has led LWU in scoring in each of the last 10 games, including a 46-point performance in a loss at Northwest Missouri.
• Brad Newman is the other Lion averaging in double figures at 11.6 per contest. He also leads the team in assists at 3.0 per game.
• Stanislas Heili averages 9.0 points and a team-high 8.0 rebounds per game.
LAST TIME OUT • MISSOURI SOUTHERN 78, CENTRAL MISSOURI 71 • 2/20/16WARRENSBURG, Mo. – The Central Missouri Mules built a 15-point first half lead, but couldn't hold on in a 78-71 loss to Missouri Southern on Senior Day at the Multipurpose Building. The loss is the sixth straight for the Mules and drops them to 13-13 overall and 7-13 in MIAA play.
   The Mules came out on fire, scoring the first 13 points of the game. Missouri Southern (16-11, 13-8 MIAA) got on the board with a pair of free throws at the 13:57 mark of the first half. A 7-0 run by the Lions pulled them within 15-9 with 10:57 remaining in the first half, but
Jakob Lowrance drilled a three-pointer and
Marquiez Lawrence scored a layup to push the lead back to 11.
   MSSU pulled back to within nine, but a
D'Marnier Cunningham layup and
Tony Cochran three pushed the lead to 13 with 6:42 to play in the opening period. UCM pushed the lead to as many as 15 at 33-18 at the 3:05 mark, but Missouri Southern closed the half on an 8-1 run to pull within 34-26 at halftime.
   UCM pushed the lead to nine early in the second half on a
Spencer Reaves three-pointer, but an 11-0 run for the Lions gave them their first lead of the game at 41-39 with 14:23 to play in the game. The Mules went back in front with five straight points and the see-saw battle began. A free throw from Lowrance followed by five straight from Cunningham gave UCM a 52-46 lead with 11:35 to play. MSSU responded with five straight points of their own to tie the game once again at 52-all.
   UCM trailed by four with 5:55 to play in the game, but came back to tie the game at 65 on Lowrance's three with 3:44 on the clock. A 6-0 run, however, by the Lions gave them a lead they wouldn't relinquish and they were able to ice the game at the free throw line.
   Cunningham led UCM with 21 points and six assists, while Lawrence recorded his fifth double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Cochran finished with 12 points and Lowrance had 10 and eight boards.
   Taevaunn Prince, the MIAA's leading scorer, finished with 25 points in the game after being held scoreless in the first half. Austin Wright had 21 points and Charlie Brown finished with 17.
   The Mules out-shot Missouri Southern (48.2-40.0) from the field and made 27 field goals compared to 24. The Mules made 11 three-pointers compared to five for the Lions, but MSSU was 25-of-36 at the free throw line compared to just 6-of-11 for Central Missouri.
   UCM had 15 assists in the game, but did turn the ball over 16 times. UCM finished with four blocks in the game, three for Lowrance.
THE MULES AT HOME• The Mules are 10-6 at home this year after the 78-71 loss to Missouri Southern on Saturday.
• Central Missouri went 14-2 at home last season.
• Over the last 11 years, UCM is 161-19 at home, including 64-1 against non-conference opponents and 97-18 in MIAA play.
• The Mules are 489-96 (.836) in their 40th season playing home games at the Multipurpose Building.
MULES ON THE ROAD• The Mules are 3-7 on the road this season after the loss at Southwest Baptist
• 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 sit at 7-13 in MIAA play and in a three-way tie for 11th place in the league standings following the loss to Missouri Southern.
• 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 180-83 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.
PICKING A WINNER• A pretty good indicator of a UCM win is how the Mules have played in the first half of games this season. The Mules are 13-2 when leading at the half this season and 0-11 when tied or trailing at the intermission.
• UCM is also 13-2 when leading with 5:00 left in regulation and 0-11 when tied or trailing after 35 minutes of action. The previous two seasons, the Mules were 46-2 when leading with 5:00 to play.
BLOCK PARTY• Junior
Marquiez Lawrence has 29 blocked shots on the season, an average of 1.1 blocks per game. He is three blocks away from cracking Central Missouri's single-season top 10 list.
A UCM WIN WOULD...• Give the Mules a 14-13 overall mark and snap a season-high six-game losing streak.
• Bring UCM to 8-13 in MIAA play with one regular season game left.
• Give UCM a sweep of the season series with Lindenwood and even the series at 2-2 in games played in St. Charles.
A UCM LOSS WOULD...• Drop UCM to 13-14 overall and 7-14 in conference play and possibly out of the top 12 in the league standings.
• Give Lindenwood a split of the season series and two straight wins in St. Charles.
• Give the Mules seven straight losses.
UCM DURING THE KARLESKINT ERA•
Doug Karleskint has a record of 38-20 (.655) in his second season as head coach at Central Missouri and a 128-54 (.703) 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 1,653-944 (.637) record in 2,597 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.
• Three players are either currently playing professionally or on a professional roster; Charles Hammork (Kosovo, Ylli Therande), Michael Hicks (Poland, Polpharma-Pakmet), 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 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 close out the regular season on Saturday at Missouri Western. Tip-off in St. Joseph is set for 5 p.m. at the MWSU Fieldhouse.
