WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Dec. 2, 2020) - The Central Missouri Mules Basketball team begins a four-game journey on the road with a match up against the top-ranked Northwest Missouri Bearcats on Thursday, followed by a visit to St. Joseph the following Saturday to take one the Griffons of Missouri Western. 

Opponents: 
No. 1 Northwest Missouri (1-0, 1-0 MIAA)
Missouri Western (1-0, 1-0 MIAA)

Where:
Maryville, Mo. - Bearcat Arena
St. Joseph, Mo. - MWSU Fieldhouse

Fan Information:
• There will be no tickets sold for either game this weekend. Fans are limited to immediate family members only and must be on the team's official pass list. 

On the Air:
• All games will be broadcast on 1450 KOKO, 98.5 The Bar and warrensburgradio.com with Greg Hassler calling the action. 
• All games will also be webcast online through the MIAA's Blue Frame portal at http://www.themiaanetwork.com/ucmmules/. 
• Links to live stats and live video can also be found at ucmathletics.com. 

Tip-Off:
• The University of Central Missouri Mules basketball team opens the month of December with MIAA match ups against top-ranked Northwest Missouri and Missouri Western. 
• The Mules are coming off their first win of the season after a 88-80 victory over Pittsburg State at home last Saturday. 
• No.1 Northwest Missouri is on a 23-game win streak which is tied for the second-longest active win streak among NCAA Division II teams and their 33-game home win streak ranks as the third-longest streak in the nation among all NCAA divisions.
• Both the Bearcats and Griffons opened their 2020-21 seasons against Rogers State. Northwest defeated the Hillcats 86-78 while Western won with a 68-55 advantage.

Mules Feed: 
• The Mules are currently 1-2 to begin the season.
• Central Missouri lost their season opener against Lincoln, 86-80, then fell to No. 21 Missouri Southern 67-58 in their home opener. 
• The Mules claimed their first win against Pitt State, shooting over 50% from the floor and 60% from the three-point range to defeat the Gorillas 88-80.
• With three games completed, UCM currently leads the MIAA from the three-point range shooting 42.3%.   
• The Mules also rank second in the league with a 49.7 field goal percentage.
• Mules transfer Cameron Hunter currently leads the UCM offense averaging 17.7 points per game. Hunter led the Mules in scoring against Lincoln with 24 points and against the Lions with 20 points.
• In UCM's win against Pitt State, another newcomer Jalen Blaize led the offense with a game-high 25 points shooting 7-13 from the field, 5-7 from the three, and 6-7 from the three-throw line. 
• The Mules 2019-20 leading scorer Gavin Pinkley has averaged 11.3 points in the Mules first three games. Pinkley currently leads the defense with 16 rebounds. 
• Transfers Ja'Cor Nelson, Ante Sustic and Mohammed Abubakar have also played some serious minutes in the Mules first games. Nelson is averaging 9.3 points per game with over 60% shooting while Sustic is 10-15 and Abubakar is 8-10. 
• After finishing the 2019-20 season 10-18 overall and 5-14 in the MIAA, Central Missouri was picked to finish 11th by the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll, just four points behind 10th ranked Nebraska-Kearney and seven points behind ninth ranked Lincoln.

Previously vs. Northwest Missouri:
• Central Missouri leads the all-time series against the Bearcats, 128-98.
• The Mules and the Bearcats met twice last season. UCM upset the top-ranked Bearcats early in the season with a 72-60 victory in Warrensburg. Northwest took revenge later in the season, defeating the Mules 81-47 in Maryville. 
• The Bearcats have won 10 of the last 12 matchups against the Mules. 
• Northwest has won the last six matchups against the Mules in Bearcat Arena. UCM's last victory in Maryville was on Feb. 18th, 2012. 

Scouting the No. 1 Bearcats:
• Northwest has posted a record of 69-1 over the past two seasons. The Bearcats went 38-0 and captured the 2018-19 national title, then went 31-1 last season before their journey in the national tournament was canceled due to COVID-19. 
• With a 33-game home win streak, the Northwest haven't lost in Bearcat Arena since the 2014-15 season. 
• The Bearcats returned seven of their nine letter winners from last season, including four starters and their top-three scorers, led by Ryan Hawkins, who averaged 22.7 points per game last season and Trevor Hudgins, who averaged 19.6 points.
• In Northwest's season opener, the Bearcats scored 86 points while shooting 25-45 from the field for 55.6% to lead the league in scoring. 
• Hudgins led the offense with 27 points shooting 6-10 from the field, 2-4 from the three, and 13-15 from the foul line. 
• Wes Dreamer led the Bearcats from the behind the arc with three three's to add to his 20 point total. 
• Hawkins was just three rebounds shy of a season opener double-double as he led the Bearcats with seven boards and finished with 12 points. 

Perviously vs. Missouri Western:
• Last season, the Mules lost both meetings against the Griffons by four points. 
• Western's 84-80 victory over the Mules in St. Joseph last season was the first time the Griffons had defeated UCM on their home court since the 2015-16 season. 
• Central Missouri leads the all-time series against Missouri Western 41-30.

Scouting the Griffons:
• Missouri was ranked fifth in the MIAA Preseason Poll after posting a 2019-20 record of 18-14 (13-6 MIAA). The Griffins earned their highest MIAA finish of the past decade after finished fourth in the league. 
• The Griffins returned 11 players from last season, including four starters, 75% of scoring and nine players who averaged more than 10 minutes per game.
• Of those returners is First-Team All-MIAA guard Tyrell Carroll and the MIAA Freshman of the Year, Will Eames. 
• After holding Rogers State to just 55 points in their season opener, Missouri Western ranks first in the league in scoring defense, defensive field goal percentage and defensive three-point field goal percentage. 
• The Griffons also currently lead the league in rebounds after collecting 47 against the Hillcats. 
• Carroll currently leads the offense with 17 points while newcomer Q Mays totaled 13 points and led the Griffons with 11 rebounds to record Western's first double-double of the season. 

Last Time Out:
WARRENSBURG, Mo. (Nov. 28, 2020) - The Central Missouri Mules basketball squad shot over 50% from the floor and over 60% from the three to earn their first victory of the 2020-21 season with a 88-80 win over Pittsburg State. Five Mules finished in double-figure scoring led by Jalen Blaize with a career-high 25 points against the Gorillas. 
• Central Missouri finished 28-50 from the field for 56% shooting and went 10-16 from the three-point range for an impressive 62.5%. 
• A quarter of the Mules points were made at the foul line as they finished 22-28 for 78.6%. 
• The Gorillas finished 30-60 from the field for 50%, 8-24 from behind the arc for 33.3%, and hit 12-19 from the free-throw line for 63.2%. 
• Pitt State did see an advantage on the boards, out-rebounding the Mules 35-26. 
• Five Mules finished in double-figures as UCM shot over 50% from the field and 60% from the three. 
• Blaize went 7-13 from the field, 5-7 from the three-point range, and 6-7 at the free-throw line to led the Mules with a game-high and career-high 25 points. 
• Pinkley hit a career-high four three's as he finished 5-7 from the field and 4-5 from behind the arc to add 14 points. 
• Hunter was just 1-3 from the field but landed 11-14 from the free-throw line to total 13. Hunter also recorded a game-high and career-high nine assists. 
• Sustic finished 5-7 from inside the paint and was a perfect 2-2 at the foul line to add 12.
• Mohammed Abubakar led the Mules defense with seven rebounds while also finishing 4-5 in the paint and 2-3 at the foul line for 10 points.