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Game No. 17
Washburn Ichabods at Pittsburg State Gorillas
Saturday, January 26, 2008
7:30 p.m.
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Where: Pittsburg, Kan.
Arena: John Lance Arena
Capacity: 6,500
Rankings: Both teams unranked in January 22 NABC national poll
WU Record: 11-5, 3-4 MIAA
PSU Record: 12-4, 3-4 MIAA
Series Record: WU leads 86-71
Last Meeting: PSU 72-61 on 02/03/07 (A)
Last WU win: 71-58 on 01/18/06 (H)
WU Coach Bob Chipman: 639-245 (.723) in his 29th season at WU and overall
PSU Coach Gene Iba: 237-131 (.644) in 13th season at PSU; 462-334 (.580) in 28th season overall
Ichabods looking to rebound with trip to Pittsburg State Saturday
The Ichabods will play another road game as they head to Pittsburg State Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in John Lance Arena. The Ichabods will be looking to turn around after a one-point loss at Southwest Baptist Tuesday dropped them to 11-5 and 3-4 in the MIAA while the Gorillas won at Missouri Western Wednesday to improve to 12-4 overall and 3-4 in the league. Both teams are in a four-way tie for fifth in the conference.
The game will be carried live on KTPK 106.9 FM throughout the Topeka area and will also be streamed live at wusports.com for free by following the link under men's basketball. Fans can also watch the game for $5.50 at themiaa.tv through a live video stream.
Notes of Interest
• The Ichabods are 4-4 in their last eight games with every one being decided by nine points or less. They have lost three of those games by just one point, all on the road.
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Paul Byers needs three more blocks to move into a tie for fifth in WU school history. He has 63 in three years.
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Andrew Meile is eighth in school history with 123 3-pointers and 317 attempts in his four years.
• Washburn is 2-5 on the road and led by Angel Santiago with 13.1 points and
Brady Sisk with 12.7 points a game.
Kyle Snyder leads the team with 6.9 rebounds a game on the road.
• Angel Santiago leads WU with 11.6 points a game this year.
• The Ichabods lead the series against PSU 86-71 but are 5-10 on the road in the series since joining NCAA II.
About the Pittsburg State Gorillas
The Gorillas are led in scoring by Cory Abercrombie with 18.3 points a game and a .590 shooting percentage. He also leads the team with 10.4 rebounds a game after getting a double-double Wednesday at Missouri Western with 15 points and 12 rebounds. The Gorillas are scoring 72.6 points a game while holding opponents to 60.6 but in MIAA contests they are getting out-scored, 67.7-62.4 and shooting just 40 percent.
WU-PSU series notes
• This is the 158th meeting between these two schools in a series that goes back to 1919-20. The Ichabods lead the series 86-71 but have lost three straight.
• This is the second most played series for Washburn behind the Emporia State series, which has been played 187 times.
• These two teams have met at least once each year every year since 1941-42.
• Washburn is just 5-10 at PSU since joining the MIAA in 1989-90 but holds a 22-2 lead in the series in Lee Arena.
• Washburn is 2-0 against PSU in overtime but the two haven't played overtime since 1992. The first meeting was one of three triple overtimes WU has played in.
Ichabods get fourth second half comeback win of the season
The Ichabods have trailed at some point in the second half nine times this year and have come back to win four times. Washburn trailed by a point at halftime to Truman last Saturday and by as much as five in the second half before coming back for a 59-50 win. They were down by as much as 11 at Fort Hays State and at Southwest Baptist before coming back and then falling short in one-point losses.
At Northwest Missouri the Ichabods trailed the Bearcats by four points, 49-45 at the 6:40 mark of the second half before rallying for a four-point win. Washburn's biggest second half comeback this year came at home against Central Missouri on January 5. The Ichabods trailed by five at halftime and then three minutes into the period they were down by nine points. Washburn came back for an 82-76 win. Washburn also managed a comeback at home December 4 against Central Oklahoma, turning around a four-point deficit at 4:08 for a 71-68 win.
Ichabods playing too close for comfort
The Ichabods are 4-4 in their last eight games with every game being decided by nine points or less. In those eight games Washburn is out-scoring its opponents by 1.8 points, 75.9-74.1 and has lost three one-point games.
The Ichabods' one-point loss a SBU Tuesday came after they got within one but couldn't score on their final possession. The loss at Fort Hays State came on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that erased a two-point deficit for the Tigers. At Missouri Western the Ichabods led by six points with over three minutes to play and then gave up a late 3 to lose the game.
Lee Arena provides Ichabods with unbeaten advantage
Washburn is 6-0 at home this year and is out-scoring its opponents by 25.0 points in Lee Arena. The Ichabods score 85.0 points a game at home and shoot 47 percent while the visitors score 60.0 points with 36 percent shooting.
James Williams leads the Ichabods with 13.2 points a game at home and Angel Santiago is adding 11.7 a game.
Paul Byers is scoring 9.0 and leads the team with 57 percent shooting.
Washburn began playing in Lee Arena in 1984-85 and has gone 314-55 (.851) in the 24th season there.
Washburn suffers first loss when shooting 50 percent
The Ichabods were are a perfect 5-0 when shooting 50 percent or better from the field this year until falling by a point at Fort Hays State last Wednesday. All five of those wins came in the non-conference season with the most recent being December 18 at St. Mary's when the Ichabods were actually out-shot, 53 percent to 50 percent, but held on for a 77-75 win. That game was also the last of three straight that the Ichabods made at least half of their shots.
Washburn is averaging 92.3 points a game when shooting at least 50 percent and is holding opponents to 67.7 points. Washburn's most efficient night from the field came November 16 when it was 54 percent, making 37 of 68 field goals. The Ichabods were also 53 percent from 3-point range that night (10 for 19).
The Ichabods are 10-2 overall this year when out-shooting their opponents and 1-4 when their opponent shoots at least 50 percent.
Santiago breaks scoring slump in first start of the season
Washburn's leading scorer Angel Santiago led the Ichabods with 18 points off the bench Tuesday at Southwest Baptist as he reached double figures for the 11th time this year. He improved his season average to 11.6 per game overall and 13.9 in MIAA game.
Santiago had a stretch of eight straight games scoring in double figures earlier in the year with a season-high 22 coming in a win against Central Missouri on January 5. In WU's first three MIAA games Santiago scored 20.3 points a game off 46 percent shooting from the field and 44 percent from 3-point range.
Point guard Mario Scott leads the Ichabods offense
Sophomore guard
Mario Scott started the first 12 games at point guard for the Ichabods and then returned to the starting lineup in the last two games. He leads the team with 69 assists and 4.31 per game. He had six at Southwest Baptist and at Missouri Western he had 10 assists to become the first Ichabod to reach double figures since Jerad Head did it in 2004-05. Scott also leads the team with 31 steals and 1.94 per game. Scott scored a season-high 20 points off the bench at Fort Hays State and has reached double figures six times. He is averaging 8.3 points and 3.5 rebounds.
James Williams third on the team in scoring
Junior guard
James Williams is third on the team with 10.5 points and he has reached double figures in scoring in three of the last five games after putting in 11 at Northwest Missouri. He also led the team for the first time this year with nine rebounds that game.
After he scored 14 at ESU and 10 points against UCM, he has reached double figures nine times and he has led the team in scoring five times this year. His season high was 17 points against then-No. 17 Central Oklahoma and he scored 14 off the bench Tuesday at Southwest Baptist. Williams is second on the team with 25 steals and he leads the Ichabods with 13.2 points a game in six home games.
Byers moves to sixth on career blocking chart
Junior forward
Paul Byers had three blocks Saturday against Truman and one at SBU Tuesday to move alone into sixth all-time at Washburn in career blocks, now with 63. He needs three more to move into a tie for fifth and four more to move to fourth. He had 17 blocks last year and in 2005-06, his freshman year, he had 31, the eighth highest single-season total at Washburn. Byers begins the year fifth in school history with 0.9 blocks a game. Byers has 15 blocks this year with a team season-high of three three times this year.
In the six MIAA games he has 10.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and he's shooting 54 percent. Overall, Byers is scoring 8.9 points a game and leads the team shooting 58 percent from the field. His 5.9 rebounds a game is second best on the team.
Byers scored 16 points at Emporia State to tie his season high. He also had 16 at Missouri Western off 8 of 11 shooting. He had a career-high 12 rebounds against Central Missouri.
Meile enters top 10 in career 3-pointers made
Senior guard
Andrew Meile has 123 3-pointers in his career, the eighth most in school history. He needs 26 more to catch Eric Carter, who had 149 from 1997-2001. He is also eighth in 3-point attempts with 317 and tenth in 3-point shooting percentage at 39 percent.
Meile has started every game the last two years and is averaging 7.0 points a game this year off 46 percent shooting and he's 22 of 53 from 3-point range.
Sisk scoring in double figures for Ichabods
Senior forward
Brady Sisk moved into second on the team in scoring with 11.1 points a game after putting in a season-high 19 at Fort Hays State last Wednesday, 11 Saturday against Truman and 13 Tuesday at Southwest Baptist. In five MIAA games he is scoring 12.2 points off 59 percent shooting.
Sisk started his first two games of the year in the Ichabods' two wins at the St. Mary's Classic. He led the team in the two games at St. Mary's with 14.5 points a game and 83 percent shooting (10 of 12). He also picked up 14 rebounds in the two games to lead the team. Sisk has reached double figures in scoring nine times this year and Washburn is 7-2 when he does so. His 30th career double-figure scoring game came December 17 against Southeastern Oklahoma State.
Kyle Snyder leads Ichabods in rebounds
After limited playing time last year with an injury, senior
Kyle Snyder has played in every game this year and has started four at forward. He leads the team with 7.6 rebounds this year and is scoring 5.8 points a game off 52 percent shooting.
Snyder reached double figures in rebounding for the fourth time this year Saturday with 11 against Truman and for the fifth time with 11 at SBU Tuesday. He led the Ichabods with 10 rebounds at Emporia State and he had a season-high 13 rebounds against UCM. He had his third career double-double on December 4 against then-No. 17 Central Oklahoma with 11 points and 11 rebounds. In his four games as a starter he is averaging 8.3 points and shooting 67 percent (14 for 21).
Hargett makes another start for Ichabods
Senior guard
Grant Hargett has started three of the last four games this year after earning 13 starts last year. He scored 17 points against Truman, all in the second half as the Ichabods won 59-50. He was 5 of 7 from the field in the second half and 5 of 6 from the free throw line.
Hargett is scoring 7.6 points a game and shooting 44 percent from the field and 38 percent from 3-point range.
Bods and Ends
• Washburn leads the MIAA in rebounding with 40.3 a game and is second with a +5.7 rebounding margin.
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Mario Scott leads the MIAA with a 2.23 assist/turnover ratio and he's 30th in the nation. He has 69 assists and 31 turnovers. Six times this year he has had five assists or more and four times he has gone without a turnover. Scott's 10 assists at Missouri Western is the highest individual total in the MIAA this year.
• The Ichabods are fourth in the MIAA with 9.8 steals a game. Last year they only averaged 5.6 steals.
• The Ichabods have reached the 100-point mark twice this year. In 2004-05 they scored 100 or more three times and in 2003-04 they did it five times.
• Washburn set a school and MIAA record last year with five overtime games. The Ichabods went 3-2 in the games, taking two of them to double overtime.
• The Ichabods are 31-24 all-time in overtimes with one win this year. Washburn is 6-7 all-time in 13 games that went into at least double-overtime.
Final notes on the Southwest Baptist game
• In the 28th meeting between the two schools Washburn still leads the all-time series 25-13 but the Bearcats have won five straight.
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Paul Byers blocked one shot to move all alone into sixth at Washburn, now with 63 career blocks. He needs three more to move into a tie for fifth.
• Angel Santiago shot the ball a team season-high 19 times.
A winning history
• The Ichabods are 1,347-930 (.592 in 2,277 games) and are in their 103rd season of basketball.
• Starting their 24th season in Lee Arena, the Ichabods are 314-55 (.851).
• In 19 seasons now as an NCAA II school, the Ichabods have 10 NCAA tournament appearances and nine MIAA titles.
• Washburn won the 1986-87 NAIA national championship with a 35-4 record under head coach
Bob Chipman in his eighth year as coach.
• The Ichabods suffered their first losing season in 2005-06 since 1976-77 and first of head coach
Bob Chipman's career. They also failed to advance to the MIAA tournament for the first time since joining the league in 1989-90.
Ichabods on TV
Once again, Washburn's three home games against its three MIAA opponents from Kansas will be broadcast live on KTWU from Lee Arena. The first broadcast will be February 9 against Pittsburg State. The next will be the February 23 game against Emporia State and the final broadcast will be the February 27 game against Fort Hays State.
All three games are set for 7:30 p.m. tip offs and can be seen on channel 11 in Topeka and on K30AL, channel 30, in Iola, Kansas. KTWU is also available on various cable systems throughout the state including Cox Cable channel 8 in Topeka.
