Opening Tip

• The Washburn Ichabods return to the court to face Central Oklahoma on Thursday on Schendel Court at Lee Arena at 7:30 p.m.

• Washburn (12-3, 5-3 MIAA) will be looking to snap a three-game losing streak to the Bronchos.

• UCO is 11-5 and 5-4 in the MIAA this season.

• The Bronchos are coming off a 96-82 win over Nebraska-Kearney.

 Bod Notes

• The Washburn Ichabods have won 511 games since becoming a member of the NCAA Division II ranks prior to the start of the 1989-89 season - which is the most by any member of the MIAA during that stretch.

• The Ichabods have lost three straight to the Bronchos.

• Washburn's last win over UCO was on Dec. 4, 2007 in Topeka in overtime 71-68. The next two losses came in Edmond on Nov. 29, 2008 and Jan. 5, 2013. Washburn lost 99-88 in the last meeting on March 7, 2013 in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament.

• The Ichabods have scored 617 points in the first half and 614 points in the second half of games this season.

• Junior Alex North went over the 500-point mark against Northwest Missouri. He has scored 534 points in 76 games averaging 7.0 a game including a 14.4 ppg average this season.

• Junior Jeff Reid went over the 600-point plateau as he now has 625 in his third season at Washburn.

• Junior Kyle Wiggins went over the 600-point mark against Northwest Missouri. He now has 614 for his Washburn career averaging 8.3 ppg in 74 games including a team-high 15.0 ppg this season.

• Ichabod junior Christian Ulsaker will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a broken bone in his shooting hand in practice. He was averaging career-bests of 13.0 ppg and 3.8 rpg. He will apply for a medical redshirt as he played in only four games.

 Ichabods on Radio

Washburn games will be broadcast on AM 580 WIBW radio with Mark Elliott and Jake Lebahn calling the action. The game will also be streamed live on the wusports.com website by following the listen live links on the men's basketball schedule page.

 The Coaches

Washburn Ichabod head basketball coach Bob Chipman 

• is in his 35th season at the helm of the Ichabods.

• a 1973 graduate of Kansas State earning both his undergraduate and master's degree in Manhattan.

• is 752-307 overall.

• has 511 wins since the Ichabods joined the MIAA, the most of any conference school since the 1989-90 season.

• has led the Ichabods to 12 MIAA regular season titles and a MIAA-coaching tops of five postseason MIAA tournament championships.

• has led the Ichabods to 12 NCAA National Tournament appearances.

• in home games, he is 436-80 going 385-69 in Lee Arena.

• is second in all-time coaching victories in active NCAA Division II coaches.

• his 752 coaching wins is 22nd in all-time NCAA coaches at all levels.

• led the Ichabods to the 1987 NAIA National Championship and a 2001 NCAA National game, which was later vacated by Kentucky Wesleyan. 

• Chipman played for legendary coach Jack Hartman earning two letters.

Central Oklahoma head coach Terry Evans

• Now in his 12th year at the helm of the Central Oklahoma men's program is Terry Evans, a former college standout who has built the Bronchos into a perennial NCAA Division II power.

• Evans is 234-109 in 12 years at UCO and has directed the Bronchos to seven national tournament appearances, including one Elite Eight and one Sweet 16.  He also led the team to six Lone Star Conference North Division titles and two overall league crowns during Central's association with that league.

• Evans has had six 20-win seasons in the past eight years -- including a school-record 30-win campaign in 2010-11 -- and coached 14 All-LSC North Division players while earning LSC North Division Coach of the Year honors five times and South Central Regional Coach of the Year accolades once.

• Played his college ball at Oklahoma, where he was a four-year starter for Bill Tubbs and later assisted Tubbs at Texas Christian.

• He is 6-4 against Washburn.

 Ichabod Player Notes

#3 • Jeff Reid • Scored 14 points in the first half against Pitt State hitting 4 of 7 3-pointers.

#4 • Andy Wilson • Seven of his 24 rebounds have been on the offensive end of the court.

#5 • Korey Fisher • Scored all eight of his points and the Ichabods' points in the final minutes in the win over Pitt State.

#11 • Kyle Wiggins • Has had five assists in each of the last two games … averaging 3.8 apg in the last five overall.

#13 • Chris Deanes • Has eight offensive rebounds and 24 defensive rebounds this season.

#14 • Christian Ulsaker • Will miss the rest of the season with a wrist injury and will apply for a medical redshirt playing in only four games.

#15 • Evan Robinson • Has two rebounds this season.

#21 • Chris Davis • Ten of his 20 field goals this season have been 3-pointers going 4 of 6 in the last two games averaging 6.5 ppg.

#22 • Alex North • No fewer than six rebounds in each of the last seven games averaging 8.4 rpg.

#24 • Stephon Drane • Team-high eight blocks this season.

#31 • Leon Flowers • Has gone 13 of 25 from the field in the last two games averaging 14.5 ppg overall.

#32 • Dalton Abel • Scored first three points of the season hitting a 3-pointer against Missouri Southern.

#34 • Jeremy Lickteig • Eight of his 17 rebounds this season have been on the offensive end.

#42 • Colton Anderson • has at least one rebound in each of the last four games played.

 Last Time Out For The Ichabods

Washburn 78, Pittsburg State 77 • Jan. 18, 2014

TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn's Korey Fisher scored all eight of the Ichabods' final points as Washburn turned a 78-77 deficit with 1:22 to play to an 83-80 win over Pittsburg State snapping a two-game losing streak. 

Washburn was down 78-77 with 1:22 to play and Korey Fisher completed the traditional 3-point play tying the score at 78 each. The Gorillas' Devon Branch, who led all scorers with 31 points connected on a layup putting Pitt State back up 80-78 with 1:12 to go. The on the Ichabods' next possession, Fisher his a 3-pointer from the top of the key putting the ichabods in front 81-80 with 49 seconds to play. The Gorillas came up empty on their next drive and fouled. Washburn missed both free throws with two seconds to play. The Gorillas' potential 3-pointer at the buzzer was short and the Ichabods (12-3, 5-3 MIAA) held on for the win.

The score was tied at 39 at the break as the Ichabods shot 50 percent from the field while the Gorillas (6-8, 2-5 MIAA) were at 41 percent, but PSU was 12 of 14 from the free throw line including hitting two before the game started as the Ichabods were whistled for dunking in pregame.

Alex North led all five starters in double figures with 18 points as well as a game-high seven rebounds. Leon Flowers, Jeff Reid and Fisher each had 14 and Kyle Wiggins scored 11. Washburn was outrebounded 35 to 32 in the game recording eight offensive rebounds. The 32 rebounds were a season-low for the Ichabods. Washburn finished with season-high 11 3-pointers in the game in 26 attempts.

There were 11 lead changes in the game and the score was tied 11 times overall.

Wiggins led four Ichabods in double figures with 22 points while Leon Flowers scored 15 and North added 13 with nine rebounds. Korey Fisher scored 10. Conner Crooker scored 19 to lead the Bearcats.

Washburn was outrebounded 43 to 34 in the loss as the Bearcats scored 17 second chance points in the game. The Bearcats finished 28 of 34 from the free throw line while the Ichabods were 13 of 18.

 Pittsburg State Leftovers

• The win improved the Ichabods to 98-75 all-time against the Gorillas.

• Washburn is now 29-2 against the Gorillas in Lee Arena.

• Chris Davis attempted his first free throws of the season against PSU going 1 of 4.

• Korey Fisher had a career-high 14 points.

• Leon Flowers tied a career-high with six rebounds.

   
 About Central Oklahoma

• The Bronchos are 11-5 this season and 5-4 in MIAA play.

• UCO is 4-2 in road games and 2-1 in MIAA road contests.

• The Bronchos are coming off a 96-82 win over Nebraska-Kearney.

• Josh Gibbs leads the team in scoring and rebounding at 21.6 ppg and 12.1 rpg.

• Gibbs has led the team in scoring 10 games this season and in rebounding in 15 of their 16 games.

• Gibbs is second in the MIAA and 17th in NCAA Division II in scoring (22.1) while leading the conference and ranking fourth nationally in rebounding (12.8).  He's had a Division II-best 13 double-doubles this season. 

• A trio of sophomores is also averaging in double figures for the Bronchos – Aaron Anderson (13.9), Cal Andrews (12.2) and Seth Heckart (10.9).   

• Andrews (41), Gibbs (39) and Heckart (40) have combined to make 120 of UCO's 158 3-pointers this season.

• The Bronchos are averaging 85.9 points a game.

 Series History With Central Oklahoma

• Thursday's meeting will be the 19th in the series history. 

• The Bronchos lead the series 12-7.

• Washburn has lost four of the last seven and three straight.

• The Ichabods lost the first match ups as MIAA schools on Jan. 5, 2013 67-72 in Edmond and in the MIAA tournament quarterfinals on March 3, 2013 99-88 in Kansas City.

• Washburn's last win over the Bronchos came on Dec. 4, 2007 in Topeka in a 71-68 overtime win.

• Washburn's two highest scoring combined games in school history came against UCO. In 1992 the two teams scored 246 points (132-114, UCO) and in 1998 they scored 218 points (111-107, UCO).

• WU has scored at least 100 points against UCO three times and the Bronchos have done so twice.

• Bob Chipman is 6-8 coaching against UCO.

 Last Time Out for Central Oklahoma

EDMOND (Jan. 18) – Aaron Anderson scored a career-high 28 points and Central Oklahoma used a 3-point barrage midway through the first half to take the lead for good en route to subduing Nebraska-Kearney 96-82 Saturday afternoon at Hamilton Field House.

The Bronchos trailed 15-12 with 10:48 left in the first half before rattling off nine unanswered points in a one-minute span, getting back-to-back 3-pointers from Josh Gibbs and a long trey from Cal Andrews to move in front 21-15.

UCO never trailed again, though the Lopers made things interesting early in the second half before the Bronchos regained control in improving to 11-5 on the season and 5-4 in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.

Anderson needed just 28 minutes to rack up his 28 points as the sophomore guard made 8-of-13 field goals – including three treys -- and 9-of-13 free throws while adding six assists.

The Bronchos also got 16 points from Andrews, 15 from Jacob Richardson and 10 from Philip Brown.   Gibbs – the MIAA's second-leading scorer and top rebounder – had season lows for points (10) and rebounds (six) while slowed by a bulky back.

UCO took a 10-point lead (44-34) into intermission, but the Lopers cut that to four at 49-45 three minutes into the second half.

Anderson answered with a 3-pointer and the Bronchos pushed their lead back to double digits at 58-47 on Jacob Strassle's 3-pointer with 14:31 remaining.

UNK continued to hang around and was within eight (80-72) with 2:45 left when Anderson scored four straight points to make it a 12-point cushion and UCO coasted in from there.

 Last Meeting With Central Oklahoma

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Washburn Ichabods find themselves on the postseason bubble after a 99-88 loss to Central Oklahoma in the quarterfinals. 

The Ichabods (19-8) trailed nearly the entire first half as the Bronchos (15-13) hit the first of six 3-pointers just 12 seconds into the game and they would go on to lead by as many as 11 in the first half at 34-23 with 5:05 to play in the period. The Ichabods cut the lead back to 10 at 38-28 and finished the half on a 15 to 5 run ending with a 3-pointer with nine seconds left on a 3-pointer by Will McNeill to tie the score at 43. Washburn shot 50 percent in the half connecting on 18 of 36 shots in the frame.

Washburn took its first lead of the game with 17:22 to play on a free throw by Zack Riggins at 45-43. UCO would take the lead back building it to four before Washburn tied the score back at 52 on a pair of McNeill free throws. UCO pushed the lead back to six at 62-56 with 11:13 to go.

The lead was cut in half by a 3-pointer by Leon Flowers. After a pair of UCO free throws, Martin Mitchell connected on a 3-pointer with 10:12 to play cutting the lead back to two. However the Ichabods would not get another field goal until a lay up by Joseph Smith with 4:30 to play cutting the lead back to nine.

Washburn cut the lead back to seven with 53 seconds to play on a 3-pointer by Mitchell but it would not be enough as the Ichabods fell by 11.

McNeill led the Ichabods with 34 points coming on the heels of his 40-point performance against Central Missouri last time out. He was 16 of 17 from the free throw line. Kyle Wiggins had 15 points and Mitchell finished with 11. Bobby Chipman had nine points and a team-high seven rebounds along with four assists, three blocks and three steals.

Spencer Smith led the Bronchos with 27 points. Jamell Cormier had 20 and Josh Gibbs scored 19. UCO was 11 of 27 from 3-point range in the game and finished 32 of 43 from the free throw line.

Washburn was 11 of 23 from 3-point range and 21 of 25 from the free throw line. UCO held a 39 to 32 advantage on the glass.

 Ichabods in the national rankings

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Ichabods fell out of the rankings after the loss to Missouri Southern and received votes in the last two weeks worth of polls, but fell completely out after the loss to Northwest Missouri. 

? Ichabod basketball history

• The Ichabods are 1462-977-4 (.591) all-time in the 109th year in the program's history.

• Washburn is the eighth-winningest program in NCAA Division II history by victories.

• Washburn is the winningest MIAA program since the 1989-90 season with an overall record of 511-226.

• The Ichabods have recorded 25 20-win seasons and they have one 30-win seasons after going 35-4 during the 1986-87 NAIA Championship season.

• Washburn has won 21 conference championships including 10 MIAA titles.

• Washburn has received 12 NCAA Tournament bids going to three Elite Eight's appearing in the 2001 NCAA National Championship game.

? Home sweet home

• The Ichabods are 385-69 (.848) all-time in Lee Arena.

• The 2013-14 season marks the 29th season of play in Lee Arena.

• The Ichabods recorded a school-best 28-game winning streak from Nov. 19, 1993 to Feb. 8, 1995 in Lee Arena.

 Up next

• Washburn will wrap up the four-game homestand with Northeastern State on Jan. 25 with a 3 p.m. start and then have two road games at Nebraska-Kearney on Jan. 30 and at Fort Hays State on Feb. 1 before returning home on Feb. 5 when they will face Emporia State in the first of two Turnpike Tussle meetings this season.