Opening Tip
•     The Washburn Ichabod men's basketball team continues its three-game homestand with Northwest Missouri on Saturday at 7 p.m. in Lee Arena in the only regular season meeting between the schools this season.
•    The Ichabods (10-5, 6-4 MIAA) snapped a two-game losing streak after topping Missouri Western on Jan. 13 78-67.
•    Northwest Missouri (10-5, 7-3 MIAA) lost on the road at Emporia State 70-63 ending a four-game Bearcat winning streak.
•    The Ichabods lead the series with the Bearcats 60-38 and Northwest ended the Ichabod season last year in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament in Kansas City 71-61 on March 15, 2015.
•    Northwest Missouri in a four-way tie for first place in the league standings at 7-3 with Lindenwood, Missouri Southern and Lincoln and the Ichabods are tied for fifth for fifth with Fort Hays State only one game back at 6-4.
•    The top eight teams in the MIAA standings are separated by only two games.
•    Washburn is 21-9 against the Bearcats in games played in Lee Arena and have won five of the last seven meetings played at home.
•    The Ichabods have played in three overtime games this season going 2-1. Washburn is 33-33 all-time in overtime games. The Ichabod single season record for overtime games is five set during the 1994-95 and 2006-07 seasons.
•    After giving up 22 offensive rebounds each game in losses at Central Oklahoma and Northeastern State, the Ichabods limited Missouri Western to only 10 last time out.
•    In Washburn's 10 wins this season they are averaging 79.3 ppg while allowing 70.5 ppg … in the five losses they are averaging 71.2 ppg while allowing 84.4 ppg.
•    In Washburn's 10 wins they are +10.5 in rebound margin, while in the losses they are -11.0 on the glass.
•    From the field in the Ichabod wins, they are shooting 47 percent while opponents are shooting 39 percent … from the free throw line the Ichabods are 66 percent in the wins and 72 percent in the losses.
•    From 3-point land the Ichabods are shooting 58 of 160 (36 percent) in the wins and only 27 percent in the losses (24 of 90) … opponents are shooting 57 of 135 (42 percent) in the Ichabods' five losses.
•    The Ichabods are averaging 15.3 ppg off opponent's turnovers compared to 13.5 ppg opponents are scoring off the Ichabods.
•    Ichabod head coach Bob Chipman recorded his 782nd win against Lincoln moving him into 15th all-time on all-time NCAA coaching list passing former Arizona Wildcat head coach Lute Olson and Lou Henson who coached at Illinois and New Mexico State.
•    Next up on the all-time NCAA coaching chart is Lefty Driesell and Jim Smith with 786 wins.
•    Washburn's bench is averaging 23.5 ppg compared to 26.7 ppg for its opponents.
•    Washburn is scoring 33.3 ppg in the paint compared to 23.9 ppg for its opponents.
•    In Washburn's 10 wins this season, they have overcome deficits of 14 against Augustana, 11 against Peru State, Fort Hays State and Lincoln, eight against Pittsburg State, six against Lindenwood, five against Southwest Baptist and four against Saint Mary.
•    Washburn's led from start to finish against Tabor and Missouri Western.
•    The Ichabods are undefeated when outscoring their opponents this season.

 Ichabod Notes
•    Overall the Ichabods have a balanced scoring attack with four players averaging at least 9.1 points per game and they have six averaging at least 6.0 ppg.
•    Washburn is eighth in the MIAA in scoring at 76.6 ppg and eighth in scoring defense allowing 75.1 ppg.
•    Washburn is second in the MIAA in field goal percentage defense holding opponents to 41 percent shooting.
•    The Ichabods are +3.3 in rebound margin this season, which is fourth in the MIAA … the Ichabods lead the MIAA in rebounding at 39.6 per game and second in the league in offensive rebounds at 12.6 per game.
•    Christian Ulsaker has played in 102 games at Washburn in his career.
•    Brady Skeens' 33 blocked shots this season is ranked ninth on the single season chart and his 2.2 blocks per game ranks first on the single season chart ahead of Dan Buie's 1.7 blocks per game (27 games) in 1995-96 … his 45 career blocked shots is 14th on the career chart and his 1.6 career blocks per game average is first.
•    Robert Christopher tied a career high with 12 points against Missouri Western.
•    The last five games Brady Skeens has been averaging 11.2 rpg and 7.6 ppg and 3.1 bkpg.
•    Andy Wilson has hit 9 of 18 3-point attempts in the last five games and has averaged 7.8 ppg.
•    Javion Blake's 208 points is seven off reaching the Ichabod freshman scoring chart … Lance Sparks scored 215 in the 1989-90 season and his 23 3-pointers are tied for fourth on the Ichabod freshman chart. He needs 15 to tie Gary Woodland for third. The freshman record is 54 set by Shannon Kruger during the 1998-99 season.
•    Brady Skeens' 33 blocks are second on the Ichabod sophomore class chart trailing Dan Buie's 45 set in 1995-96 season.

 Ichabods on Radio
Washburn games will be broadcast on KTPK radio with Jake Lebahn and Pat Strathman calling the action. 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 37th season at the helm of the Ichabods.
•     a 1973 graduate of Kansas State earning both his undergraduate and master's degree in Manhattan.
•     is 783-335 overall.
•     has 541 wins since the Ichabods joined the MIAA, the most of any conference school since the 1989-90 season.
•    is the MIAA's all-time winningest coach by victories with 541.
•     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 460-86 going 409-75 in Lee Arena.
•     is third in all-time coaching victories in active NCAA Division II coaches.
•     his 783 coaching wins is 15th 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.

Northwest MIssouri head coach Ben McCollum. . .
•    is 124-69 in his seventh season as the Bearcats' head coach.
•    he is a 2003 graduate of Northwest Missouri.
•    named the 20th head coach in Bearcat history.
•    played for Northwest going 51-12 in two seasons including a 29-3 mark during a run to the NCAA Elite Eight during the 2001-02 season.  

  Last Time Out For The Ichabods
Washburn 78, Missouri Western 67 -- Jan. 13, 2016
TOPEKA, Kan. -- The Washburn Ichabods had five players in double figures as the Ichabods never trailed as they defeated Missouri Western 78-67 on Wednesday in Lee Arena. 
Washburn led for 39:23 of 40 minutes in the game as Javion Blake hit a 3-pointer to open the scoring en route to a game-high 16 points as the Ichabods (10-5, 6-4 MIAA) scored the first six points of the game. Washburn stretched its lead to as many as 14 in the first half at 28-14 after a pair of Blake free throws and the Griffons would get no closer than eight the rest of the opening half.
In the second half after the Griffons (5-11, 3-7 MIAA) cut the lead to 10 with 16;19 to play in the game, Washburn scored eight straight points building the lead back to 18 at 54-35 with 13:18 to play in the game and Missouri Western would not get within 10 points the rest of the night after leading by as many as 19 in the second half.
Following Blake's 16 points, Cameron Wiggins scored 13 points and Robert Christopher scored 12 off the bench. Brady Skeens recorded his fourth double double of the season with 12 points and 13 rebounds adding three blocks, three assists and two steals. Andy Wilson scored 10 points off the bench.
Currie Byrd led the Griffons with 14 points scoring 13 in the first half.
Washburn shot 52 percent in the game hitting 27 of 52 shots compared to 23 of 64 shooting for the Griffons hitting 36 percent from the field. The Ichabods were 6 of 13 from 3-point range and 18 of 24 from the free throw line and outrebounded Missouri Western 39 to 32 on the glass.   
 
 About Northwest Missouri
•     Northwest Missouri is 10-5, 7-3 in the MIAA and in first place in the league standings. 
•    They lead the MIAA in assist/turnover ratio at 1.4 per game. 
•    Only nine Bearcats have played in a game this year, with three players averaging over 34 minutes a game and seven playing more than 21 minutes a game.
•    Justin Pitts leads the team at 21.3 ppg and Connor Crooker is scoring 12.3 ppg. D'Vante Mosby is averaging 9.7 ppg and a team-high 6.3 rpg.
•    The Bearcats are averaging 75.7 ppg and allowing 66.3 ppg.
•    From the field the Bearcats are shooting 123 of 330 from 3-point range (73 percent) and 47 percent overall hitting 392 of 836 shots.
•    The Bearcats are holding opponents to 46 percent shooting and 36 percent from 3-point range.

 Series History with Northwest Missouri
•    Saturday's meeting will be the 99th between the two schools and Washburn holds a 60-38 lead in the series. 
•    Washburn has won nine of the last 16 including five of the last 10 in the series. 
•    The Bearcats have won three of the last four meetings.
•    The series dates back to the 1940-41 season and they have played each other every year since WU joined the MIAA in 1989-90. 
•    The Ichabods are 21-9 against the Bearcats in Lee Arena and have won five of the last seven at home. 
•    Since the 1956-57 season, Washburn is 21-20 in Maryville and since joining the MIAA during the 1990-91 season, the Ichabods are 12-10 on the road. 
•    In the MIAA Tournament, the Ichabods are 3-5 against Northwest after the 2015 quarterfinal match up. 
•    In the NCAA Tournament, the Ichabods are 2-1 against the Bearcats after winning in the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2012 in Wichita Falls. 
•    The Ichabods won a regional final contest against the Bearcats in Topeka on March 10, 2001 advancing to the Elite Eight in Bakersfield, Calif., after a 67-61 win.     

 Last meeting with Northwest Missouri
(March 5, 2015) KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Washburn Ichabod basketball men's season had its season come to an end with a 71-61 loss to Northwest Missouri in the MIAA Tournament quarterfinals in Municipal Auditorium. Washburn finishes the season 16-16.
Washburn fell behind early at 12-5 in the first six minutes of play, but would come back and take the lead at 15-14 using a 10-2 run over the next three minutes. However the Bearcats (23-5) used a 15-4 run of their own taking a 29-19 lead with 4:33 to go in the first half.
The Ichabods trimmed the lead back to four at 31-27 after a jumper by Algie Key but the Bearcats hit one of their six first half 3-pointers taking a 34-27 lead into the break. Washburn was 8 of 27 from the field in the first half for a 30 percent average while the Bearcats were 13 of 24 overall and 6 of 10 from 3-point range.
Coming out of the locker room, Key's jumper cut the margin to five at 34-29 before Washburn missed its next 11 shots from the field as Northwest pushed its lead to as many as 17 with 14:13 to go. The Ichabods rallied again to cut the lead to eight points four times and to seven once with 49 seconds to play, but could not get any closer as the Bearcats went on for the 10 point win.
Key led the Ichabods with 16 points and Christian Ulsaker scored 11 and Kevin House scored 10 while recording four assists. Alex North had a game-high seven rebounds and five points.
The Bearcats were led by MIAA Freshman of the Year Justin Pitts who had 25 points leading four Bearcats in double figures.
Washburn finished 21 of 60 overall from the field for a 35 percent average while the Bearcats finished 23 of 47 for a 49 percent average. Washburn was 6 of 21 from 3-point range and the Bearcats finished 9 of 19 from deep.   

 Last time out for Northwest Missouri
(Jan. 13, 2016) EMPORIA, Kan. -- The Northwest Missouri Bearcats fell 70-63 at Emporia State after being outscored 36 to 24 in the second half.
The Bearcats led by five at the half at 39-34 after shooting 55 percent from the field but were limited to 9 of 30 shooting including 0 of 7 from 3-point range in the loss.
All five starters played at least 31 minutes in the game as the Bearcat bench totaled 21 minutes in the game.
Justin Pitts led the Northwest with 36 points adding six assists. Zach Schneider scored nine points on three 3-pointers playing all 40 minutes. 
 
 Ichabod basketball history
•     The Ichabods are 1,515-1,041-2 (.592) all-time in the 111th 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 541-254 since joining the conference and the NCAA.
•    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 409-75 (.848) all-time in Lee Arena.
•     The 2015-16 season marks the 31st 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
•    The Ichabods return to action hosting Emporia State on Jan. 23 in Lee Arena in the first round of the Turnpike Tussle.