Opening Tip
•     The Washburn Ichabods will hit the road for two games starting on Jan. 26 at Southwest Baptist followed by a Jan. 28 game at Central Missouri in a pair of MIAA games.
•     Washburn is 13-5 and 5-4 in the MIAA after defeating Pittsburg State last time out 82-64 on Jan. 21 in Lee Arena.
•     The Bearcats are 10-8 overall and 3-6 in the MIAA after falling at Lincoln 85-73 last time out.
•     The Ichabods are second in the nation in blocks at 6.1 per game and second in total blocks at 110 and Brady Skeens is third in the nation with 3.6 blocks per game.
•     This season will be Bob Chipman's last season on the bench at Washburn … Chipman announced prior to the start of the season this year would be his last … Chipman has a career-record of 801-348 at Washburn and became only the 17th coach to reach that milestone in the win against Central Oklahoma.
•     The Ichabods lead the all-time series 35-17 and have won 24 of the last 32 meetings after falling to SBU in the last meeting on Jan. 30, 2016 in triple overtime.
•     In Washburn's 13 wins this season, the Ichabods are shooting 52 percent from the field and holding opponents to 37 percent … in the five losses Washburn is shooting 47 percent while opponents are shooting 45 percent from the field.
•     In the five losses opponents are averaging 11 made 3-pointers per game and Washburn is hitting 6.6 3-pointers per game.
•     In the five losses, opponents have attempts 34 more free throws (138 to 104) and have made 40 more free throws (110 to 70).
•     Brady Skeens leads the Ichabods in scoring and is ranked 16th in the MIAA in scoring at 13.6 ppg, Cameron Wiggins is 18th at 12.8 ppg and Javion Blake is 25th at 11.9 ppg, Randall Smith is 39th at 9.7 ppg and David Salach is ranked 40th at 9.6 ppg.
•     Wiggins' 3-point field goal percentage of 46 percent (46 of 101) is third in the MIAA and his 2.6 made 3-pointers per game is seventh in the MIAA.
•     Brady Skeens leads the league in rebounding at 10.6 rpg, field goal percentage at 69.8 percent (104 of 149) and blocks at 3.6 per game … he is also ranked eighth in assists with 3.5 per game and 13th in minutes at 31.8 per game … Skeens is ranked second in the nation in field goal percentage, third in blocked shots and third in total blocks.
•     Randall Smith's 4.0 assists per game is fifth in the MIAA and Javion Blake is ranked 10th at 3.2 per game.
•     Brady Skeens' 137 career blocks are the most in school after passing Ewan Auguste (100) on the all-time chart against Newman … he has broke his own school record of 61 set last season as a sophomore with 64 so far this season in 18 games.
 
  Ichabods on Radio
Washburn games will be broadcast on KTPK 106.9 FM radio with Jake Lebahn and Dan Lucero 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 38th and final season at the helm of the Ichabods.
•     a 1973 graduate of Kansas State earning both his undergraduate and master's degree in Manhattan.
•     is 801-348 overall.
•     has 562 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 562.
•     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 468-94 going 417-83 in Lee Arena.
•     is third in all-time coaching victories in active NCAA Division II coaches.
•     his 801 coaching wins is 17th 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.
 
Southwest Baptist head coach Clark Sheehy
•     is in his third season as the head coach at Southwest Baptist and has gone 31-43.
•     overall he is 213-149 in his 11th season overall after spending the previous nine seasons at John Brown University.
•     is 1-2 against Washburn. 
 
Last Time Out For The Ichabods
Washburn 82, Pittsburg State 64 -- Jan. 21, 2017
TOPEKA, Kan. – The Washburn Ichabods used a balanced attack shooting a season-high 62 percent from the field in an 82-64 win over Pittsburg State on Saturday night at Schendel Court at Lee Arena.
Washburn (13-5, 5-4 MIAA) opened the game with a 10-2 run over the first 4:50 of the game hitting 4 of 6 shots and 2 of 4 from 3-point range while the Gorillas were 1 of 5 prior to the first time out propelling the Ichabods to the early lead.  However the Gorillas came back with five straight points and scoring seven of the next nine overall in the game to cut the Ichabod lead back to two before Brady Skeens layup ignited a 20-5 run pushing Washburn out to an 18-point lead at 32-14 with 4:24 to play.
Washburn shot 64 percent from the field in the first half connecting on 18 of 28 shots en route to a 43-25 lead at the break over the Gorillas (3-15, 1-9 MIAA). Pitt State was held to 33 percent shooting from the field hitting 8 of 24 shots in the opening frame.
In the second half, the Ichabods hit 13 of 22 shots from the field hitting 9 of their first 14 shots over the first 13 minutes of the stanza including hitting 4 of their 5 3-pointers during the span stretching the lead to as many as 28 in the second half leading to the 18-point win.
Skeens finished with a game-high 20 points on 8 of 8 shooting from the field hitting all four free throw attempts adding nine rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two steals in the win. His three blocks give him 64 on the season, which snaps his own Washburn single-season block record of 61 set last season as a sophomore. He was one of four Ichabods in double figures with Javion Blake scoring 16 on 5 of 6 shooting and Isaac Clark was 6 of 8 from the field including 3 of 5 from 3-point range scoring 15. Cameron Wiggins scored 11 nailing 3 of 6 3-point attempts.
Elijah Gaines led the Gorillas with 17 points.
Washburn finished the game hitting 31 of 50 shots from the field and 10 of 20 attempts from 3-point range while holding Pitt State to 42 percent shooting going 22 of 52 from the field and 8 of 17 from 3-point range. Washburn was 10 of 14 from the free throw line while Pitt State was 12 of 16. The Ichabods also held a 27 to 25 advantage on the glass with a season-low four offensive rebounds.
Washburn turned 15 Gorillas turnovers into 25 points and had 18 fast break points in the game scoring 34 in the paint overall.

About Southwest Baptist
•     SBU is 10-8 this season and 3-6 in the MIAA.
•     The Bearcats have gone 7-4 in home games this season and 1-3 in MIAA home games.
•     Logan Hovey leads the team in scoring as 12.1 ppg and Brain Patterson is scoring 10.6 ppg with a team-high 6.1 rebounds per game.
•     SBU is outrebounding its opponents 38.8 to 29.4 per game and they shoot 68 percent from the free throw line (334 of 488), 36 percent from 3 point range (134 of 373) and 47 percent from the field overall (435 of 932).
 
Series History with Southwest Baptist
•     Thursday's meeting will be the 53rd between Washburn and Southwest Baptist.
•     The Ichabods lead the all-time series 35-17.
•     In Topeka the Ichabods are 21-3 against SBU since joining the MIAA.
•     Washburn has won 24 of the last 32 games.
•     Washburn is 30-12 against SBU in MIAA games.
•     The Ichabods have won the last eight games played in Topeka and have gone 3-1 against the Bearcats in the MIAA Tournament.
•     SBU's last win came in the last meeting in a triple overtime 104-98 win on Jan. 30, 2016.
•     In Bolivar, the Ichabods are 12-13 against SBU.
•     The Ichabods are 3-7 in the last 10 games in Bolivar.
•     The two team have not met in the MIAA tournament since Feb. 25, 1995 when the Ichabods won 91-80 in a first round game played in Topeka.
 
Last Meeting with Southwest Baptist
Southwest Baptist 104, Washburn 98-- Jan. 30, 2016
BOLIVAR, Mo. -- The Washburn Ichabods came up on the short end of the stick in the longest game in school history since 1986 in a 104-98 triple overtime loss at Southwest Baptist.
In a game which had 19 lead changes and 17 ties, Southwest Baptist took the lead from start to finish in the third overtime outscoring the Ichabods 17-11 in the third extra frame.
Washburn was 2 of 6 from the field in the third overtime as both were 3-pointers while going 5 of 8 from the free throw line. SBU finished just 2 of 4 from the field, but finished 12 of 16 from the free throw line.
SBU pushed out to a lead at 100-92 with 29 seconds to play before Andy Wilson hit the first of the two 3-pointers in the third overtime, but SBU sealed the game at the line picking up the win.
The game was the first three overtime game by an Ichabod team since a 98-89 win over Pittsburg State on Feb. 14, 1986 in Topeka. It was the fourth overtime game of the season for the Ichabods, one shy of tying the school record.
In a see-saw game in the first half which had seven lead changes and four ties, the Bearcats took a 33-32 lead into the break when Kalund Brown hit a three at the buzzer. The Ichabods built a lead of six at 30-24 with 2:42 to play in the frame before Southwest Baptist (9-11, 4-10 MIAA) finished the half on a 9-2 run. Washburn (12-7, 8-8 MIAA) was 11 of 31 in the half for a 36 percent average while the Bearcats were 12 of 29. SBU hit six 3-pointers compared to a pair for the Ichabods.
Javion Blake led the Ichabods with 23 points leading six players in double figures. Randall Smith scored 17 followed by Cameron Wiggins' 16 points. Robert Christopher had 15 points, Wilson finished with 12 and Christian Ulsaker finished with 11 hitting all seven free throw attempts adding eight rebounds including five offensive rebounds.
Brian Patterson scored 23 to lead SBU going 9 of 10 from the field.
WU finished 28 of 80 from the field shooting 35 percent after going 6 of 19 in the three overtime periods. SBU was 32 of 76 overall going 7 of 14 in the three extra frames.
SBU was 29 of 43 from the free throw line going 20 of 28 in the overtime periods. Washburn was 34 of 47, 17 of 22 in overtime.
 
Last Time Out For The Southwest Baptist
Lincoln 85, Southwest Baptist 73 -- Jan. 21, 2017
Jefferson City, Mo. - The Southwest Baptist University had a strong second half against Lincoln, but fell 85-73 on Saturday afternoon. With the loss SBU falls to 10-8 (3-6 MIAA) on the season.
The Bearcats had a slow start against the Blue Tigers on Saturday afternoon, trailing 17-3 with 11:08 remaining in the first half before Kalund Brown knocked down a three to give SBU their first bucket of the game. Lincoln pushed their lead to 19 with 5:19 to go in the half before the Bearcats started to chip away at the lead. SBU used a 9-2 run to cut the deficit to 12 at 33-21 with 3:24 remaining in the half. The Bearcats used an old fashioned three from Kalehl Brown, a layup from Karim Mouliom, a pair of free throws from Logan Hovey, and a layup from Cartree Pettis to pull within 12. SBU held tight, but a small 4-0 Lincoln run put the Bearcats down 45-27 at the half.
SBU opened up the second half with a pair of free throws from Kalehl Brown and an old fashioned three point play from Hovey to pull back within 13 at 45-32 with 18:48 to go. The Blue Tigers pushed their lead back to 18, but SBU chipped away with three straight free throws to stay close. The Bearcats continued to cut into the LU lead, and after a free throw from Hovey with 8:25 remaining, the Bearcats cut the deficit to 63-53. SBU again cut the Lincoln lead to 10 with 3:12 to go, but were unable to get any closer as they fell 85-73.
Logan Hovey had a team high 21 points and 7 rebounds, while Kalehl Brown had 13 points, Kalund Brown 12 points, and Cartier Dean 10 points in the loss. As a team SBU shot 41.3% from the field, 14.3% from beyond the arc, and 71.7% from the line.
 
 Ichabod basketball history
•     The Ichabods are 1,533-1,054-2 (.592) all-time in the 112th year in the program's history.
•     Washburn is the fifth-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 562-266 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 417-83 (.848) all-time in Lee Arena.
•     The 2016-17 season marks the 32nd 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 return to the road at Central Missouri on Jan. 28 before returning to Topeka for home games with Nebraska-Kearney on Feb. 2 and a nationally-televised NCAA Division II Game of the Week with Fort Hays State on Feb. 4.