Opening Tip
• The Washburn Ichabods return to MIAA play hosting Emporia State on Jan. 6 at 7 p.m. in Lee Arena looking for their ninth win in a row.
• The Ichabods are 10-3 and 4-0 in the MIAA after wrapping up non-conference play with a 79-61 win over Avila on Dec. 30.
• The Hornets are 7-6 overall and 2-2 in MIAA play after topping Central Christian 72-60 on Dec. 30 in their last action.
• The Ichabods lead the all-time series with the Hornets 109-102 (ESU lists the series history with Washburn leading 106-103) and have won four of the last five overall with the Hornets needing a half court buzzer beater to win that game on Jan. 7 last season in Emporia.
• The Ichabods have won the last six meetings played in Lee Arena between the two schools with Washburn's last loss to the Hornets coming on Feb. 23, 2011 in a 73-68 defeat.
• The Washburn/Emporia State series is the most-played by the Ichabods with Saturday's contest being the 212th all-time.
• Javion Blake leads the Ichabods in scoring at 16.2 ppg hitting a team-high 30 3-pointers on 63 attempts.
• Brady Skeens leads the team on the glass with 9.8  rebounds a game adding 13.2 points per game shooting 76 percent from the field hitting 71 of 94 attempts with 2.1 blocks per game.
• Washburn is second the MIAA in blocks at 4.1 per game and is second in assists averaging 16.5 per contest.
• The Ichabods are ranked first in field goal defense holding opponents to 39 percent shooting and ranked second in field goal percentage at 51 percent.
• Washburn is second in rebounding offense at 38.7 per game and fourth in rebounding defense at 31.0 per game and ranked first in the MIAA in defensive rebounds with 28.7 per game and ranked second in rebounding margin at +7.7 per game.
• Brady Skeens is first in the MIAA in rebounds at 9.8 per game and leads the MIAA in blocks with 2.1 per game and ninth in steals per game with 1.5 … he is also first in field goal percentage (.755) … his field goal percentage is also third in the nation and his 27 total blocks is 17th while his total rebounds is 14th in the national rankings.
• Javion Blake made his 71st consecutive start against Avila starting every game of his Washburn career.
• Javion Blake also went over the 100 career 3-point field goals made chart and now has 115 in his junior season which is tied for 11th on the all-time made chart.
• Ichabod opponents have attempted 39 more free throws than Washburn has this season (312 to 273) and has made 42 more hitting 227 compared to 185 for Washburn.
• Cameron Wiggins moved into eighth on the Ichabod all-time 3-point chart sitting at 151.
• Brady Skeens moved into fourth on the all-time Ichabod rebounding chart passing Ryan Murphy who had 738 from 1999 to 2003 …Skeens now has 778 at Washburn … in third place on the career chart is Ewan Auguste who had 888 from 1997 to 2001.
• Brady Skeens also needs 28 rebounds to pass the rebound total of his mother and former Lady Blue basketball player Joy (Benton) Skeens who had 806 from 1981-85 finishing her career as the all-time leading rebouner in school history.
• Skeens also needs only three blocks to reach 200 for his career.
• Randall Smith has 266 career assists which is  seventh on the Ichabod career charts.
• David Salach moved into the top 10 sitting seventh on the all-time blocks chart and now has 68.
 
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.

Coaches
Washburn Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard …
• is 10-3 in his first season as the Ichabods' head coach and 43-33 overall in his third year as a head coach.
• was named the Washburn Ichabod men's basketball head coach on April 6, 2016 after spending the 2014-15 to 2016-17 seasons as an assistant coach with the Wake Forest basketball program after working under head coach Danny Manning 2014-17 seasons and at the University of Tulsa during the 2012-14 seasons.
• he helped Wake Forest to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since the 2009-10 season following the 2016-17 season. 
• while at Tulsa, the Golden Hurricane played in the postseason both years, including earning a No. 13 seed in the 2014 NCAA Tournament. Tulsa also participated in the 2013 CBI, finishing that season with a winning record of 17-16 overall.
• before joining Manning at Tulsa, Ballard spent two seasons as the head basketball coach at Baker University going 33-30 overall, including a 21-12 mark in his final season at the helm in 2011-12. 
• prior to taking over the head coaching position at Baker, Ballard spent seven years on Bill Self's staff at Kansas, his alma mater. 
• he played two years for the Jayhawks under head coach Roy Williams from 2000-02 after transferring from Hutchinson Community College in his hometown of Hutchinson, Kan. In his two seasons as a Jayhawk, the team reached the 2001 NCAA Sweet Sixteen and appeared in the 2002 NCAA Final Four in Atlanta.
• he earned his bachelor's degree in secondary education from Kansas in 2003 earning an Academic All-Big 12 selection as a senior for his efforts in the classroom.
• is 0-0 against Emporia State.
 
Emporia State head coach Shaun Vandiver …
• is 85-99 in his seventh season at Emporia State.
• was a first round draft pick by the Golden State Warriors in 1991 he spent ten years as an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level.
• led Hutchinson CC to the 1988 NJCAA National Championship before earning first-team All-Big 8 honors at Colorado.
• is 4-8 against Washburn.
 
Last Time Out For the Ichabods
Washburn 79, Avila 61 -- Dec. 30, 2017
TOPEKA, Kan. – The Washburn Ichabods wrapped up non-conference play winning their eighth-straight game with a 79-61 victory over Avila on Saturday in Lee Arena. 
Washburn led from start to finish in the game as the Ichabods (10-3) held the Eagles to 7 of 22 shooting in the first half. Washburn jumped out to a 13-3 lead after back to back lay ups by Will McKee and Isaac Clark.
After the Eagles cut the lead to six at 17-11, Washburn scored the next 17 of the game to go up 34-11 with just under four to play as they would go on to take a 39-21 lead into the break. Washburn shot 46 percent from the field hitting 16 of 35 in the frame.
In the second half, the Eagles cut the lead back to 11 at 48-37 with 14:43 to go before the Ichabods used a 13-2 run over the next 4:40 to build a 22-point lead stretching it to as many as 29 before Avila scored 12 of the next 13 to end the game.
Tyas Martin led the Ichabods with 17 points adding six rebounds. Brady Skeens had 16 with eight rebounds adding three blocks and three assists. Javion Blake scored 13 and Jace Williams and Isaac Clark each scored 10. Randall Smith had seven assists.
Avila was led by Tajh Downs who had 17 points with six rebounds and nine turnovers.
Overall Washburn forced 23 turnovers leading to 31 points for the Ichabods and the Washburn bench outscored the Eagle bench 38 to 9 and 46 to 20 in the paint. 
 
About The Emporia State Hornets
• Emporia State is 7-6, 2-2 in the MIAA. They are second the league in offensive rebounding  at 11.1 and rank sixth in the MIAA in turnover margin.
• Brandon Hall is averaging 15.2 points per game overall while Stephaun Limuel is averaging 10.2 points and 7.0 rebounds overall. Brian Morton is also scoring in double figures at 10.4 ppg.
• ESU is +3.8 in scoring margin this season averaging 73.2 ppg while allowing 69.4 ppg and +1.0 in rebound margin averaging 33.1 per game.
• ESU has made 21 more (90 to 71) 3-pointers than its opponents while attempting 51 more (247 to 196).
 
Series History with Emporia state
• The meeting on Saturday will be the 212th meeting between these two schools and the Ichabods lead at 109-102. This is the most-played series for Washburn. Emporia State lists the all-time record at 106-103 in favor of the Ichabods.
• The Ichabods have won nine of the last 13 meetings in the series and four of the last five overall.
• The two teams started the series in 1905-06, Washburn's first recorded year of basketball, and they have met every year since the 1945-46 season.
• This will be the 73rd-straight year they have played each other at least once.
• The Ichabods are 25-8 against the Hornets in Lee Arena.
• Washburn is 32-17 against ESU in MIAA games.
• Washburn is 4-1 against ESU in MIAA Postseason tournament games.
 
Last time out for Emporia State
(Dec. 30, 2017) -- December 30, 2017-Emporia State closed out the non-conference portion of their schedule with a 72-60 win over Central Christian (Kan.) in White Auditorium.
The Hornets started out as cold as the weather outside as they missed their first three shots and fell behind 5-0 with 18:39 left in the first half.  Stephaun Limuel got Emporia State on the board with layup inside with 18:13 left to ignite a 12-2 Hornet run.  Garin Vandiver's three-pointer with 14:30 left gave Emporia State a 12-7 lead before the Tigers went on a 7-2 run to tie the game at 14 with 12:28 left.  Vandiver and Hassan Thomas combined on a 7-0 run to put the Hornets back up by seven at 21-14 with 11:06 left in the half. 
The Tigers would not go away as they answered the Hornets run with a 10-1 run of their won to take a 26-24 lead with 6:03 remaining in the half. There would be five lead changes and three ties over the final 5:44 of the half.  Brandon Hall would score  the final seven Hornet points of the period and gave Emporia State a 35-34 lead on a break away layup with 1:29 left.  That would be the final points of the half as the Hornets took a one point lead to the locker rooms.
Brian Morton scored the first points of the second half for Emporia State and Jubril Osagie answered for Central Christian with 19:31 left before the Hornets went on an 8-0 run.  Morton's old-fashioned three-point play with 17:32 left gave Emporia State a 45-36 lead.  The Tigers would not go away as they answered with an 8-0 run of their own to pull back within a point at 45-44 at the 15:18 mark.  Out of the first media timeout of the half, Hall ignited a 10-2 run with a pair of free throws as the Hornets began to get separation with a 55-46 lead and 11:48 remaining.  The teams traded baskets until Thomas scored six straight points to give Emporia State a 63-50 lead with 7:02 left. Central Christian would not get closer than nine points the rest of the night and Emporia State saw the lead grow to as many as 16 before settling for the 72-60 final score.
Brandon Hall led all scorers with 20 points and added six rebounds with three assists and two steals.  Hassan Thomas had 16 points, eight rebounds and two blocks off the bench while Brian Morton joined them in double figures with ten points. Stephaun Limuel filled the stat sheet with six points, six rebounds, four assists, three blocks and two steals for Emporia State.
 
Washburn Ichabod Basketball HIstory
•    The Ichabods are 1,550-1,062-2 (.592) all-time in the 114th 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 575-268 since joining the conference and the NCAA.
•    The Ichabods have recorded 26 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 428-85 (.848) all-time in Lee Arena.
•    The 2017-18 season marks the 33rd 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 continue MIAA play hosting Northeastern State on Jan. 11 and Central Oklahoma on Jan. 13 in Lee Arena.