Opening Tip
• The Ichabod men's basketball team will play host to Lindenwood on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Lions' final game as a conference foe in Topeka as the Lions are leaving the MIAA for the Great Lakes Valley Conference starting next season.
• Washburn is 14-5 and 7-3 in the MIAA after falling for the first time at home this season in a 75-73 loss to Lincoln on Thursday night.
• The Lions are 11-11 overall and 4-6 in the MIAA looking to snap a two-game losing streak with losses to Northeastern State and Emporia State last time out in an 85-68 loss on Thursday.
• Washburn received votes in the latest NABC top 25 poll coming in at No. 29 overall and ranked No. 23 in the latest D2SIDA/Media poll on Jan. 29.
• Javion Blake leads the Ichabods in scoring at 19.5 ppg which is fifth in the MIAA rankings … in MIAA games Blake is averaging 20.4 ppg.
• David Salach is averaging 13.2 ppg and 5.8 rpg after scoring a career-high 24 points against Fort Hays State … Salach is tied for second in the MIAA in blocks at 1.3 per game.
• Tyas Martin is scoring 9.4 ppg and Jalen Lewis is averaging 8.9 ppg off the bench and he is 15th in the MIAA in 3-point field goals made per game with 1.9 … he scored a career-high 20 point against Missouri Southern … he has 23 of 51 3-point attempts in MIAA games and his 36 3-pointers made this season are second on the team and is fifth on the Ichabod freshman chart needing three more to pass former Ichabod and PGA professional Gary Woodland.
• Sevon Witt is scoring 7.9 ppg with 3.3 rpg overall but in MIAA play he is averaging 9.1 ppg and 4.0 rpg.
• Tyler Geiman is scoring 7.7 ppg as well as dishing out 5.2 assists per game, which is second in the MIAA behind Northwest Missouri's Trevor Hudgins who has 5.9 per game … Geiman has 56 assists and nine turnovers in MIAA play and he scored a career-high 19 points against Missouri Southern.
• Devyn Wilson is averaging 7.7 ppg off the bench with 3.1 rebounds and Will McKee is averaging 7.4 ppg while pulling down 5.9 rebounds per game.
• Javion Blake has scored 1,570 career points placing him seventh all-time at Washburn … next on the list is Ewan Auguste who scored 1,636 points from 1997 to 2001 … Blake's 179 career 3-point field goals is fifth on the all-time chart … he has played 3,247 career minutes which is third at Washburn.
• David Salach has 100 career blocks which is tied for second all-time at Washburn with Ewan Auguste.
 
 MIAA Bod numbers
• 85.7 WU is fourth in the MIAA in scoring offense
• 74.5 WU is ninth in the MIAA in scoring defense
• .429 WU is second in the MIAA in defensive field goal percentage
• +5.5 WU is second in the MIAA in rebounding margin
• 3.68 WU is second in the MIAA in blocks
• 17.58 WU is leading the MIAA in assists
• .557 David Salach is fourth in the MIAA in field goal percentage
 
 Coaches
Washburn Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard …
• is 36-15 in his second season as the Ichabods' head coach and 69-45 overall in his fourth year as a head coach.
• was named the Washburn Ichabod men's basketball head coach on April 6, 2017 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 1-2 against Lindenwood going 0-2 while at Baker and 1-0 on the Ichabod sidelines.
 
Lindenwood head coach Lance Randall …
• was named the 19th head coach of the Lindenwood men's basketball program on May 11, 2015 recording a 64-50 record in his fourth season on the Lions sideline.
• came to Lindenwood after spending the previous four years as head coach at St. Leo University, where he compiled a record of 78-44 which also included three trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament.
• is 185-129 overall in his 11th season as a head coach.
• is 0-4 against Washburn.
 
 About Lindenwood
• The Lions are 11-11 this season and 4-6 in the MIAA and have dropped their last two games.
• They are 5-3 at home this season going 2-6 in road games and 4-2 in neutral site games.
• Brad Newman leads the team in scoring at 21.1 ppg … his last five games he has scored 21 at Southwest Baptist, 27 at Central Missouri, 42 against Central Oklahoma, 28 against Northeastern State and 31 at Emporia State.
• Chandler Diekvoss is scoring 14.8 ppg with a team-high 6.7 rebounds per game and scored a season-high 38 in a three-overtime loss to Lincoln on Jan. 12.
 
 Series history with Lindenwood
• Saturday's meeting will be the eighth all-time.
• Washburn leads the series 6-1.
• The Ichabods are 3-1 in games played in St. Charles winning the last two.
• Washburn has won all three meetings in Topeka including a 68-66 overtime win in Topeka on Jan. 2, 2016 and last season's 78-60 win on Dec. 17.
• The teams have never met in the MIAA Tournament.
 
 Last Meeting with Lindenwood
Washburn 76, Lindenwood 74 -- Dec. 16, 2017
ST. CHARLES, Mo. --- Washburn men's basketball held off Lindenwood's late rally to extend its win streak to six games with a 76-74 decision at Hyland Arena in St. Charles, Mo.
The Ichabods jumped out to an early eight-point lead behind an 11-3 to open the contest. The run was fueled by Cameron Wiggins who knocked down three consecutive attempts from behind the arc.
Washburn continued to control the opening half midway though as it registered a 12-8 run pushing out to a 23-15 lead with 10:31 left in the half. The Ichabods shot 5-for-9 during the run and made 2-of-4 from deep with Issac Clark account for both made treys.
Leading the 26-18, the Ichabods then saw their margin dwindle to one at the 3:23 mark as Lindenwood tallied 11 of the next 15 points to make it, 31-30. Washburn however ended the first half strong with a 6-0 spurt to taking a 36-29 advantage into the break.
During the first 20 minutes, Washburn converted 14-of-31 attempts from the floor for 45.2 percent shooting while Lions completed 9-of-29 for 31 percent. The Ichabods also outrebound the Lions in the first, 23-13.
The Lions opened the second with a a 12-5 run knotting the game at 41 with 16:39 remaining. Washburn again responded with a 5-0 spurt sparked by consecutive dunks from Brady Skeens and Jace Williams.
Lindenwood then responded with an an 11-6 run as it leveled the score at 52-52 with 8:26 on the clock. After trading layups, the Lions took a 57-56 lead at the  7:03 mark, their first since the 17:27 mark of the first half.
At 4:37, Washburn nudged out to a 63-61 lead as it used a 5-0 run to regained the lead. The Ichabods held off Lindenwood late as they made 7-of-8 from the line during the final 1:17 to capture the 76-74 victory.
The Ichabods had three in double-figures with Javion Blake leading the way with a game-high 26, while Wiggins and Tyas Martin finished with 12 and 10 respectively. Skeens registered a pair of highs as he finished with nine rebounds and six assists.
Washburn shooters completed 27-of-54 for 50 percent from the field including 6-of-21 from long range. The Ichabods also completed 80 percent from the charity stripe, while dominating the glass, outrebounding Lindenwood 39-24.
 
 Last time out for the Ichabods
Lincoln 75, Washburn 73 -- Jan. 31, 2019
TOPEKA, Kan. – The Washburn Ichabods missed their first eight shots of the game but had a chance to win it at the buzzer as a 3-point shot rimmed out as the Ichabods fell for the first time since 1968 to the Lincoln Blue Tigers in a 75-73 loss snapping a 28-game winning streak by the Ichabods.
The Blue Tigers led the entire game building a lead as many as 13 with 12:11 to go in the first half at 20-7. Washburn (14-5, 7-3 MIAA) would then use a 20 to 9 run over the next 8:44 to trim the Lincoln (14-5, 7-3 MIAA) lead to two at 29-27 before pushing the lead back to seven at the break leading 36-29.
Washburn came out in the second half on a 12-3 run and tied the score at 41 with 16:54 remaining but again Lincoln stretched the lead out to 12 at 59-47. After an Ichabod timeout, Washburn ripped off an 11-0 run cutting the lead back to one, but Lincoln pushed the margin back to eight with 5:40 to play.
Washburn trimmed the deficit back to three with 1:22 to go on a pair of Javion Blake free throws however the Blue Tigers hit four of their final five in the final 23 seconds to hold a two-point lead at 75-73. After a missed attempt by Terrance Smith with five seconds to go, Tyler Geiman's 3-point attempt from about 25 feet hit the back of the rim as time expired.
Blake led the Ichabods with a game-high 26 points adding eight rebounds, three steals and three assists. David Salach scored 14 with six rebounds and Will McKee scored 11. Geiman had five points and seven rebounds.
Amariontez Ivory had 21 points to lead the Blue Tigers who won in Topeka for the first time since Dec. 28, 1967 and for the first time ever in Lee Arena (1-15).
Washburn finished 40 percent from the game from the field hitting 25 of 62 shots while the Blue Tigers were 27 of 55 overall at 49 percent. Washburn was 14 of 20 from the free throw line while the Blue Tigers were 11 of 17 overall. The Ichabods held a 38 to 35 advantage on the glass and committed nine turnovers to the Blue Tigers' 15. 
 
 
 D2SIDA/Media Regional Rankings - as of Jan. 29
      School                               Record     Pts.      LW
1        Northwest Missouri (6)                        19-0            60            1
2       Southern Nazarene                               17-3            48            4
T3     Missouri Souther• 16-4                         44               6
T3     Washbur• 14-4                                       44               2
5       Northern State                                      15-5            39            3
6       Wayne State                                          15-5            34            5
7        Pittsburg State                                     14-5            18            9
8       Minnesota State                                    14-6            12          NR
9       St. Cloud State                                      14-6             9            10
10     Sioux Falls                                             14-6             8             8
Also receiving votes: Oklahoma Baptist - 6; Southern Arkansas - 4; MSU-Moorhead - 3;
Augustana - 1                                                                                      
 
 Ichabod basketball history
• The Ichabods are 1,576-1,073-2 all-time in the 115th year in the program's history.
• Washburn is the 10th-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 597-278 since joining the conference and the NCAA.
• The Ichabods have recorded 27 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 442-88 (.848) all-time in Lee Arena.
• The 2018-19 season marks the 34th 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 is back on the road with trips to Central Missouri on Feb. 6 and to Southwest Baptist on Feb. 9 before returning home to face Northeastern State on Valentine's Day and then Central Oklahoma on Feb. 16. After a pair of road games at Lindenwood on Feb. 21 and at Lincoln on Feb. 23, Washburn returns home to face Northwest Missouri on Feb. 28 before wrapping up the regular season against Missouri Western on Senior Day on March 2. The MIAA Tournament will start on March 5 in Kansas City as now the top 10 teams in the final standings will go straight to Kansas City with the top two teams in the final standings will receive first round byes.