Opening Tip
•     The Washburn Ichabods will wrap up the regular season with a Senior Day match up with Missouri Western at 3 p.m. in Lee Arena.
•     It will be the final home game in Lee Arena for five seniors: Javion Blake, David Salach, Emeka Ogbonna, Tyas Martin and Devyn Wilson who will be honored before the game.
•     Washburn is 21-6 and 14-4 in the MIAA sitting in second place in the conference standings and lead Missouri Southern by one game in the conference race.
•     With a win over the Griffons, or a loss by Missouri Southern at Nebraska-Kearney, the Ichabods will shore up the No. 2 seed in the MIAA Tournament and have an opening game on Thursday at 2:15 in Municipal Auditorium … with a loss to Missouri Western and a win by Missouri Southern against the Lopers, the Ichabods will be the No. 3 seed and then have to play on Friday at 2:15 p.m.
•     The Griffons are 12-17 this season and 6-12 in the MIAA and have not played since a 70-68 loss at No. 1 Northwest Missouri on Tuesday night.
•     The Griffons are one of six teams still in the running for one of the ten postseason slots available for the conference tournament.
•     Washburn won the first meeting with Missouri Western on Jan. 9 in a 95-94 overtime win.
•     The Ichabods have secured their first back-to-back-to-back 20-win seasons since the 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05 seasons this year … the Ichabods were 20-10 in 2016-17 and 22-10 in the 2017-18 season in Brett Ballard's first season on the Washburn bench.
•     In program history the Ichabods have had 28, 20-win seasons including this year.
•     The Ichabod coaching record for the most wins in their first two seasons is now held by Brett Ballard with 43 wins … Bob Chipman had 41 during the 1979-80 and 1980-81 seasons.
•     As of the Feb. 28 report, the Ichabods are playing the fifth-toughest schedule in the NCAA Division II ranks with an opponent winning percentage of .597.
•     Javion Blake leads the Ichabods in scoring at 19.0 ppg which is fifth in the MIAA rankings … in MIAA games Blake is averaging 19.3 ppg … he passed Will McNeill for third on the Ichabod all-time scoring chart now sitting at 1,708 points … McNeill had 1,701 points from 2008-13.
•     David Salach is averaging 12.6 ppg and 5.6 rpg after scoring a career-high 24 points against Fort Hays State earlier this season … Salach is tied for fourth in the MIAA in blocks at 1.2 per game.
•     Jalen Lewis is averaging 8.8 ppg off the bench and he is tied for 14th 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 hit 39 of 85 3-point attempts in MIAA games and his 52 3-pointers made this season is third on team and is third on the Ichabod freshman chart tied with Javion Blake's 52 and Shannon Kruger's 54 … his 237 points scored this season is 10th on the Ichabod freshman scoring chart.
•     Tyler Geiman is scoring 8.5 ppg as well as dishing out 5.3 assists per game, which is first in the MIAA ahead Northwest Missouri's Trevor Hudgins who has 5.2 per game … Geiman has 99 assists and 22 turnovers in MIAA play and he scored a career-high 19 points against Missouri Southern … he is ranked 11th in the nation in assist to turnover ratio … he also recorded his first double double at Washburn against Lindenwood with 15 points, a career-high 10 rebounds while adding seven assists.
•     Tyas Martin is scoring 8.3 ppg starting all 27 games this season.
•     Devyn Wilson is averaging 8.2 ppg off the bench scoring a career high 19 against Central Missouri with 2.9 rebounds and in MIAA play he is scoring 8.6 ppg with 3.1 rpg.
•     Sevon Witt is scoring 7.1 ppg overall scoring 7.4 ppg in MIAA play and Will McKee is averaging 6.4 ppg while pulling down a team-high 5.8 rebounds per game.
•     Javion Blake has scored 1,713 career points placing third all-time at Washburn after passing Will McNeill with 1,708 points … Blake's 198 career 3-point field goals is tied for fourth on the all-time chart … he has played 3,533 career minutes which is third at Washburn … Blake also became the sixth Ichabod to score at least 1,000 points and have at least 100 steals (101) … Blake's 369 career free throw makes is sixth all-time at Washburn needing two more to move into fifth all-time … Blake has also moved into fifth on the all-time assist chart as an Ichabod with 304 … Blake became the first Ichabod since Will McNeill to score at least 500 points in a season since McNeill scored 541 during the 2012-13 season … the next game Blake reaches double figures it will be his 100th career game scoring at least 10 points.
•     David Salach has 103 career blocks which is second all-time at Washburn.
 
 Senior notes
•  814 Number of points in Lee Arena Javion Blake has scored
•  98 Number of 3-pointers in Lee Arena Javion Blake has hit
•  471 Number of points David Salach has scored in Lee Arena
•  69 of his career 103 blocks have come in Lee Arena … his 103 blocks is second all-time at Washburn
•  78-39 record of the senior class of Emeka Ogbonna, Javion Blake, Tyas Martin
•  84-55 record of the senior class of David Salach, who redshirted the 2015-16 season
•  117 number of starts Javion Blake will make overall counting today's game with the Griffons
•  117 of 118 career starts and games played counting today's game for Javion Blake
•  96 number of career starts including today's for David Salach
•  36 number of consecutive starts including today's for Tyas Martin and his 42nd start overall
•  2 number of starts Emeka Ogbonna has at Washburn including today's …he scored 11 points in his only start at Fort Hays State on Dec. 7, 2016
•  1 number of starts for Devyn Wilson with today's game with the Griffons in his first season as an Ichabod
 
 MIAA Bod numbers
•  83.0 WU is fourth in the MIAA in scoring offense
•  72.5 WU is fourth in the MIAA in scoring defense
•  17.22 WU is leading the MIAA in assists
•  10.4 WU is second in the MIAA in scoring margin
•  .474 WU is fifth in the MIAA in field goal percentage
•  .428 WU is first in the MIAA in defensive field goal percentage
•  +4.7 WU is first in the MIAA in rebounding margin
•  3.33 WU is third in the MIAA in blocks
•  6.41 WU is third in the MIAA in steals
•  5.4 Tyler Geiman is first in the MIAA in assists and fourth in the MIAA in assist to turnover ratio
 
 Single season record stat watch
•  83.0 Points per game this season for the Ichabods is ninth
•  249 3-pointers made this season for the Ichabods is second
n    647 3-pointers attempted this season for the Ichabods is 2nd
•  .385 3-pointer percentage this season for the Ichabods is 13th
•  17.2 Assists per game average this season which is 14th all-time at Washburn
•  136 Assists by Tyler Geiman which is eighth on the single season chart … the Ichabod single season record is 266 by Jordan Canfield set during the 1996-97 season
•  514 total points by Javion Blake which is 19th on the Ichabod single-season chart
•  142 assists by Tyler Geiman which is seventh on the Ichabod single-season chart
•  5.3 Assists per game by Tyler Geiman which is fourth on the single season chart behind Jordan Canfield who had 8.1 apg in 1994-95 and 1996-97 and 5.5 in 1993-94
 
 Coaches
Washburn Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard …
•     is 43-16 in his second season as the Ichabods' head coach and 76-46 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 2-0 against Missouri Western.
 
Missouri Western head coach Sundance Wicks…
•     is 12-17 in his first season as the Griffons' head coach.
•     in 2017-18, Wicks helped lead Northern State to the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference regular season and postseason championships this year. Northern State also claimed the central region championship en route to the program's first-ever appearance in the national championship game.
•     lettered four years as a student-athlete at Northern State from 1999-2003, Wicks
•     held assistant coaching positions at Northern State, Colorado (2006-07), Northern Illinois (2007-11) and San Francisco (2015-16).
•     is 0-1 against Washburn.
 
 About Missouri Western
•     The Griffons are 12-17 this season and 6-12 in the MIAA.
•     Lavon Hightower leads the Griffons in scoring at 18.6 ppg with a team-high 7.6 rpg.
•     The Griffons are 2-9 in home games and 7-6 in away games.
•     The Griffons are averaging 74.6 ppg (12th in the MIAA) while allowing 77.2 ppg (12th in the MIAA).
•     The Griffons are 10th in the MIAA in field goal defense at 45 percent and 12th in the league in 3-point field goal percentage at .322.
 
 Series history with Missouri Western
•     Saturday's meeting will be the 92nd between the two schools with Washburn leading the series 54-37 winning the last three games overall.
•     The Ichabods are 30-21 against MWSU in MIAA games and 23-11 in Lee Arena and 30-13 in games played in Topeka overall.
•     The Ichabods are 22-23 in games played in St. Joseph against the Griffons.
•     Since joining the MIAA, the Ichabods are 11-18 in MIAA games played in St. Joseph.
•     In the MIAA Tournament the Ichabods are 3-5 against the Griffons.
•     The Ichabods lead 6-4 in overtime games including the 95-94 win on Jan. 9, 2019.
 
 Last Meeting with Missouri Western
Washburn 95, MIssouri WEstern 94 -- Jan. 9, 2019
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Washburn Ichabods went over 90 points for the fifth-straight game for the first time since the 1992-93 season surviving a 3-point shooting barrage from Missouri Western in a 95-94 overtime win to remain perfect in the MIAA moving to 11-2 overall and 4-0 in league play.
Jalen Lewis hit a free throw with 1.8 seconds to play giving the Ichabods the one-point lead and Lavon Hightower's heave from 3-point range just missed as time expired.
To start the overtime, the Ichabods went up 88-86 after a pair of free throws by David Salach, but the Griffons came back with a 3-pointer, but Javion Blake hit a free throw with 3:28 to go tying the score at 89. A layup by the Griffons pushed their lead to two, but Salach hit a layup tying the score and a Blake free throw and layup pushed the lead to three with 26 seconds to play.
The Griffons hit their 19th and final 3-pointer of the evening with 13 seconds to go by Tyus Millhollin tying the score at 94. After a missed layup by the Ichabods, Lewis was fouled hitting what would be the go-ahead free throw.
Washburn trailed by five at the break at 40-35. The Ichabods was 20 of 34 from the free throw line hit 5 of 8 from the free throw line in the extra frame. The Griffons (8-8, 2-3 MIAA) did not attempt a free throw in the overtime period.
Blake led all scorers with 34 points going over 30 for the second-straight game on 13 of 22 shooting adding five rebounds and three steals. Salach scored 21 points with four boards hitting 5 of 6 free throws. Tyas Martin finished with 12 points and Lewis finished with 10. Devyn Wilson had eight points with seven rebounds and five assists. Jace Williams had a team-high eight rebounds.
Hudson scored 23 points to lead the Griffons with 23 points and Hightower had 20 points with a game-high 11 rebounds.
Washburn finished 35 of 74 from the field for a 47 percent average while the Griffons were 33 of 70 overall. Western came into the game hitting 32 percent from 3-point range and finished the game at 43 percent hitting 19 of 44. Washburn was 20 of 34 overall from the free throw line and Missouri Western was 9 of 14. On the glass, the Ichabods held a 46 to 43 margin. Washburn outscored the Griffons 58 to 26 in the paint. The Ichabods only committed seven turnovers in the game while the Griffons turned it over 14 times. 
 
 Last time out for the Ichabods
#1 Northwest Missouri 72, Washburn 49 -- Feb. 28, 2019
TOPEKA, Kan. – The battle of the top two teams in the latest NCAA Central Regional polls went the wrong direction as the Ichabods fell to the nation's No. 1 team in a 72-49 loss to Northwest Missouri.
After the Ichabods (21-6, 14-4 MIAA) scored the first two points of the game on a jumper David Salach, the Bearcats (29-0, 19-0 MIAA) went on a 14-2 run building a 14-4 lead and would go on to a 24-14 lead before back to back 3-pointers by Salach and Jalen Lewis pulled the Ichabods within four at 24-20 with 5:50 to play before the break, but again the Bearcats pushed the lead back to 12 before Lewis and Tyler Geiman hit back to back treys cutting the lead to six until a 3-pointer by Northwest pushed the margin back to nine at the break as the Bearcats led 35-26.
In the second half, the Ichabods were held to six field goals on 26 attempts finishing with a season-low 16 of 56 from the field at 29 percent shooting for the game while Northwest hit 22 of 50 shots for a 44 percent clip to pick up the 23-point win as the Bearcats would lead by as many as 29 in the game.
Lewis led the Ichabods with 13 points off the bench hitting three 3-pointers and Salach scored 11 and Tyas Martin recorded 10. Joey Witthus led four Bearcats in double figures with a game-high 19 points.
Washburn was outrebounded 39 to 31 in the game as the Bearcats had 10 of their 22 field goals go for 3-pointers in the game while shooting 18 of 23 from the free throw line. Washburn was 12 of 15 from the charity stripe in the game.
Prior to the start of the game on Saturday with Missouri Western, the five seniors and their families on the squad will all be honored prior to tip. They include Javion Blake, David Salach, Tyas Martin, Emeka Ogbonna and Devyn Wilson.
 
 NCAA Regional Rankings - as of Feb. 27
          School                                             DII Record        In-Region Record                 
1        Northwest Missouri State                        24-0                          23-0           
2        Washbur•                                                 19-5                          18-5           
3        Northern State                                         22-6                          21-6           
4        St. Cloud State                                         20-7                          18-7           
5        Missouri Southern State                           19-5                          19-5           
6        Southern Nazarene                                  24-4                          23-4           
7        Minnesota State Mankato                        17-10                         16-9           
8        Minnesota Duluth                                     15-9                          15-9           
9        Augustana (South Dakota)                       17-10                        17-10          
10      Southeastern Oklahoma State                  16-6                          16-6
                                                                                              
 Ichabod basketball history
•     The Ichabods are 1,583-1,074-2 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 604-279 since joining the conference and the NCAA.
•     The Ichabods have recorded 28 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 445-89 (.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
•     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. The brackets will be released on Saturday evening at the conclusion of the MIAA regular season schedule. Check back at wusports.com for information and game times Saturday evening after the brackets are released.