•    The Washburn Ichabods and Northwest Missouri Bearcats will meet for the fifth time in the last eight years in the MIAA Tournament and in the semifinals for the first time since March 8, 2008 on Saturday in the conference tournament semifinals at 6 p.m. in Kansas City's Municipal Auditorium.
•    The Ichabods (19-10) advanced to the MIAA semifinals after dispatching Rogers State 87-64 on Friday night in the quarterfinals.
•    The top-seeded Bearcats are 25-4 this season and reached the semifinals with a Thursday night win over Missouri Western in an 80-52 win.
•    The Bearcats won both regular season meetings with the Ichabods winning 68-65 on Dec. 13 in Maryville and 75-72 in Topeka on Feb. 10 for a pair of three-point wins.
•    In the MIAA Tournament, the Ichabods are 4-8 against Northwest after falling in the 2018, 2019 and 2022 MIAA Championship games before winning the 2021 Tournament in Maryville.
•    The upcoming 13th meeting between the Ichabods and Bearcats marks the most-played opponent for Washburn in the MIAA Tournament behind the 11 meetings with Missouri Western.
•    The Ichabods are 44-25 all-time in the MIAA Championship Tournament.
•    The Ichabods are 2-3 in first round games (since expanding to 12 teams) … 22-7 in the quarterfinals, 14-7 in the semifinals and 6-8 in championship games.
•    In games played in Kansas City, the Ichabods are 19-15.
•    In quarterfinal games played in Kansas City, the Ichabods are 11-5. In semifinal games played in Municipal the Ichabods are 6-3 and in championship games in Kansas City the Ichabods are 1-6.
•    The Ichabods received votes in the latest NABC Top 25 Coaches Poll.
•    The Ichabods have recorded 30, 20-win seasons and four under Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard in his six seasons receiving four NCAA postseason berths.
•    The 2023-24 season marks the 119th season of Ichabod basketball. •    The Ichabods are shooting .755 (401 of 531) from the free throw line this season … that is the best mark by an Ichabod team since the 1966-67 season when they shot .742 percent (525 of 708) … the Ichabod single season record for free throw percentage is .763 set in the 1968-69 season (728 of 954).
•    Second-team all-MIAA selection Andrew Orr who was a third-team all-MIAA pick last season, leads the Ichabods in scoring at 13.4 ppg adding 5.7 rebounds, 24 blocks and 54 assists. This season Orr is 18th in the MIAA in scoring, 13th in rebounding, ninth in field goal percentage hitting 158 of 289 shots for a 55 percent average, 16th in blocks at 0.8 per game. He has reached double figures in 20 games this season … he averaged 10 ppg in the two meetings with the Bearcats.
•    Sam Ungashick earned MIAA Honorable Mention all-MIAA honors, was second on the team in scoring averaging 12.5 ppg adding a team-high 40 steals with averaging 1.4 per game. He also averaged 3.8 rebounds per game and shot 40 percent from 3-point range hitting 48 of 119 and 82 percent of his free throws going 55 of 67. He scored a season-high 26 points at Missouri Western on Dec. 16 and has reached double figures in 17 games. Ungashick also led the Ichabods in minutes played at 30.5 per game. Ungashick enters the MIAA postseason ranked 23rd in the MIAA in scoring, 24th in field goal percentage, 20th in 3-pointers per game at 1.6, 14th in assists, and ninth in steals …he scored 24 points in the first meeting with Northwest Missouri this season on Dec. 13.
•    Jack Bachelor is scoring 11.7 ppg this season and leads the team with 113 assists and was named the MIAA Player of the Week for the week of Jan. 8 … Bachelor has scored 338 points this season, which is fifth on the Ichabod freshman season scoring chart and his 44  3-pointers are sixth … he scored 12 points in each of the two meetings with the Bearcats.
•    Brady Christiansen is averaging 8.1 ppg with a team-high 6.5 rpg … he is fifth in the MIAA in rebound average and is fourth in the MIAA in offensive rebounds averaging 2.5 per game … he has also moved into the top 50 all-time at Washburn in rebounds with 378 in his sophomore season … he is ninth on the sophomore class rebound chart.
•    Brayden Shorter is averaging 8.0 ppg and 2.6 rpg … he has reached double figures in the last five games … during that stretch he has averaged 16.6 ppg.
•    Michael Keegan is scoring 7.3 ppg with 5.4 rpg averaging 11.0 ppg and 7.0 rpg with 2.5 apg in the last two contests … he scored 16 points hitting all three 3-point attempts in the last meeting with Northwest on Feb. 10.
•    Jarmell Johnson is averaging 7.9 ppg and 3.1 rpg coming off a career-high 23 points against Rogers State in the MIAA quarterfinals.
•    Jake Schadegg is averaging 4.9 ppg and 1.4 apg this season.
•    Emmanuel Byrd is scoring 3.7 ppg with 3.1 rpg.
•    Zaid Dajani is scoring 1.7 ppg and Kevin Eman is averaging 1.2 ppg.
•    Washburn is fourth the MIAA in 3-pointers made per game at 7.7 per contest and Rogers State is 13th at 6.0 per game … the Ichabods are also ranked second in 3-point field goal percentage at .371 and ranked 13th in opponent 3-point field goal percent at .389.
•    The Ichabods are second in the MIAA in scoring averaging 76.9 ppg and ranked eighth in scoring defense allowing 70.6 ppg … the Bearcats are fifth in scoring average at 73.9 ppg and second in scoring defense allowing 59.7 ppg.
•    Washburn is +6.2 in rebounding margin this season which is second in the MIAA while the Bearcats lead the MIAA in rebounding margin at +7.0.
•    The Ichabods will be without Jordan Vincent, Bradley Lightbourne, Tyson Ruud and Zach Davidson who will miss the season after injuries, surgeries or recovering from recent surgeries.
  WASHBURN ICHABOD HEAD COACH BRETT BALLARD ...
•    is 137-74 in his seventh season as the Ichabods' head coach and 170-104 overall in his ninth year as a head coach.
•    has led the Ichabods to four NCAA postseason appearances in six full seasons at Washburn.
•    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 and Tulsa basketball programs after working under head coach Danny Manning 2012-17 seasons.
•    he helped Wake Forest to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since the 2009-10 season following the 2016-17 season.
•    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.
•    he is 3-17 against Northwest Missouri.
 
NORTHWEST MISSOURI HEAD COACH BEN MCCOLLUM...
•    is 390-90 in his 15th season as the Bearcats' head coach.
•    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.
•    is the first five-time NABC Division II National Coach of the Year and a seven-time MIAA Coach of the Year.
•    led Northwest to the 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2022 NCAA National Championship.
•    is 24-10  against the Ichabods.
  •    The Bearcats are 25-4 overall and 20-2 in the MIAA winning their last 14 games.
•    Wes Dreamer leads the team ins coring at 18.7 ppg and Bennett Stirtz is scoring 15.1 ppg … Dreamer also leads the team in rebounds at 6.7 per game while shooting 42 percent from 3-point range hitting 57 of 136.
•    Northwest has won its last seven MIAA Tournament games …the last team to beat them in the MIAA Tournament was the Ichabods in the MIAA Championship game played in Maryville in 2021.
•    Northwest ranks No. 1 in the nation in the free throw percentage at 80.4.
•    Northwest ranks No. 2 in the nation in scoring defense by allowing 59.4 points per game. The Bearcats rank second in the MIAA in scoring defense behind only Fort Hays State (57.2 ppg). Northwest has held seven consecutive opponents to 61 points or less in its seven-game win streak.
  •    Saturday's meeting will be the 121st between the two schools and Washburn holds a 63-57 lead in the series.
•    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 21-17 against the Bearcats in Lee Arena.
•    Washburn is 26-26 in Maryville.
•    In the MIAA Tournament, the Ichabods are 4-8 against Northwest after falling in the 2018, 2019 and 2022 MIAA Championship games before winning the 2021 Tournament in Maryville.
•    In the NCAA Tournament, the Ichabods are 2-3 against the Bearcats.
•    The Ichabods won a NCAA Central Regional final contest against the Bearcats in Topeka on March 10, 2001 advancing to the Elite Eight in Bakersfield, California after a 67-61 win. (Feb. 10, 2024) TOPEKA, Kan. – The Washburn Ichabods fell 75-72 to the No. 12 Northwest Missouri Bearcats on Saturday afternoon in Lee Arena. 
In a game that saw 15 lead changes and six ties, the two teams were tied with 2:47 to play after a pair of made free throws by Andrew Orr, but Andrew Mascari hit on of his nine 3-pointers on the afternoon to put the Bearcats up 69-66 with 2:18 remaining. Northwest pushed their lead to four at 71-67, but the Ichabods cut the lead back to one after a layup by Brady Christiansen with 14 seconds to play.
After an Ichabod foul, Northwest hit two free throws to go up four but a 3-pointer by Michael Keegan cut the lead to one with six seconds to play at 73-72. Northwest hit a layup with four seconds to go going up three, and Washburn's 3-pointer at the buzzer missed as the Ichabods fell for the first time at home this season.
Washburn (15-8, 11-6 MIAA) led 39-38 at the break after trailing by as many as eight in the first half using a 9-0 run toward the end of the half going into the locker room.
Washburn was led by Keegan's 16 points hitting all three 3-point attempts adding seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Jack Bachelor and Orr both had 12 points.
Mascari led the Bearcats (19-4, 15-2 MIAA) scoring 27 points on 9 of 12 shooting from 3-point range. Bennett Stirtz had 19 points and Daniel Abreu and Byron Alexander each had 10.
Washburn was outrebounded 28 to 25 in the game. The Ichabods forced 14 Bearcat turnovers leading to 15 points while Washburn turned it over only five times in the game.
The Ichabods finished 23 of 51 for the game shooting 44 percent going 7 of 18 from 3-point range and 19 of 27 from the free throw line. Northwest finished 24 of 43 hitting 14 of 24 3-pointers (58 percent) after going 8 of 11 in the first half from deep. (March 8, 2024) KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Washburn Ichabod basketball team moved into Saturday's semifinals of the MIAA Championship Tournament with an 87-64 win over Rogers State on Friday in historic Municipal Auditorium.
Washburn (19-10) was holding a 21-19 lead with 7:32 to go in the opening half before the Ichabods used an 8-1 run over the next 2:25 pushing Washburn to a 29-20 lead. From that point in the opening half, the team played to an one-point difference as the Ichabods took a 37-22 lead into the break after back-to-back layups by Sam Ungashick and Jack Bachelor.
Washburn scored the first five points of the second half to take a 42-27 lead. Midway through the frame, a 3-pointer by Brady Christiansen stretched Washburn's advantage to 20 with 13:11 to go. Following a Hillcat (17-12) timeout, Rogers State trimmed Washburn's down to 15 with 10:43 left and eventually to 13 with 9:04 to play.
After a pair of Ichabod free throws by Jarmell Johnson, Rogers State pulled within 10 twice with the last time coming at 73-62 with 5:37 left, but back-to-back-to-back 3-pointers by Brayden Shorter, Ungashick and Johnson moved the lead back to 20 eventually to 23 with 1:19 to go for the final points of the game and the 23-point win.
Johnson led the Ichabods with a career-high 23 points starting the game leading three total Ichabods in double figures as Shorter finished with 19 and Bachelor had 14 points with five assists.
The Ichabods shot 51 percent for the game hitting 31 of 61 attempts while holding the Hillcats to 23 of 63 shooting and a 3 for 16 performance from deep. The Ichabods hit 12 of 28 shots from 3-point range an outrebounded Rogers State 39 to 33. Washburn was also 13 of 14 from the free throw line committing only nine turnovers in the win. •    The Ichabods are 44-25 all-time in the MIAA Championship Tournament.
•    The Ichabods are 2-3 in first round games (since expanding to 12 teams) … 22-7 in the quarterfinals, 14-7 in the semifinals and 6-8 in championship games.
•    In games played in Kansas City, the Ichabods are 19-15.
•    In quarterfinal games played in Kansas City, the Ichabods are 11-5. In semifinal games played in Municipal the Ichabods are 6-3 and in championship games in Kansas City the Ichabods are 1-6.
•    As the No. 1 seed, the Ichabods are 21-3, at No. 2 they are 9-4, at No. 3 they are 2-1, at No. 4 they are 5-3, as the No. 5 seed they are 0-1, at No. 6 the Ichabods are 4-5, at No. 7 they are 0-1 and as the No. 8 seed they are 3-3.
•    Overall, here's how the Ichabods have fared against MIAA opponents in the conference tournament by round and in Kansas City.
•    First Round games were added for the MIAA Tournament starting in 2013 as the league expanded to 15 teams. The top four teams in the final standings received an automatic bye to Kansas City for the quarterfinals.
Team     1st Rnd  Qrts.     Semis    Finals    In KC     Total
UCM          —              4-0            1-1            —              3-1            5-1
ESU           —              5-1            —              —              4-1            5-1
FHSU        1-0            —              2-0            —              2-0            3-0
LU              —              —              —              —              —              0-0
MSSU        —              1-0            2-1            0-1            1-1            3-2
MWSU      0-2            0-1            3-2            1-2            1-2            4-6
NSU           0-1            —              —              —              —              0-1
NU             —              —              —              —              —              0-0
NWMSU   —              2-1            0-2            3-3            0-5            4-8
PSU           —              1-0            3-0            2-0            3-0            6-0
RSU           —              2-0            —              —              1-0            2-0           
UCO          —              0-1            1-1            —              1-1             1-1
UNK           —              1-1             —              —              1-1             1-1
--- vs former members
MS&T        —              1-1            —              —              1-0            1-1
UMSL        —              1-0            —              —              —              1-0
SEMO        —              —              —              —              —              —
SBU           1-0            2-0            1-1            1-0            —              5-1
TSU           —              2-0            1-0             —             —              3-0
UNO          —              —              —              0-1            0-1            0-1
Totals        2-3            22-7          14-7          6-8            19-14        44-25
  •    The Ichabods are 1,688-1,132-2 all-time in the 118th year in the program's history.
•    Washburn is the 10th-winningest program in NCAA Division II history by victories.
•    Washburn is 692-324 since joining the conference and the NCAA.
•    The Ichabods have recorded 30 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 16 NCAA Tournament bids going to three Elite Eight's appearing in the 2001 NCAA National Championship game.
  •    The Ichabods are 499-103 (.848) all-time in Lee Arena.
•    The 2023-24 season marks the 38th season of play in Lee Arena.
•    The Ichabods are 38-1 all-time in home openers.
•    The Ichabods recorded a school-best 28-game winning streak from Nov. 19, 1993 to Feb. 8, 1995 in Lee Arena.
  •    The winner of the Bearcats/Ichabod game will face the winner of the Pittsburg State/Fort Hays State in the MIAA Championship game on Sunday at 3:30 pm.