• The No. 2-ranked Washburn Ichabods return to Lee Arena on Tuesday night to face Friends University at 7 p.m. in their final game before the Thanksgiving break.
• Washburn is 6-0 after topping its second-straight GLVC opponent in a 90-54 win over William Jewell on Saturday in Liberty. The 36-point win was one shy of the largest win in the series history with the Cardinals.
• Friends is 5-2 this season after defeating York (Neb.) 77-55 last time out on the road.
• The Falcons have the distinction of being the only team to defeat the Ichabods in a home opener in Lee Arena. Friends topped the Ichabods 89-88 on Nov. 16, 1990. Since then the Ichabods have won 36 consecutive home openers and Washburn is 40-1 overall in home openers.
• In the win over William Jewell, Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard moved into second place on the all-time win chart at Washburn passing Glenn Cafer with his 173rd win on the Ichabod bench. Ballard is 173-79 on the Ichabod sidelines in his ninth season. Cafer was 172-145 in 12 seasons at Washburn.
• The Ichabods are coming off one of the best seasons in program history with an NCAA Final Four appearance, an NCAA Central Regional Championship and an MIAA regular season title with a 30-4 overall record after going 17-2 in MIAA play.
• The Ichabods have recorded 31, 20-win seasons in program history and five under Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard in his eight seasons receiving four NCAA postseason berths coaching the 2024-25 squad to only the program's second 30-win season in school history.
• The 2025-26 season marks the 121st season of Ichabod basketball.
•  The Washburn Ichabods were picked atop the MIAA Preseason Coaches and Media polls released Oct. 6 by the league office. In the MIAA Coaches Poll, Washburn received 13 of 14 first-place votes, tallying 169 points, finishing ahead of Rogers State which had one first-place vote and 141 total points. In the MIAA media poll, the Ichabods received 23 of 25 first-place votes from the media for 346 total points. Fort Hays State had one first-place vote and 297 points, and Rogers State had a first-place vote and 286 total points.
  • The Ichabods are fifth in scoring margin in the NCAA D2 ranks at +27.2 and fourth in field goal percentage at 54.4 percent - that also leads the MIAA …Washburn is also eighth in assists per game (20.0), 15th in assist/turnover ration (1.62) and sixth in effective field goal percentage (.610) and eighth in rebound margin (+14.0).
• Jack Bachelor is fifth in the nation in 3-pointers made with 18 while leading the MIAA and Dillon Claussen is eighth in the nation in double doubles with two … Claussen is also 11th in the nation in field goal percentage at 73.3, 17th in total rebounds with 45 … Jeremiah Jones is second the nation in total steals with 19 and is ranked 13th in steals per game at 3.17 per contest.
• Jack Bachelor will be making his 50th consecutive start on Tuesday against Friends … as a starter he is 43-8 overall.
• Brady Christiansen will play in his 100th game as an Ichabod against Friends.
• Washburn has a 17-game home court winning streak which is tied for the fifth-longest in the D2 ranks.
• The Ichabods led the NCAA D2 ranks in cumulative attendance last season with 35,633  and also led the nation in average attendance at 2,229 per game.
 
 COACHES
WASHBURN ICHABOD HEAD COACH BRETT BALLARD ...
• is 173-79 in his ninth season as the Ichabods' head coach and 206-109 overall in his 11th year as a head coach.
• has led the Ichabods to five NCAA postseason appearances in eight seasons at Washburn as well as the 2021 MIAA Tournament Championship and the 2025 MIAA Regular season title.
• 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 2-2 against Friends going 2-2 while at Baker.
   
FRIENDS HEAD COACH PHIL McCLINTOCKK ...
• is in his third season at the as the Falcons head coach going 28-38 overall.
• spent the previous eight years as the Associate Men's Basketball Head Coach at Ottawa.  At Ottawa, McClintock served as the recruiting coordinator and was responsible for film breakdown and scouting reports.
• is 0-0 against the Ichabods.
   • The Falcons are 5-2 this season and 2-1 in the KCAC after defeating York on Saturday 77-55.
• Friends is averaging 87.3 ppg shooting 47.4 percent from the field and 39 percent from deep.
• They are ranked eighth in the NAIA ranks in 3-pointers per game at 11.1.
• Cahlese Lee leads the team in scoring at 16.1 ppg, followed by Randy Woolf, Jr. at 13.6 ppg, Collin Maclin at 13.4 ppg and Ringo Deng at 10.7 ppg.
   • The Ichabods lead the series 25-1 with Friends and have won the last 11 in the  series.
• The Ichabods and the Falcons have not met since the 2000-01 season and the Ichabods won that game 93-57 on Nov. 18 … the Ichabods would go on to play in the national championship game that season.
• The Falcons are the only team to defeat the Ichabods in a home opener in Lee Arena. Friends topped the Ichabods 89-88 on Nov. 16, 1990.
  (Nov. 18, 2020) TOPEKA, Kan. – No. 7 Washburn opened the night with a dominant 17–2 run and never trailed, rolling past Friends University 93–57 behind a balanced, efficient offensive performance and a controlling night on the glass.
Randolph Williams led the Ichabods with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including a pair of threes, while adding six rebounds. Washburn's frontcourt was relentless as Ewan Auguste powered his way to 16 points and eight rebounds and Ryan Murphy came off the bench to match him with 16 points of his own, hitting 2-of-3 from deep and a perfect 4-of-4 at the line.
Eric Carter added 13 points and knocked down three triples as Washburn shot an even 50 percent from the field and 37 percent from three, hitting 10 from beyond the arc. The Ichabods also cashed in at the foul line, going 19-for-25.
Washburn's owned a 47–24 advantage on the boards, including 14 offensive rebounds that led to 20 second-chance points. They also turned 18 Friends turnovers into 20 points while scoring 36 in the paint.
The Ichabod bench supplied 37 points with contributions across the rotation. Shannon Kruger scored five points with four assists and three steals, B.J. Ross posted four points and six rebounds, and Troy Douglas added seven points in 10 strong minutes.
Washburn led 44–27 at halftime and stretched the margin to as many as 44 late in the second half, controlling all 40 minutes.
  (Nov. 22, 2025) LIBERTY, Mo. – The No. 2 Washburn Ichabods rolled past William Jewell 90–54 behind efficient shooting, multiple momentum-swinging runs and balanced production across the lineup, improving to 6-0 on the season. Washburn returns to action hosting Friends on Tuesday in Lee Arena at 7 p.m.
Washburn's defense set the tone early, turning turnovers into transition points and sparking an 11–2 start highlighted by fast-break finishes from Bryson Smith and Dillon Claussen. After Jewell briefly closed within eight, the Ichabods countered with a decisive 9-0 run midway through the first half fueled by threes from Smith and Jack Bachelor and a tip-in from Amalachi Wilkins. Washburn outscored Jewell 30–6 in the paint in the opening frame and carried a 40–25 lead into halftime.
The Ichabods blew the game wide open early in the second half, erupting for an 18-0 surge to push the margin past 30. Claussen threw down a dunk, Smith converted at the rim, and reserve guard Sam Ungashick added back-to-back transition buckets during the stretch. Washburn's bench outscored Jewell's 38–25 overall, and the lead eventually swelled to 40 with just over a minute remaining.
Wilkins led the Ichabods off the bench with 13 points on 5–5 shooting with four boards and two steals in 16 minutes of play. He led a balanced scoring attack with Brady Christiansen scoring 13 points with eight rebounds while shooting 5–7 from the field. Claussen added 12 points, five rebounds and three assists, and Smith matched him with 12 points, four assists and three steals. Bachelor contributed 12 points and a team-high five assists, and Marcus Glock chipped in seven points and three assists off the bench.
Washburn dominated every major statistical category, winning points off turnovers 35–6, points in the paint 52–16, second-chance points 15–3 and fast-break points 22–5. The Ichabods also controlled the glass with a 44–19 rebounding advantage and held Jewell to just 11-of-33 from deep.
  • The Ichabods are 1,714-1,137-2 all-time in the 121st year in the program's history.
• Washburn is the seventh-winningest program in NCAA Division II history by victories.
• Washburn is 716-328 since joining the conference and the NCAA.
• The Ichabods have recorded 31 20-win seasons and they have two 30-win seasons after going 35-4 during the 1986-87 NAIA Championship season and after the 2024-25 season's 30-4 record.
• Washburn has won 22 conference championships including 11 MIAA titles.
• Washburn has received 16 NCAA Tournament bids going to four Elite Eight's appearing in the 2001 NCAA National Championship game.
  • The Ichabods are 516-104 (.831) all-time in Lee Arena.
• The 2025-26 season marks the 41st season of play in Lee Arena.
• The Ichabods are 40-1 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 Ichabods will host Ottawa at 2 p.m. on Nov. 29 before opening MIAA play hosting Nebraska-Kearney on Dec. 4 and Fort Hays State on Dec. 6.