• The No. 3-ranked and 2026 MIAA Champion Washburn Ichabods will wrap up the regular season with two games this week starting with Pittsburg State on Wednesday followed by a senior day finale on Saturday against Missouri Southern.
• The Ichabods clinched their 12th outright MIAA title and their second in a row after topping Central Oklahoma last week.
• The Ichabods are coming off an 81-64 win over Rogers State in their final regular road game of the season.
• Washburn is 26-1 (16-1 MIAA) clinched the title and will be the No. 1-seed in the MIAA Tournament in Kansas City and will have its opening game in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 5 at 6 p.m. against the winner of the No. 8/No. 9 seed.
• Pittsburg State is 15-12 (9-8 MIAA) after falling to Fort Hays State 65, 56 on Feb. 21 in its home finale.
• Wedneday's game is the only regular season meeting between the Ichabods and the Gorillas this season.
• With a win over the Gorillas, Washburn will record its 28th consecutive home win tying the 28-game streak from Nov. 19, 1993 to Feb. 8, 1995.
• The Ichabods have the No. 1-ranked scoring offense in the MIAA putting up 86.9 ppg just ahead  of Missouri Southern's 85.1 ppg.
• Defensively, the Ichabods have the No. 1-ranked scoring defense allowing 62.2 ppg ahead of Fort Hays State's 62.7 ppg.
• The Gorillas are averaging 77.8 ppg and allowing 70.9 ppg ranking eighth and sixth on the MIAA team stat charts.
• 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 32, 20-win seasons in program history and six under Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard in his nine 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 recorded their 32nd, 20-win season in program history and their sixth under head coach Brett Ballard in his ninth season on the Ichabod bench with the win over Missouri Western earlier this season.
• The Ichabods are second in the nation in scoring margin in the NCAA D2 ranks at +24.7 ppg and are ranked third in field goal percentage at 51.3 percent - leading the MIAA … Washburn is ninth in assists per game (18.3), 19th in assist/turnover ratio (1.45), seventh in effective field goal percentage (.579) and first in rebound margin (+10.9) … Washburn is third in scoring defense (62.2 ppg), 10th in fastbreak points (17.8 ppg), sixth in defensive field goal percentage (.392), seventh in turnover margin (+5.3) and ninth in turnovers forced per game (+17.8).
• Dillon Claussen is ninth in the nation in field goal percentage at 62.3 … Jeremiah Jones is first the nation in total steals with 81 and is ranked third in steals per game at 3.00 per contest.
• Jack Bachelor is 73rd in the nation in total assists with 110 and 30th in assist to turnover ratio at 2.44 to 1 … Bachelor is third on the active NCAA D2 chart in assist to turnover ratio and ranked ninth out of all NCAA levels at 2.71.
• Brady Christiansen is 10th on the NCAA active D2 chart with 727 career rebounds … he also moved into the top 50 all-time at Washburn in scoring with 833 career points.
• Jeremiah Jones needs five steals to reach 200 for his career … he is ranked fifth in career steals on the active NCAA D2 chart and No. 32 out of all NCAA levels.
• Sam Ungashick has scored 953 collegiate points with 594 coming at Washburn with 359 being scored in his lone season at Benedictine as a freshman before joining the Ichabods.
• Washburn's 27-game homecourt winning streak is second in the nation behind Nova Southeastern's 98-game winning streak.
• The Ichabods' 27-game homecourt winning streak is the second-longest in program history trailing only the 28-game streak from Nov. 19, 1993 to Feb. 8, 1995. • Jeremiah Jones pulled within one of of tying the Washburn single season steals record of 82 set by Will McNeill during the 2012-13 season.
• Jones also tied a career-high with two blocks.
• Smith's 26 points was a career-best as were his 15 field goal attempts, 11 free throws and 13 free throw attempts. WASHBURN ICHABOD HEAD COACH BRETT BALLARD ...
• is 193-80 in his ninth season as the Ichabods' head coach and 226-110 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 10-1 against Pittsburg State.
 
PITTSBURG STATE HEAD COACH JEFF BOSCHEE ...
•  is in his fourth season as the head coach at Pittsburg State where he has gone 64-55 … he served as head coach at MIAA rival Missouri Southern State University prior to moving to Pittsburg … he has compiled a 212-141 career record overall in his 12th season as a head coach.
•  Boschee directed MSSU to four 20-win seasons and three consecutive trips to the NCAA Division II National Tournament between the 2017-18 and the 2019-20 campaigns. He was selected the 2017-18 MIAA Coach of the Year and his 2018-19 squad reached the NCAA Sweet 16 while posting a 25-8 record.
•  is 9-7 against Washburn overall and 0-4 at Pittsburg State.
  • The Gorillas are 9-8 in MIAA play and 15-12 overall and have already clinched a spot in the MIAA Tournament currently sitting as the No. eight seed.
• Connor Rogers leads the team in scoring and he's tied for third in the MIAA at 18.6 ppg … Mason English is tied for 11th at 15.3 ppg. Ethan Sage is also scoring in double figures with 10.8 ppg while adding a team-high 7.2 rpg.
• Pitt State is tied for third in the MIAA in 3-pointers per game at 8.1.
  • Wednedsay's meeting will be the 191st between these two schools in a series that dates back to the first meeting on Feb. 19, 1920.
• Washburn leads the all-time series 112-78.
• The Ichabods have won the last 25 of the last 29 meetings including 18 of the last 21 and the last 10 overall.
• The Ichabods are 35-3 in Lee Arena against PSU and 40-16 against the Gorillas in MIAA play. The home team is 37-15 in the last 52 regular season meetings, dating back to 1996-97.
• The series goes back to 1919-20 and it has been played at least once a year since 1941-42.
• In Topeka, Washburn leads 73-24 all-time.
• The longest winning streak by the Ichabods is 13 from Jan. 15, 1983 to March 4, 1988.
• The longest winning streak by the Gorillas is six games from Dec. 12, 1936 to Feb. 13, 1943.
  (Feb. 26, 2025) PITTSBURG, Kan. – The No. 4-ranked Washburn Ichabods won their 10th game in a row over Pittsburg State in a 71-61 win on Wednesday in PSU's John Lance Arena.
The Washburn Ichabods (25-2, 16-2 MIAA) led from start to finish in the win, topping the Gorillas for the second time this season after a non-conference win in Topeka in an 89-71 win on Nov. 19.
The Ichabods jumped out to a 10-3 after Brayden Shorter started the scoring for the Ichabods and he hit his second one that put Washburn up 10-3. The Ichabods kept the Gorillas at arms-length the rest of the half, building a margin of eight points with 7:25 to play in the frame. Pitt State did cut the lead to one at 29-28 with 2:19 to play before the Ichabods scored 6 of the last 8 points of the half taking a 34-30 lead into the break.
Washburn shot 2 of 13 from the 3-point line in the first half, while the Gorillas hit 7 of 15 overall.
The Ichabods came back with an 8-2 run to start the second half building a lead of 10 at 42-32 before the Gorillas (16-11, 12-6 MIAA) scored eight points to pull within two with 15:08 to play, but a 17-4 run by the Ichabods over the next 7:34 of the game put Washburn up by 15 and the Gorillas would not get closer than 10 the rest of the way with two seconds to play.
Jacob Hanna led the Ichabods with a game-high 18 points, adding five boards in the win and scoring 11 in the first half. Shorter finished with 16, hitting four 3-pointers while Jack Bachelor scored 13 with four assists and Dillon Claussen scored nine off the bench. Michael Keegan scored five with five rebounds and four steals, giving him 158 for his career placing him in second place on the Ichabod all-time chart.
Avery Taggart scored 15 leading the Gorilla scorers.
For only the second time this season, the Ichabods were outrebounded in a game by a count of 36 to 33 by Pitt State.
Washburn finished 25 of 54 from the field for a 46 percent clip, hitting 13 of 24 in the second half. Defensively, the Ichabods held Pitt State to 9 of 28 shooting in the second half, including 2 of 12 from deep. Washburn also forced 22 turnovers leading to 26 Ichabod points. (Feb. 21, 2026) CLAREMORE, Okla. – The No. 3-ranked Washburn Ichabods wrapped up the regular season road portion of their schedule with an 81-64 road victory over Rogers State on Saturday afternoon, improving to 26-1 overall and 16-1 in MIAA play.
Washburn wasted little time asserting itself. An early 6-0 run set the tone as the Ichabods pounded the ball inside and converted in transition. Dillon Claussen established position on the block for a pair of quick buckets, and Bryson Smith attacked off the bounce to force the Hillcats into early foul trouble. The Ichabods never trailed, methodically building a lead that reached double digits midway through the first half.
 by defensive stops and crisp ball movement. Brady Christiansen buried a perimeter jumper, Jack Bachelor knocked down a three from the wing, and Claussen capped the surge with a strong finish inside.
By halftime, Washburn held a 40-28 advantage, shooting a blistering 55.2 percent in the opening 20 minutes.
The second half followed a similar script. Each time Rogers State threatened to chip away at the deficit, Washburn answered. Smith drew nine fouls on the afternoon and made a living at the free-throw line where he went 11-of-13 for the game. His 26-point effort was a Washburn career-best for the senior.
Claussen complemented Smith's production with 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting, adding four boards and tying a career high with six assists.
Off the bench, Marcus Glock provided a spark with 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including two 3-pointers. Jeremiah Jones added eight points and a team-high six rebounds, helping the Ichabods secure a 33-21 edge on the glass.
In total, Washburn shot 51.7 percent (31-of-60) from the field and converted 13-of-17 free throws. The Ichabods dominated the paint with a 42-26 scoring advantage inside and turned 13 Hillcat turnovers into 15 points. They also owned a 20-7 edge in second-chance points.
Defensively, Washburn limited Rogers State to 48 percent shooting overall and just 31.8 percent from three-point range.
  • The Ichabods are 1,734-1,138-2 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 734-329 since joining the conference and the NCAA.
• The Ichabods have recorded 32 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 526-104 (.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 finish the regular season hosting Missouri Southern at 1 p.m. in the MIAA Game of the Week facing the Lions on 38 The Spot in Kansas City. It will also be the final regular season home game for seniors Brady Christiansen, Sam Ungashick, Bryson Smith and Isaiah Saams-Hoy who will be honored in pregame festivities prior to the start of the live broadcast.