Saturday, January 21
Cedar City, Utah
9:30 p.m.
Purdue Fort Wayne
at
Southern Utah
Photo by: Lucas Carter
Mastodons Close Western Swing in Cedar City
1/20/2012 8:44:00 PM | Men's Basketball
PRE-GAME NOTES
CEDAR CITY, Utah - The IPFW Mastodons close its longest weekend of the season as the squad takes on the Thunderbirds of Southern Utah University in a 9:30 p.m. EST tip-off at the Centrum Arena.
Opponent: Southern Utah Thunderbirds (9-10, 4-5 Summit League)
When: Saturday, January 21, 2012 | 9:30 p.m. EST
Where: Cedar City, Utah | Centrum Arena (5,300)
Radio: ESPN 1380 AM (Mike Maahs, play-by-play)
Live Stats: SUU Live Stats
Streaming Video: T-Bird Zone (subscription required)
SCOUTING THE THUNDERBIRDS
Southen Utah comes into Saturday's game having won two of its last three games, with the only loss coming at the hands of Oakland on Thursday evening by a 72-63 score in Cedar City. Overall this season, Southern Utah has a 3-4 record at home, including an 0-3 Summit League record on their home court.
Against Oakland, Ramell Taylor scored a team-high 17 points, making 6-of-16 shots from the field, while Damon Heuir socred 11 and Ray Jones Jr. scored nine. Matt Massey pulled down six rebounds, as the Thunderbirds were out-rebounded 34-to-29. Jones Jr. dished out four assists, while also blocking two shots.
For the season the T-Birds put three players into a double-figure scoring average, while two others are just off of the pace. Jackson Stevenett averages a team-best 13.7 points per game, while Taylor and Heuir average 13.4 and 10.9 points per game, each. Massey and Jones Jr. average 9.8 and 9.5, giving SUU five players that average at or near double figures per game.
Stevenett pulls down 5.1 rebounds per game, while Rammell grabs 4.7 and Jones Jr. 4.2, with the Thunderbirds out-rebounding their opponents by an average of 2.5 rebounds per game. Jones Jr. has a team-best 101 assists against just 50 turnovers, while Heuir has 49 helpers. Jones Jr. leads the squad with 23 steals, as Stevenett has a team-best 14 blocked shots.
SERIES vs. SOUTHERN UTAH
IPFW and Southern Utah have met ten times previously on the basketball court, including earlier this season, with IPFW holding a 7-3 advantage in the all-time series. The two teams split their first four games, before IPFW ran off four straight wins, and five wins in the last six games.
EARLIER vs. SOUTHERN UTAH
The IPFW bench out-scored the Southern Utah bench 40-to-10 on Tuesday evening, as the Mastodons opened the 2012 calendar year with a 79-58 victory over the Thunderbirds, snapping a season-long three-game losing streak for IPFW.
The win improves the IPFW record to 8-6 overall, and 2-3 in the Summit League. Southern Utah evens its record at 7-7 on the year an 2-2 in league play.
Trey McCorkle and Frank Gaines scored 18 and 12 points, each, to lead the 'Dons; however, it was the depth off of the bench of 11 points from Michael Kibiloski, 10 from Mario Hines, nine from Justin Jordan, and eight from Isaiah McCray, that led IPFW to the 21-point win.
Hines pulled down nine rebounds, one shy of a double-double, while Frank Gaines added eight. Jonny Marlin dished out five assists, with Hines giving out three scores, as Jason Smeathers had a game-high three steals.
LAST TIME OUT
Leading 31-29 at halftime, the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles out-scored IPFW by 13 points in the second half, behind 21 second-half tallies from Dominique Morrison, as the Eagles topped the 'Dons 65-54 at the Mabee Center.
The loss evens IPFW's record to 9-9 on the season, and 3-6 in the Summit League, while Oral Roberts improves to 17-4 overall, and a perfect 9-0 record at the halfway point of the conference season.
Frank Gaines scored a team-high 17 points, making 6-of-10 shots from the field, while Trey McCorkle scored 11, and Antwaun Boyd eight. Gaines pulled down a team-leading seven rebounds, with three others; John Peckinpaugh, McCorkle, and Justin Jordan, pulling down five caroms. Jordan dished out a team-leading three assists, with Gaines grabbing a pair of steals.
Hines and Isaiah McCray pulled down five rebounds to lead the team, with IPFW out-rebounding Oakland 34-to-28, while Jordan led the team with four assists.
HIGH SCORER
According to the latest NCAA Statistical rankings (1/19/12), IPFW junior Frank Gaines currently ranks 14th in the country in points per game, averaging 20.2 per contest. He has reached the 20-point plateau in 11 of the team's 18 games this season, including scoring a career-high 30 points against Western Illinois on January 7. In all, the Summit League has five scorers inside of the top-15 overall, with Oakland's Reggie Hamilton leading the league and is third in the country.
~ Feel The Rumble ~
CEDAR CITY, Utah - The IPFW Mastodons close its longest weekend of the season as the squad takes on the Thunderbirds of Southern Utah University in a 9:30 p.m. EST tip-off at the Centrum Arena.
Opponent: Southern Utah Thunderbirds (9-10, 4-5 Summit League)
When: Saturday, January 21, 2012 | 9:30 p.m. EST
Where: Cedar City, Utah | Centrum Arena (5,300)
Radio: ESPN 1380 AM (Mike Maahs, play-by-play)
Live Stats: SUU Live Stats
Streaming Video: T-Bird Zone (subscription required)
SCOUTING THE THUNDERBIRDS
Southen Utah comes into Saturday's game having won two of its last three games, with the only loss coming at the hands of Oakland on Thursday evening by a 72-63 score in Cedar City. Overall this season, Southern Utah has a 3-4 record at home, including an 0-3 Summit League record on their home court.
Against Oakland, Ramell Taylor scored a team-high 17 points, making 6-of-16 shots from the field, while Damon Heuir socred 11 and Ray Jones Jr. scored nine. Matt Massey pulled down six rebounds, as the Thunderbirds were out-rebounded 34-to-29. Jones Jr. dished out four assists, while also blocking two shots.
For the season the T-Birds put three players into a double-figure scoring average, while two others are just off of the pace. Jackson Stevenett averages a team-best 13.7 points per game, while Taylor and Heuir average 13.4 and 10.9 points per game, each. Massey and Jones Jr. average 9.8 and 9.5, giving SUU five players that average at or near double figures per game.
Stevenett pulls down 5.1 rebounds per game, while Rammell grabs 4.7 and Jones Jr. 4.2, with the Thunderbirds out-rebounding their opponents by an average of 2.5 rebounds per game. Jones Jr. has a team-best 101 assists against just 50 turnovers, while Heuir has 49 helpers. Jones Jr. leads the squad with 23 steals, as Stevenett has a team-best 14 blocked shots.
SERIES vs. SOUTHERN UTAH
IPFW and Southern Utah have met ten times previously on the basketball court, including earlier this season, with IPFW holding a 7-3 advantage in the all-time series. The two teams split their first four games, before IPFW ran off four straight wins, and five wins in the last six games.
EARLIER vs. SOUTHERN UTAH
The IPFW bench out-scored the Southern Utah bench 40-to-10 on Tuesday evening, as the Mastodons opened the 2012 calendar year with a 79-58 victory over the Thunderbirds, snapping a season-long three-game losing streak for IPFW.
The win improves the IPFW record to 8-6 overall, and 2-3 in the Summit League. Southern Utah evens its record at 7-7 on the year an 2-2 in league play.
Trey McCorkle and Frank Gaines scored 18 and 12 points, each, to lead the 'Dons; however, it was the depth off of the bench of 11 points from Michael Kibiloski, 10 from Mario Hines, nine from Justin Jordan, and eight from Isaiah McCray, that led IPFW to the 21-point win.
Hines pulled down nine rebounds, one shy of a double-double, while Frank Gaines added eight. Jonny Marlin dished out five assists, with Hines giving out three scores, as Jason Smeathers had a game-high three steals.
LAST TIME OUT
Leading 31-29 at halftime, the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles out-scored IPFW by 13 points in the second half, behind 21 second-half tallies from Dominique Morrison, as the Eagles topped the 'Dons 65-54 at the Mabee Center.
The loss evens IPFW's record to 9-9 on the season, and 3-6 in the Summit League, while Oral Roberts improves to 17-4 overall, and a perfect 9-0 record at the halfway point of the conference season.
Frank Gaines scored a team-high 17 points, making 6-of-10 shots from the field, while Trey McCorkle scored 11, and Antwaun Boyd eight. Gaines pulled down a team-leading seven rebounds, with three others; John Peckinpaugh, McCorkle, and Justin Jordan, pulling down five caroms. Jordan dished out a team-leading three assists, with Gaines grabbing a pair of steals.
Hines and Isaiah McCray pulled down five rebounds to lead the team, with IPFW out-rebounding Oakland 34-to-28, while Jordan led the team with four assists.
HIGH SCORER
According to the latest NCAA Statistical rankings (1/19/12), IPFW junior Frank Gaines currently ranks 14th in the country in points per game, averaging 20.2 per contest. He has reached the 20-point plateau in 11 of the team's 18 games this season, including scoring a career-high 30 points against Western Illinois on January 7. In all, the Summit League has five scorers inside of the top-15 overall, with Oakland's Reggie Hamilton leading the league and is third in the country.
~ Feel The Rumble ~
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