IPFW Plays At Cal Poly Thursday Night In California

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- IPFW will play on the road at Cal Poly of the Big West Conference in men's basketball on Thursday night, December 3, at the Mott Athletics Center in San Luis Obispo, California beginning at 10 p.m. ET. The Mastodons (6-2) of second-year head coach Jon Coffman will be looking to bounce back from a loss to Navy (75-53) last Sunday in Greensboro, North Carolina against the host Mustangs (4-2), who defeated IPFW last season in Fort Wayne (71-57). The backcourt trio of junior Mo Evans (14.6), redshirt-senior Max Landis (13.3) and redshirt-freshman John Konchar (11.6) have led IPFW in scoring through the first eight games. Cal Poly is coached by Joe Callero, who is in his seventh season, and the Mustangs have been led by seniors Joel Awich (15.5) and David Nwaba (12.3).

GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Date: Thursday, December 3, 2015 / 10 p.m. ET
Location: Mott Athletics Center / San Luis Obispo, California
Series History: Cal Poly leads, 1-0
TV: None
Radio: ESPN 1380 AM / Play-by-Play: Brett Rump
Video: gopoly.com (BigWest.TV)
Stats: gopoly.com
Audio: thefanindiana.com (ESPN 1380 Fort Wayne)

IPFW Quicks
• IPFW is playing Cal Poly for just the second time, and the Mustangs lead the series, 1-0, after a 71-57 road win last December 30 at the Gates Center in Fort Wayne.
• IPFW had its six-game winning streak stopped against Navy (75-53). The Mastodons are still enjoying their finest start to a season since first playing a Division I schedule in 2001-02, and the recent six-game streak was the second-best in the program's DI history.
• Junior Mo Evans and redshirt-senior Max Landis were each named to the Spartan Showcase All-Tournament Team (11/29) for their respective four-game efforts in the exempt event. Evans and Landis each averaged 13.5 points, while Evans added 4.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists, and Landis added 2.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists.
• IPFW has received a balanced scoring effort through eight games with three players averaging in double figures, including Mo Evans (14.6), Max Landis (13.3) and redshirt-freshman John Konchar (11.6). Konchar leads the team in rebounding (8.1) and steals (1.6), while Evans leads in three-point field goals (20) and assists (4.1).
• IPFW has had three different players score at least 20 points in a game this season, including John Konchar (28) and Mo Evans (20) at Austin Peay (11/18), along with senior Joe Reed (20) against SIUE (11/21).

Scouting The Mustangs
Cal Poly is 4-2 following a home win past Antelope Valley (85-55) last Saturday. The Mustangs also have a home win past CSU Monterey Bay (71-62), and neutral-site wins past Austin Peay (73-64) and UMBC (78-65), along with a pair of road losses at UNLV (74-72) and UCLA (88-83). Members of the Big West Conference, Cal Poly is coached by Joe Callero, who is in his seventh season. The Mustangs have two scoring in double-figures: seniors Joel Awich (15.5) and David Nwaba (12.3). Cal Poly has averaged 77.0 points, while allowing 68.0 points.

Scouting The Mastodons
IPFW is 6-2 after a neutral-site loss to Navy (75-53) last Sunday in Greensboro, North Carolina. The Mastodons had won six-straight previously following a season-opening road loss at Valparaiso (78-64), including road wins at UNCG (64-58), Miami (Ohio) (57-53) and Austin Peay (80-77), a neutral-site win past Jacksonville (71-63), along with home wins past SIUE (87-67) at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum and Manchester (85-53) at the Gates Center. The contests against Manchester, Jacksonville, UNCG and Navy were part of the Spartan Showcase hosted by UNCG. Members of the Summit League, IPFW is coached by Jon Coffman, who is in his second season as head coach, fifth year at the school and 19th overall. The Mastodons have three scoring in double-figures: junior Mo Evans (14.6), redshirt-senior Max Landis (13.3) and redshirt-freshman John Konchar (11.6). IPFW has averaged 70.1 points, while allowing 65.5 points.

Last Time Out
Mo Evans posted a game-high 19 points to lead IPFW, but it was not enough as Navy took a 75-53 win in Greensboro, North Carolina last Sunday. The Mastodons, playing their third game in less than 48 hours, trailed 41-25 at halftime before opening the second half with an 18-6 run to close to within 47-43 with 13:55 remaining. Evans (7) and Max Landis (6) combined for 13 quick points to spark the fast start by IPFW. Navy, however, responded with 12-straight points to lead 59-43 at 10:07. The Mastodons could only reduce the margin to 13 points on several occasions down the stretch, the last at 65-52 with 5:21 left to play on a layup by Joe Reed. The Midshipmen enjoyed their largest lead with the final margin.

Evans led IPFW with his game-high 19 points. Landis added 10 points and a game-high three assists for the Mastodons, followed by Reed with eight points and five rebounds, while Michael Calder finished with seven points, off the bench. IPFW shot 31% (14-45) from the field, including 23% (6-26) on three-point field goals and 70% (19-27) at the free throw line. Navy enjoyed a 45-14 advantage in points in the paint, and a 39-12 margin in bench points.

NCAA RPI Ratings
IPFW has an NCAA RPI of 132 as of Dec. 2, ranking sixth among Summit League members behind South Dakota State (79), Western Illinois (89), South Dakota (94), Oral Roberts (101) and North Dakota State (111). Cal Poly has an NCAA RPI of 165 as of Dec. 2, ranking fifth among Big West members behind Hawaii (48), Long Beach State (73), UC Santa Barbara (110) and UC Irvine (134).

NCAA Statistics
IPFW ranks eighth in Division I three-point field goal attempts (205), as of Dec. 2, as well as 14th in three-point field goals (71), 27th in free throw attempts (185), 33rd in free throws (126), 48th in assists (109), 52nd in rebounds (282), 57th in blocks (31), 58th in three-point field goals per game (8.9), 78th in winning percentage (.750), 79th in scoring defense (65.5), 93rd in steals (47) and 96th in three-point field goal percentage defense (.309). Max Landis ranks seventh nationally in minutes (277), 48th in three-point attempts (48) and 79th in three-pointers (18). Mo Evans ranks 36th in three-point attempts (50), 44th in three-pointers (20), 61st in assists (33), 64th in minutes (236) and 95th in points (117). John Konchar ranks 18th in minutes (265), 25th in rebounds (66), 55th in steals (13), 64th in double-doubles (2) and 70th in defensive rebounds (6.25). Brent Calhoun ranks 67th in blocks (12).

Up Next
IPFW will stop off in Salt Lake City, Utah to play another road game on this west coast trip at Utah on December 5 at 2 p.m. ET. The Mastodons will play their third consecutive road game at Indiana on Dec. 9 in Bloomington beginning at 7 p.m.

IPFW Plays At Cal Poly Thursday Night In California

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Players Mentioned

Michael Calder

Brent Calhoun

Mo Evans

John Konchar

Max Landis

Joe Reed

Purdue University Fort Wayne Athletics