Horizon League Men's Basketball Schedule (Jan. 30) - All times EST
Detroit at Wright State, 7 p.m. -- HLN
Valparaiso at Youngstown State, 7:05 p.m. -- ESPN3
Milwaukee at Loyola, 8 p.m. -- HLN
With six teams sitting within 2.5 games of one another, parity continues to reign in the Horizon League, just as it has for the last two seasons. As the nine teams hit the halfway point in the League schedule, one will be looking to continue to separate from the field, while several more will be looking to close the gaps and climb the ladder.
Two of those teams will start Wednesday's slate, where Detroit (13-8, 5-3 Horizon) meets Wright State (14-7, 5-3 Horizon) for the second time in nine days, this time at the Nutter Center. In the first meeting, the Raiders clamped down on the Titans, holding Detroit to just 64 possessions in the game in claiming a 64-62 win at Calihan Hall.
Now, Wright State will look for a series sweep and a potentially key tie-breaker in the League standings should it need it. Again, the Raiders will try and limit the number of possessions in the game; Detroit comes into the night averaging 71.7 possessions and 1.07 points per possession. Meanwhile, Wright State is holding opponents to 0.91 points per possession and 64.0 possessions per game.
It was Kendall Griffin who starred in the teams' first meeting, scoring a career-high 15 points at Detroit, while being part of a committee that helped limit Ray McCallum to eight points and a 2-of-7 shooting effort.
Across the state, the two longest winning streaks in the Horizon League will be on the line when Valparaiso (16-5, 6-1 Horizon) heads to Youngstown State (12-8, 4-3 Horizon). The Crusaders take a six-game winning streak to the Beeghly Center, while the Penguins are on a three-game streak.
At 16-5, Valparaiso is off to its best start at the Division I level, while the Crusaders' six-game winning streak in conference play since the 2004 season, prior to joining the Horizon League. After a month with its full roster, Valparaiso has gone 10-2, spurred by the addition of LaVonte Dority and the return to health of Ryan Broekhoff.
Broekhoff, the defending Horizon League Player of the Year, continues to rate as one of the nation's top offensive players, ranking 22nd with an offensive rating of 128.8. The senior's 67.1-percent true-shooting mark is 11th, while his 61.3 effective field-goal percentage is 44th. To boot, Broekhoff's 26.2 defensive rebounding percentage is 19th nationally.
Across the court from Broekhoff will be a fellow Preseason First Team All-League pick, Kendrick Perry. Perry enters Thursday night averaging 15.7 ppg and continues to build his resume as one of the top guards to play at Youngstown State. Perry ranks 22nd in YSU history with 1,104 career points, third with 152 steals and fifth with 329 assists.
On the interior, Valpo's Kevin Van Wijk will use his bruising style against YSU's Damian Eargle, who will counter with a wingspan that has carried him to 276 career blocks. Van Wijk draws an average of 7.1 fouls per 40 minutes, while Eargle sits sixth nationally with 3.45 blocks per game. Van Wijk did not play in last year's game at Youngstown State, in which the Penguins blitzed the Crusaders, 71-53.
In the nightcap, Loyola (12-8, 2-5 Horizon) will look to better a surprising League home record when Milwaukee (5-16, 1-6 Horizon) visits the Gentile Arena. In its last 40 Horizon League home games, the Ramblers have come away with just 10 victories.
However, Loyola will turn to its defense to shut down a Milwaukee attack that has run hot and cold throughout the year. The Ramblers have clamped down on the defensive glass, allowing offensive rebounds on just 27.3 percent of opponents' possessions. Where Loyola has excelled is an area in which the Panthers have struggled, ranking 216th nationally after grabbing offensive boards on 30.5 percent of their possessions.
After a strong start to the year offensively, Milwaukee has lost its rhythm over the last two months, stumbling to an adjusted offensive efficiency of 90.1.
For Loyola, freshman Devon Turk sits just two three-pointers from tying the Ramblers' freshman record after knocking down 40 in his first 20 career games. However, Turk will be going up against a Milwaukee defense that is allowing opponents to hit on just 28.7-percent of its three-point field goal attempts.
Down low, two seniors will go to work against one another, while two underclassmen will try to add supporting roles. Seniors Ben Averkamp (15.2 ppg, 6.5 rpg) and Demetrius Harris (8.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg) have been the most consistent performers on the blocks, while Loyola's Christian Thomas and Milwaukee's J.J. Panoske will each be trying to build on solid efforts from the last month.
Panoske nearly tallied his first career double-double last Friday with eight points and 10 boards versus Green Bay, while Thomas has been on a tear of late, averaging 12.9 ppg and 7.6 rpg over his last 11 games. Thomas had a career-high 21 versus Detroit last Saturday and has recorded a double-double in four of his last nine games.
