Men's Basketball Release #9

Dec. 31, 2007

Complete Release in PDF Format

Horizon League Player of the Week

Todd Brown, Wright State
Sophomore * Guard * Canton, Ohio (McKinley)
Todd Brown won Most Valuable Player honors after leading Wright State to the championship of the Dr Pepper Classic. Brown scored a career-high 26 points on 10-of-17 shooting Saturday as the Raiders outlasted Belmont 78-74. He also had six assists and two steals in that contest, and came back with 21 points in Sunday's 87-82 victory over host Chattanooga. For the week, Brown shot 55 percent (16-of-29) from the field with nine rebounds and seven assists.

Previous Players of the Week: Josh Mayo, UIC (Nov. 12); Cedric Jackson, CSU (Nov. 19); Mike Green, BU (Nov. 26); Matt Howard, BU (Dec. 3); Josh Mayo, UIC (Dec. 10); Samuel Haanpää (Dec. 17); Ryan Tillema, GB (Dec. 24).

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending December 30
Mike Green, Butler
Sr. * G * Philadelphia, Pa.
Green led the Bulldogs past Southern Illinois 57-55 on Friday, scoring 19 points and handing out four assists. He had seven of Butler's final 13 points as the Bulldogs handed SIU only its fifth home-court loss since 2001.

D'Aundray Brown, Cleveland State
Fr. * G * Youngstown, Ohio
Brown came off the bench to score a career-high ten points and grab six rebounds during the Vikings' 84-69 loss at Kent State on Saturday. He made three of six field-goal attempts and all four of his free-throw tries during a 19-minute stint.

Jon Goode, Detroit
Sr. * G * Flint, Mich.
Goode scored a season-high 25 points in the Titans' 70-64 loss to DePaul on Saturday. He was 9-of-17 from the field including seven three-pointers, while also posting six rebounds and four assists.

Mike Schachtner, Green Bay
Jr. * F * Somerset, Wis.
Schachtner led the Phoenix with 20 points against seventh-ranked Michigan State on Saturday, hitting the 20-point mark for the sixth time this year and the 15th in his career. He was 9-of-16 from the field with two three-pointers.

Justin Cerasoli, Loyola
Jr. * G * Chicago, Ill.
Cerasoli scored 17 points with six rebounds, five assists and four steals in only 21 minutes to lead Loyola past Saint Lary's (Minn.) on Saturday. He hit six of eight shots from the field including three-of-five from three-point range.

Paige Paulsen, Milwaukee
Sr. * F * Custer, S.D.
Paulsen led the Panthers with 26 points in Saturday's 80-66 victory at Wyoming. He connected on five three-pointers in reaching the 20-point mark for the fourth time this year while also collecting seven rebounds and four steals.

Robert Kreps, UIC
Fr. * G * Forsyth, Ill.
Kreps tied his career high with 19 points on eight-of-13 shooting from the field with three three-pointers in Saturday's 79-73 loss at Akron. Kreps scored 16 points in the second half to fuel a late comeback attempt.

Jarryd Loyd, Valparaiso
Sr. * G * Lincolnwood, Ill.
Loyd scored a career-best 24 points off the bench against top-ranked North Carolina on Sunday. The senior set personal-bests with nine field goals and five three-pointers in 31 minutes during the Crusaders' 90-58 loss.

Vytas Sulskis, Youngstown State
Fr. * G * Vilnius, Lithuania
Sulskis scored 12 points and collected a career-best eight rebounds in the Penguins' 77-63 victory over Slippery Rock on Saturday. He made three three-pointers among his four field goals to help YSU snap a five-game losing streak.

News From Around the League

Crusaders can't keep up with Tar Heels
Valparaiso dropped to 10-3 on the season following a 90-58 loss at top-ranked North Carolina on Sunday. Valpo missed its first 12 shots and spotted UNC a 13-0 lead 7:14 into the game but closed the first half on an 11-1 run to trail 36-31 at the break. The Crusaders eventually tied the game at 37-all, but a 27-2 flurry by UNC put the game out of reach.

Senior guard Jarryd Loyd led Valparaiso with a career-high 24 points including five three-pointers, but was the only Crusader in double figures. Freshman guard Michael Rogers added a season-high eight points.

Sunday's contest marked the fourth year in a row Valpo has played the nation's top-ranked team (Illinois in 2004-05, Duke in 2005-06, Ohio State last year).

The Crusaders shot a season-worst 35.4 percent from the field in Chapel Hill, N.C., but still feature four players averaging in double figures. Sophomore guard Samuel Haanpää took over the lead on the team charts at 11.5 points per game, just ahead of senior guard Shawn Huff (11.4) and Loyd (11.2). Junior forward Urule Igbavboa adds 10.6 points per game and is fourth in the League at 6.5 rebounds per contest.

Valpo puts a 12-game homecourt winning streak on the line Wednesday against NAIA entry Indiana Wesleyan before returning to Horizon League play Saturday at Butler.

Flames stumble on the road
UIC dropped to 8-5 on the season following a 79-73 loss at Akron on Saturday, snapping a five-game winning streak. The Flames are now 2-5 on the road, compared to 6-0 at home.

Freshman guard Robert Kreps matched his career high with 19 points, including 16 in the second half. Kreps was 7-of-8 from the floor in the final 20 minutes, including a pair of three-pointers. Kreps moved into double figures for the season, averaging 10.2 points per contest. That rate improves to 14.4---on 58 percent shooting from the floor---during his last seven outings.

Kreps and senior guard Robert Bush made their first starts of the season, with Bush also logging 19 points against the Zips. Bush had posted a total of 31 points in his first seven appearances this year prior to Saturday.

UIC was without sophomore guard Spencer Stewart (broken hand) and senior guard Karl White Jr. (sprained right ankle). Stewart, who ranks third in the League with a rate of 4.42 assists per game, will miss 4-6 weeks with his injury.

Junior guard Josh Mayo ranks second on the League scorng charts at 18.5 points per game. He finished with 12 points, and has reached double figures in 12 of 13 outings this winter.

UIC hits the road for two games this week, visiting Youngstown State on Thursday and Cleveland State on Saturday.

Vikings try to rebound from road loss
Cleveland State brings an 8-5 record into the new year, posting its second consecutive winning month despite an 84-69 loss at Kent State on Saturday. CSU, 4-3 in November and 4-2 in December, logged back-to-back winning months for the first time since January and February, 2001.

Junior guard Cedric Jackson leads the League in both assists (five per game) and steals (2.9 per outing). He could become only the fifth player in League history---and the first since 1993-94---to accomplish that feat. Jackson also averages 16.2 points per contest, sixth-best on the loop charts.

Junior center Chris Moore has made 15 consecuive field-goal attempts in the last five games. Moore boasts a .587 field-goal percentage for the season but is just short of the minimum (three field goals per game) required to qualify for the League leader charts.

CSU has not finished a season with a positive rebounding margin since 2000-01---and ranked last in the League in that category last year---but leads the circuit at plus-3.9 per outing this season. Junior forward J'Nathan Bullock leads the way at 5.8 caroms per contest. The Vikings average 13.9 offensive boards per game.

The Vikings begin the 2008 portion of the schedule with two home games this week, facing Loyola on Thursday and UIC on Saturday.

Bulldogs win showdown, climb to 12-1
Butler improved to 12-1 on the season with a 57-55 victory at Southern Illinois on Friday. The Bulldogs have won four games in a row and remain 16th in this week's Associated Press national poll and 17th in the latest ESPN/USA Today canvass.

Butler became the fourth non-conference foe to win at SIU since 1999 as the Salukis are now 82-5 in their last 87-5 at home since the start of the 2001-02 campaign.

Senior guard A.J. Graves made only two of six three-point attempts, but canned the game-winning trey at the buzzer. He finished with ten points to reach double figures for the 86th time in his career. Graves ranks fifth in the League with his 16.3 points-per-game scoring pace, and leads all active Horizon League players with 1,556 career points.

Butler made 20 free-throw attempts, while SIU was only 3-of-12 from the charity stripe. The Bulldogs have hit at least 20 free throws in each of their last four games.

Freshman forward Matt Howard added 15 points against the Salukis. He has scored in double figures in seven of Butler's last eight contests, averaging 13.9 points and 5.5 rebounds during that span.

Butler is idle until Saturday afternoon, when the Bulldogs host instate foe and current League co-leader Valparaiso.

Raiders continue winning ways
Wright State won the championship of the Dr Pepper Classic at Chattanooga, defeating Belmont 78-74 in overtime Saturday and the host school 87-82 on Sunday. The Raiders are now 8-5 overall, entering the week on a five-game winning streak after winning their first in-season tournament championship since 1992.

Junior guard Todd Brown was the tournament's Most Valuable Player, averaging 23.5 points in the two victories. He netted a career-high 26 points against Belmont, and shot 55 percent from the floor for the weekend. Brown has scored 20 or more points four times this season after hitting that mark only twice as a freshman.

Senior forward Scottie Wilson also garnered All-Tournament honors, posting 14 points---including ten in overtime---and 17 rebounds in Saturday's triumph. WIlson ranks second in the League in rebounding (7.6 per game) and should take over the top spot on that list this week. He also boasts a loop-best 61.2 percent field-goal mark.

Sophomore guard Vaughn Duggins scored 22 points in the title game, raising his pace to 15.1 points per outing. He is seventh in the League in that category, three spots ahead of Brown's 14.9 average.

Wright State returns home for two League contests this week, hosting Milwaukee on Thursday and Green Bay on Saturday.

Phoenix ready for home cooking
Green Bay stands at 7-5 overall following a 93-75 loss at #7/7 Michigan State on Saturday. The Phoenix played five of six games on the road in December, but has five of its next seven at the Resch Center, where Green Bay owns a perfect 4-0 record this year and a 56-23 ledger since the facility opened in November 2002.

Junior guard Mike Schachtner paced the Phoenix with 20 points on 9-of-16 shooting against the Spartans. He hit the 20-point mark for the sixth time this season and the 15th of his career. Schachtner leads the League in scoring at 19 points per game.

Junior guard Ryan Tillema added 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting Saturday, his first game since a career-high 33-point effort versus Northern Illinois the previous Saturday. Tillema's recent outbursts have raised his season scoring pace to 10.9 points per game.

Freshman guard Rahmon Fletcher handed out a career-high ten assists versus MSU. He scored 29 points against South Dakota State on Dec. 1, but has taken the role of distributor of late with 19 set-ups in his last two outings. Fletcher has taken over the team lead in that category with an average of 3.33 per game for the season.

Green Bay resumes Horizon League play this weekend, hosting Detroit on Thursday and Wright State on Saturday.

Ramblers close 2007 in style
Loyola opens the new year at 5-7 following an 89-45 rout of Saint Mary's (Minn.) on Saturday. The 44-point margin was Loyola's most lopsided victory since the Ramblers defeated Morgan State 105-55 on Dec. 14, 1991. Loyola's 89 points also marked the team's highest total since a 96-74 triumph over John Carroll on Nov. 17, 2006.

Fourteen players scored Saturday, led by junior guard Justin Cerasoli with 17 points, six rebounds, five assists and four steals. The transfer from the University of Mississippi is averaging 14.3 points per game in three outings since becoming eligible.

Junior forward Darrin Williams made the most of his first career start, logging personal-bests of seven points and 12 rebounds. Williams had 21 points and 12 boards in his first 11 appearances this winter. Senior guard Dave Telander added a dozen points, his highest single-game total since Dec. 18, 2004.

Junior guard J.R. Blount finished with 11 points in 16 minutes Saturday, and ranks eighth in the League in scoring at 15.1 points per game. Junior forward Leon Young is third on the loop's rebounding charts at 7.1 per outing.

The Ramblers travel east this week, with contests at Cleveland State on Thursday and at Youngstown State on Saturday. Loyola returns home to face Butler next Monday.

Penguins get back in win column
Youngstown State snapped a five-game losing streak Saturday, defeating Slippery Rock77-63 to improve to 4-7 on the season.

Freshman guard Vytas Sulskis scored 12 points and grabbed a season-high eight rebounds. YSU matched its season-low with nine turnovers.

Senior guard Byron Davis led the way with 15 points against SRU, continuing his strong play this season. Davis averages a team-best 14.7 points per game in 2007-08. He has reached double figures in scoring nine times already this season, matching his total for the entire 2006-07 campaign.

Senior forward John Barber added 13 points and eight rebounds for the Penguins. He is sixth on the League charts with an average of six rebounds per game while also scoring 12.6 points per contest.

Barber has scored in double figures nine times this year, while junior forward Jack Liles has seven double-figure outings and averages 11.5 points per contest. Liles had hit twin figures in five consecutive games before an eight-point showing in 18 minutes of action versus Slippery Rock.

YSU continues a four-game homestand, hosting UIC on Thursday and Loyola on Saturday before closing the Beeghly Center run on Monday versus Milwaukee.

Panthers return to win column
Milwaukee owns a 5-7 record after defeating Wyoming 80-66 on Saturday for its second victory in a row. The Panthers are also 2-3 on the road this year after posting a 2-15 mark away from home last winter.

Senior forward Paige Paulsen paced the Panthers with 26 points, hitting five three-pointers while adding seven rebounds and four steals. Paulsen hit the 20-point mark for the fourth time in 2007-08, and leads active players on the UWM roster with rates of 14.7 points and 6.4 boards per game this year.

Freshman guard Deonte Roberts set collegiate bests with 17 points and nine assists on Saturday. The nine set-ups were the most by a Panther since Clay Tucker registered nine versus Green Bay in 2003. Roberts has 21 assists in his last four outings after posting 14 in his first eight games.

Milwaukee committed only eight turnovers at Wyoming, the team's second-best showing in that department this year. The Panthers also shot 46 percent from the field Saturday, marking the third time this year UWM has accomplished that feat. Milwaukee shot 47.5 percent versus Upper Iowa on Nov. 9 and 47 percent against South Dakota State on Nov. 11.

UWM hosts Wright State on Thursday and closes a two-game homestand Saturday against Detroit.

Titans still trying to end losing streak
Detroit fell to 4-8 on the season after suffering its sixth consecutive loss, a 70-64 setback at home against DePaul on Saturday. The Titans finished the month of December at 0-6 after a 4-2 start in November.

Detroit's last six opponents have combined to shoot 52.7 percent from the field and average 70.5 points per game. UDM's defense allowed only 44.1 percent shooting and 61.8 points per contest in November. The Titans have also shot just 39.1 percent from the floor in the last six games, compared to 48.7 percent in November.

Senior guard Jon Goode scored a season-high 25 points against the Blue Demons, hitting the 20-point mark for the League-best seventh time this year. Goode, who ranks fourth in the League in scoring at 17.3 points per game, needs 67 points to reach 1,000 for his career.

Junior forward Chris Hayes is the only other Titan in double figures at 10.5 points per game.

Detroit set season-highs with 16 three-pointers and 32 attempts behind the arc on Saturday. Both numbers were the most for a Titan team since UDM finished 18-of-32 versus Milwaukee on Feb. 26, 2000. The Titans had only six two-point baskets in 28 tries against DePaul.

The Titans travel to Wisconsin for a pair of games this week. Detroit resumes Horizon League play at Green Bay on Thursday before a Saturday contest at Milwaukee.

Teams hope to change fortunes as well as calendar
As any calendar year draws to a close, many people make resolutions to make improvements during the New Year.

Several Horizon League teams followed through on that commitment in 2007, as the ten current members posted a 168-135 (.554) composite record in the last 12 months, compared to a 162-163 (.498) ledger in 2006. Of course, 79 wins (and 79 losses) came in head-to-head action last year---71 in regular-season League play and eight more during the Horizon League Championship. That leaves the League's ten teams with a 97-64 record outside the circuit---an impressive .602 winning percentage.

Butler won 80 percent of its 35 games played in 2007, a year that included the Bulldogs' run to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16. Wright State recorded its first-ever Horizon League championship in 2007, part of a calendar that included a .774 winning percentage---compared to .516 in the previous year.

Four other teams took steps forward in 2007, with Valparaiso winning 67.7 percent of its games (compared to a 16-16 mark in 2006), Green Bay improving from 17-15 (.532) to 17-14 (.548), UIC climbing from 15-18 (.455) to 15-15 (.500) and Cleveland State jumping from 12-21 (.364) to 12-17 (.414).

Horizon League Men's Basketball Records for Calendar Year 2007
Team - 2007 Rec./Pct. * 2006 Rec./Pct.
1. Butler 28- 7 / .800 * 26- 9 / .743
2. Wright State 24- 7 / .774 * 16-15 / .516
3. Valparaiso 21-10 / .677 * 16-16 / .500
4. Loyola 17-13 / .567 * 19-14 / .576
5. Green Bay 17-14 / .548 * 17-15 / .532
6. UIC 15-15 / .500 * 15-18 / .455
7. Cleveland State 12-17 / .414 * 12-21 / .364
8. Detroit 12-18 / .400 * 13-17 / .433
9. Milwaukee 11-17 / .393 * 17-18 / .486
9. Youngstown State 11-17 / .393 * 11-20 / .355
-- Composite 168-135/.554 * 162-163/.498