Men's Basketball Weekly Release #12

Jan. 22, 2007

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Horizon League Player of the Week

Paige Paulsen, UW-Milwaukee
Junior * Forward * Custer, S.D. (Custer / Northern Illinois University)
Paulsen led the Panthers to victories over both of last week's League co-leaders, averaging 17.5 points and nine rebounds in the two games. The junior forward scored 18 points on eight-of-13 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds to pace UW-Milwaukee to a 76-65 triumph over UIC on Wednesday. He followed that performance with his second double-double of the year, posting 17 points and ten rebounds in a 73-69 triumph over Wright State on Sunday.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending January 21

A.J. Graves, Butler
Jr. * G * Switz City, Ind.
Graves returned to the starting line-up to score 28 points in Butler's 80-59 victory over UW-Green Bay on Saturday. He had 21 in the first half, hitting five of six three-point attempts in the opening 20 minutes.

Brandon Cotton, Detroit
Jr. * G * Detroit, Mich.
Cotton scored 22 points in each of the Titans' games last week, pacing UDM to a split against the Chicago schools. Cotton shot 52 percent (17-of-33) from the field, adding five rebounds and three assists in the two contests.

Othyus Jeffers, UIC
So. * G * Milwaukee, Wis.
Jeffers averaged 19 points and seven rebounds, shooting 64 percent (14-of-22) from the field in two games last week. He posted his seventh double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds versus UW-Milwaukee on Wednesday.

Blake Schilb, Loyola
Sr. * G * Rantoul, Ill.
Schilb scored 21 points with seven assists in the Ramblers' 70-64 victory at Detroit on Wednesday, and moved into fifth place on LU's all-time scoring list with 13 points to help Loyola past IPFW, 69-53, on Saturday.

Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay
Sr. * G * Beaver Falls, Pa.
Evanochko scored a team-high 21 points on eight-of-11 shooting from the field at Butler on Saturday. He reached the 20-point mark for the sixth time this season, posting the second-highest total by a visitor at Hinkle Fieldhouse this year.

DaShaun Wood, Wright State
Sr. * G * Detroit, Mich.
Wood registered 47 points in two games, hitting the 20-point mark for the ninth and tenth times this season. He finished with 26 in a victory over Cleveland State and added 21 (with ten rebounds) in Sunday's loss at UW-Milwaukee.

Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State
Sr. * G * Ellenwood, Ga.
Humphrey led the Penguins to a 68-63 victory over Cleveland State with 22 points and ten rebounds on Saturday. He was 7-for-16 from the field with a season-high four three-pointers in that contest.

Positions Up For Grabs at Midpoint of League Schedule

Butler (5-1) and Wright State (5-2) stand atop the League standings as the mid-point of the schedule nears, but a lot can change as both teams face critical portions of the loop schedule in the next two weeks.

The Bulldogs play five games in a ten-day span, beginning Thursday at Loyola. Butler returns to the sites of three of its League losses last year during the stretch, also visiting Detroit on Saturday and traveling to Youngstown State next Wednesday (Jan. 31). BU hosts UIC next Monday (Jan. 29), hoping to exact revenge after the Flames outlasted Butler 73-67 in overtime at the UIC Pavilion on Jan. 10.

Wright State faces a similarly daunting schedule, as the Raiders face a three-game road swing after hosting Youngstown State on Wednesday. WSU starts the trek with Saturday's contest at Loyola, ahead of match-ups at UW-Green Bay and Detroit next week.

Those road trips could make or break the current leaders, considering home teams are 23-9 in League play so far this season. Butler and Wright State each have unblemished slates through four home dates, with Loyola 3-0 at the Gentile Center.

The 72-game loop slate reaches the mid-way point this week, with all nine teams entering the second half of the schedule by the end of the week. UIC and Loyola share third place in the standings with matching 4-3 records, while Youngstown State and UW-Milwaukee are 4-4.

Loyola's two home dates against the current front-runners put the Ramblers in position to climb the standings rapidly, with UIC traveling to UW-Green Bay and hosting Cleveland State this week. Detroit can also make a run with four consecutive home games in League play, beginning Thursday versus UW-Milwaukee.

That game is the first of three in five days for the Panthers, who host UW-Green Bay before a national ESPN2 audience on Saturday.

News From Around the League

Bulldogs extend homecourt win streak
Butler climbed to 17-2 overall and 5-1 in the League by defeating Youngstown State (67-39) and UW-Green Bay (80-59). The Bulldogs, ranked 14th in the nation by AP and 11th according to ESPN/USA Today, have now won 19 consecutive home games, the ninth-longest active streak in Division I. Butler's nine home wins this year have come by an average of 18.2 points.

Junior guard A.J. Graves returned to the starting line-up against the Phoenix and scored 21 of his game-high 28 points in the first half. Graves missed last Saturday's game and was limited to 13 minutes off the bench versus YSU following surgery to remove all four wisdom teeth, but hit five three-pointers in the opening 20 minutes Saturday. He now has 1,088 career points.

Graves also made all nine free-throw attempts versus UWGB, extending his streak to 63 in a row---the fourth-longest streak in NCAA history. He leads the nation at 98.9 percent for the season, and ranks second in the League with an 18.6 points-per-game scoring pace as well as fourth with 1.56 steals per outing.

Junior forward Pete Campbell has come off the bench to score in double figures in each of the last five games. He had a career-high 17 points to lead BU against Youngstown State and finished with 14 versus UW-Green Bay. Campbell is 19-of-30 from three-point range in averaging 13.2 points during his five-game run---compared to 2.8 points per contest earlier.

Junior guard Mike Green registered his third double-double with 16 points and ten boards against YSU. Green is second on the Bulldog charts with 13.4 points per game, along with team-high averages of 5.3 rebounds and 4.05 assists per contest. The latter number ranks fourth in the League.

BU leads the League defensively, holding opponents to 55.6 points per game. Youngstown State was the ninth team Butler has held to 50 or fewer points this season.

Raiders split two games on the road
Wright State carries a 12-8 overall record into the week, including a 5-2 mark in League play following a 78-67 victory at Cleveland State and a 73-69 loss at UW-Milwaukee on Sunday.

Senior guard DaShaun Wood surpassed the 20-point mark in each game, netting 26 against the Vikings and posting a 21-point 10-rebound double-double in MIlwaukee. Wood leads the League with ten 20-point games this season, and ranks among the circuit's top five players in three of the five main statistical categories---first in scoring (19.4 points per game), second in steals (1.80 per outing) and fifth in assists (3.50 per contest).

In his last ten games, Wood---a nominee for the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award as the best player in the nation under six feet tall---is averaging 20.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists. He is shooting 51 percent (18-of-35) from three-point range and 97.9 percent (46-of-47) from the free-throw line during that time.

Wood is the lone Raider averaging in double figures, although two freshmen are approaching that mark as guards Vaughn Duggins and Todd Brown add 9.1 and 8.1 points, respectively. Brown had 14 points at Cleveland, his sixth twin-figure game in his last nine appearances.

Since joining the starting line-up seven games ago, Brown has averaged 12.3 points per outing---compared to his 5.8 pace in the first 13 contests of the season.

Junior forward Jordan Pleiman is tenth on the loop rebounding charts at 5.7 caroms per outings, and owns a .548 field-goal percentage which puts him second on that chat.

Wright State shot 54.4 percent (31-of-57) from the field at CSU, the Raiders' third consecutive game over 50 percent. WSU is 5-1 this season when making at least half of its shots. The Raiders have won nine of their last 12 games, due in part to a defense which has allowed only one of those foes to shoot better than 47 percent.

Ramblers get back on winning side
Loyola improved to 13-7 overall with victories at Detroit (70-64) and versus IPFW (69-53) last week. The triumph at Detroit was Loyola's first in 14 tries, dating back to 1992. It also lifted the Ramblers to 4-3 in League play.

Senior guard Blake Schilb scored 21 points, and handed out seven assists against the Ttians and added 13 points versus IPFW to move into fifth place on LU's all-time scoring charts with 1,637 career points. Schilb has now reached the 20-point mark five times this year and ranks ninth in the League at 15.1 points per game in 2006-07. His 3.74 assists-per-game rate is fourth-best on that list.

Senior guard Majak Kou recorded the first double-double of his career Saturday, collecting 17 points and a career-high 11 rebounds against IPFW. He is averaging 13.3 points per game, joining Schilb and sophomore guard J.R. Blount (14.1) in double figures for the Ramblers.

Loyola boasts the League's highest-scoring offense at 72.7 points per game, and the Rambler defense has held eight of the last 14 opponents below the 70-point mark. LU also tops the League charts with a .466 field-goal percentage.

Sophomore forward Leon Young averaged 15 points of the bench in the two games last week, and has now reached double figures in 11 of 18 games this year. He leads the League with a .583 field-goal percentage and is seventh in rebounding at 6.4 per game---four spots behind freshman teammate Andy Polka (6.9).

Flames doused by UWM, Detroit
UIC fell from first place in the standings with a 76-65 loss at UW-Milwaukee and Saturday's 66-54 setback versus Detroit. The Flames enter the week at 4-3 in the League and 9-11 overall.

Junior forward Othyus Jeffers logged his seventh double-double of the year with 23 points and 11 rebounds at UWM. His seven double-doubles are second only to Detroit's Ryvon Covile (12) on the League charts.

Jeffers is the circuit's sixth-leading scorer, averaging 15.8 points per game this season. He also stands second behind Covile with an average of 8.7 rebounds per contest, while shooting 51 percent from the field.

Junior guard T.J. Gray leads all League players with a rate of 3.16 three-pointers per game. A 45 percent shooter from behind the arc, Gray averages 12.1 points per game with sophomore guard Josh Mayo adding 11.7 points per outing. Freshman Spencer Stewart is the team's leading distributor, averaging 3.21 assists per game.

Sophomore center Scott VanderMeer needs only one blocked shot to match the school's single-season record. He has 66 rejections this year, a pace of 3.30 per game for the season. In League play, that rate has increased to 4.14 per outing. In fact, no other League team can match his 29 blocks in loop play.

UIC boasts the League's second-highest-scoring team at 71.7 points per game, but the Flames' defensive yield of 71.8 per outing ranks at the bottom of the loop charts.

Penguins approaching double digits
Youngstown State stands at 9-11 overall and 4-4 in the League after splitting two games last week. The Penguins fell 67-39 at Butler but came back for a 68-63 victory over Cleveland State on Saturday.

The Penguins' nine victories match their highest output in six years as a League member. YSU last hit the ten-win mark in 2000-01, finishing at 19-11 overall.

Senior guard Quin Humphrey posted his first double-double of the season with 22 points and 12 rebounds versus CSU. Humphrey, who needs eight points to enter the school's all-time top ten scoring list, ranks fourth in the League in both scoring (17.5 points per game) and rebounding (6.8 per contest). He has eight games of 20 points or more this season, and reached double digits for the 74th time in 103 career games, including 70 of his last 76.

Senior guard Keston Roberts stands one rung below Humphrey on the scoring ladder at 16.4 points per game after his 20-point effort Saturday.

Junior guard Byron Davis dished out six assists Saturday, lifting his season rate to 3.42 per game---sixth-best in the League. Junior forward John Barber finished with a season-high 18 points against the Vikings.

YSU is 9-0 this season when limiting opponents to less than 40 percent shooting, but 0-11 when allowing opponents to shoot 40 percent or better.

Panthers knock off League co-leaders
UW-Milwaukee made the most of a two-game homestand last week, defeating the two teams which shared the League lead. After posting a 76-65 victory over UIC and holding off Wright State for a 73-69 victory Sunday, the Panthers are at 4-4 in League play and 7-14 overall.

UWM won consecutive games for the first time this season. Wednesday's victory over UIC featured a school-record 12 three-pointers in the first half. That barrage eclipsed the previous standard of 11, set in 2001 at Colorado and matched in 2004 versus Prairie View A&M.

Sophomore guard Ricky Franklin has reached double figures in five of his last six games, averaging 12 points per game during that run.

Junior guard Avery Smith ranks eighth on the League scoring charts at 15.4 points per game, hitting 46.3 percent of his shots from the field. Junior forward Paige Paulsen adds 11.6 points per game and stands eighth in the circuit at 6.3 rebounds per contest. Paulsen posted a double-double with 17 points and ten rebounds in the victory over Wright State on Sunday. He also reached double figures in both categories in his UWM debut versus Radford on Nov. 10.

Junior guard Allan Hanson's average of 2.95 assists per game puts him eighth in the League in that category. He owns the circuit's second-best assist-to-turnover ratio with two helpers for every miscue (62-31) this season.

The Panther bench has outscored the opposition's reserves in 19 of 21 games this season.

Titans rebound from home loss
Detroit split a pair of games last week, moving to 6-12 overall and 3-4 in the League. The Titans suffered a 70-64 loss at home to Loyola on Wednesday, but came back Saturday to defeat UIC, 66-54.

Junior guard Brandon Cotton scored 22 points in each game, shooting 52 percent (17-of-33) from the field. He has now scored 20 or more points nine times this season, the second-highest total in the League (Wright State's DaShaun Wood has ten such efforts). Six of those performances have come in the Titans' last seven games, a run in which he has averaged 21.9 points per outing.

Cotton ranks third on the League scoring charts, averaging 18.1 points per game while lifting his career total to 1,248 points.

Senior forward Ryvon Covile leads the Horizon League with 12 double-doubles and his average of 11.4 rebounds per game (third-best in the nation). Covile, who missed all of last season due to injury, also provides 11.4 points and 1.72 blocked shots per game, with the former number featuring 52 percent shooting from the field.

Junior guard Zach Everingham handed out a career-high eight assists against Loyola, with sophomore Chris Hayes scoring a collegiate-high 14 points in that game.

Titan coach Perry Watson owns a 249-168 record, needing one more victory to reach the 250 mark. In his first 13 seasons at UDM, Watson has led his teams to ten winning seasons, including three 25-win campaigns.

Phoenix preparing for national audience
UW-Green Bay lost its only game last week, an 80-59 setback at Butler on Saturday, to fall to 10-9 on the season and 2-4 in League play. The Phoenix hosts UIC in midweek action before facing instate rival UW-Milwaukee in front of a national (ESPN2) television audience.

The loss at Butler came despite UWGB's 54.1 percent shooting from the floor. It marked the team's second-best shooting night of the season, behind only a .545 effort versus Central Michigan on December 9.

Senior guard Ryan Evanochko scored 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting Saturday, and now needs only 16 more to reach the 1,000 mark for his career. That would come this week if Evanochko maintains his current rate of 15.5 points per game (seventh-best in the League). He also tops the circuit at 5.05 assists per contest.

Sophomore forward Terry Evans is also a League-leader, owning a 2.16 steals-per-game average which tops the loop charts. In addition, Evans stands sixth in rebounding (6.5 per game) and fourth in blocked shots (1.16 per outing).

Sophomore forward Mike Schachtner adds 13.5 points per game. Schachtner is also the third UW-Green Bay player with a League-high ranking, shooting a loop-best 47.5 percent from three-point range. He is the only player ranked among the League's top ten on all three shooting percentage charts, also standing third in free-throw percentage (.903) and fourth in field-goal accuracy (.506).

Vikings come up short versus Ohio rivals
Cleveland State begins the week at 7-14 overall and 1-7 in the League after a pair of losses last week. CSU dropped a 78-67 decision to Wright State on Thursday and fell 68-63 at Youngstown State on Saturday.

Sophomore forward J'Nathan Bullock averaged 19.5 points in the two contests, including a 21-point performance against the Raiders. He now stands tenth in the League in scoring at 14.3 points per game, while his 6.6 rebounds-per-contest norm puts him fifth on that League chart. Bullock hit half of his 26 shots from the field and 13 of 16 free throws last week.

Sophomore guard Bahadaar Russell continued his strong play in place of senior guard Carlos English. After scoring 17 points against Wright State and 11 at Youngstown State, Russell is averaging 16.3 points in three games as a starter, shooting 37.5 percent (12-of-32) from three-point range.

Freshman guard Joe Davis was the third Viking in double figures in both games last week, tallying 17 points Thursday and 12 more on Saturday. Davis has now reached double figures ten times in 2006-07, and is just under that rate for the season at 9.8 points per game.

Senior guard Victor Morris returned to the line-up after missing eight games with a broken foot suffered at Ohio State on Dec. 9. His return came 34 days after the surgery that implanted a screw in his right foot. Morris played 24 minutes versus Youngstown State, scoring two points.

Crusaders face busy week
Valparaiso---which officially joins the Horizon League in 2007-08---stands at 8-10 overall (3-2 in the Mid-Continent Conference) following a 78-60 victory over Western Illinois last Thursday. Valpo has three games slated for this week, beginning Monday versus IPFW.

Freshman guard Samuel Haanpaa scored a career-high 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Haanpaa has made five triples in each of his last three gaes and ranks third in the Mid-Con as a 44 percent shooter from the tri-light zone. As a team, Valpo hit 12 of 16 tries from 19-9 and beyond. Haanpaa is averaging 15.1 points over his last eight games, reaching double figures seven times during that span.

Sophomore Brandon McPherson leads the Crusader perimeter attack, topping the Mid-Con charts with his 56.0 percent clip from behind the arc. A 55 percent shooter from the field, McPherson scored 16 points and also handed out seven assists versus WIU.

McPherson is one of four Valparaiso players averaging double figures at 12.1 points per contest. Haanpaa is next at 11.6, followed by junior guard Shawn Huff (10.4) and sophomore forward Urule Igbavboa (10.3). Huff hit his first seven shots against Western Illinois, finishing with 18 points plus a game-high seven rebounds.

Veteran head coach Homer Drew is nearing the 300-victory mark at Valpo, owning a 294-235 record in 18 years at the school. His career ledger stands at 563-357 in 30 seasons.

On the Horizon This Week:

Monday, January 22
IPFW at Valparaiso, 8:05 p.m.

Wednesday, January 24
Youngstown State at Wright State, 7 p.m. - *
UIC at UW-Green Bay, 8:05 p.m. - *
Thursday, January 25
UW-Milwaukee at Detroit, 7:05 p.m. - *
#14 Butler at Loyola, 8 p.m. - *
Valparaiso at UMKC, 8 p.m.

Saturday, January 27
UW-Green Bay at UW-Milwaukee, 2 p.m. - * (ESPN2)
Cleveland State at UIC, 3 p.m. - *
Wright State at Loyola, 5 p.m. - *
#14 Butler at Detroit, 4:05 p.m. - *
Valparaiso at Southern Utah, 9:35 p.m.

ALL TIMES EASTERN / rankings noted are from Jan. 22 AP poll

* - Horizon League games