Men's Basketball Weekly Release #14

Feb. 6, 2006

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Horizon League Player of the Week

DaShaun Wood, Wright State
Junior Guard * Detroit, Mich.
Wood scored a career-high 35 points, including the 1,000th of his career, in the Raiders' victory over Youngstown State on Monday and added 17 more to help WSU defeat League-leader UW-Milwaukee on Thursday. He finished the week with a 20-point performance as Wright State knocked off UW-Green Bay. For the week, he averaged 24 points per game on 49 percent (23-of-47) shooting, adding 4.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists per contest.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending February 5

A.J. Graves, Butler
Sophomore Guard * Switz City, Ind.
Graves helped lead the Bulldogs to three victories, averaging 15.3 points per game. He hit 18 of 36 shots from the field (50 percent) for the week, including eight-of-18 from three-point range as BU defeated UIC and added overtime wins over UW-Green Bay and UW-Milwaukee.

J'Nathan Bullock, Cleveland State
Freshman Forward * Flint, Mich.
Bullock averaged 19.0 points per game in two outings last week, shooting 70 percent (14-of-20) from the field. He came off the bench to match a career-high with 21 points at Detroit on Thursday and added 17 more in the Vikings' loss at Loyola on Saturday.

Brandon Cotton, Detroit
Junior Guard * Detroit, Mich.
Cotton averaged 25.5 points per game last week. He scored a career-high 30 points (25 in the second half) to lift the Titans past Cleveland State, tying League records with 19 free throws and 22 attempts. He added 21 in a loss at UIC for his sixth 20-point game of the season.

Jovan Stefanov, UIC
Junior Forward * Serbia and Montenegro
Stefanov helped the Flames to a 2-1 record, averaging 10.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. He tallied 13 points and nine boards at Youngstown State and followed that performance with a season-best 16 points, nine caroms and four assists against Detroit.

Blake Schilb, Loyola
Junior Guard * Rantoul, Ill.
Schilb passed the 20-point mark in both of the Ramblers' games last week, averaging 23.5 per game on 59 percent (17-of-29) shooting from the field. He scored 27 points against Cleveland State on Saturday for his League-high 12th 20-point game of the season.

Mike Schachtner, UW-Green Bay
Freshman Forward * Somerset, Wis.
Schachtner came within one rebound of the team's first double-double of the season, posting ten points and nine rebounds at Butler. He scored a team-high 15 points in a loss at Wright State, and averaged 11.0 points per game for the week.

Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee
Senior Forward * Oshkosh, Wis.
Tigert posted three consecutive double-doubles, averaging 16.3 points and 11.7 rebounds per contest. He had 21 points and 12 caroms versus Loyola, and registered a season-high 13 rebounds to go with 13 points at Butler. He also had 15 points and 10 caroms versus Wright State.

Derrick Harris, Youngstown State
Senior Guard * Cambridge, Mass.
Harris recorded his first career double-double with a 13-point, 10-assist effort against UIC on Thursday. He tallied 12 points and four helpers versus Wright State on Monday and leads the League with 5.62 assists per game for the season (118 in 21 games).

Horizon League Players of the Week

Nov. 21-- Justin Bowen, UIC-- 14.3 pts., 7.3 rebs per game in Flames' 2-1 start
Nov. 28-- Brandon Crone, Butler-- 19.0 ppg., 68% FG at Ohio State, Michigan
Dec. 5-- Leon Young, Loyola-- Back-to-back double-doubles--15.0 ppg.,10.5 rpg.
Dec. 12-- Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay-- 25.0 ppg., 61% FG vs. Wisconsin, Montana State
Dec. 19-- Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State-- 20 pts. (6-9 FG, 6-9 FT), 11 rebs. vs. Duquesne
Dec. 26-- Boo Davis, UW-Milwaukee-- 20 pts. (5 treys), 3 reb., 2 asst., 2 stl. vs. Oakland
Jan. 2-- Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee-- 18.0 ppg., 9.0 rpg., in wins at Wyoming, Montana
Jan. 9-- Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State-- 27.0 ppg., 10-14 3FG, .682 FG% in three games
Jan. 16-- Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay-- 29.5 ppg., 4.0 apg. in wins over UIC, UWM
Jan. 23-- Ije Nwankwo, Cleveland State-- 16.0 ppg., 5.5 rpg. in road victories at UIC, UWGB
Jan. 30-- Brandon Polk, Butler-- Lifted BU from 8th to 2nd with 24.0 ppg in 2 wins
Feb. 6-- DaShaun Wood, Wright State-- 35 pts. vs. YSU, 17 in win vs. UWM, 20 vs. UWGB

Around the Horizon League

Panthers hit bumps on the road
UW-Milwaukee dropped two of three games last week, but still clings to first place in the League standings at 9-3 in loop play and 16-5 overall. The Panthers won 68-57 at Loyola on Monday before losing 59-54 at Wright State on Thursday and dropping a 63-60 overtime decision at Butler on Saturday.

The Panthers play three of their final four League games at U.S. Cellular Arena, starting with Thursday's contest versus Youngstown State. UW-Milwaukee enters that game trying to avoid its first three-game League losing streak since Jan. 20-27, 2001.

In the loss at Butler, senior forward Joah Tucker registered 26 points and ten rebounds, while senior forward Adrian Tigert matched Youngstown State's Quin Humphrey with his League-leading eighth double-double, collecting 13 points and a season-high 13 boards. UWM dominated the glass with a 47-23 rebounding margin (27-7 after halftime) but missed all 13 of its three-point attempts, going scoreless behind the arc for the first time this season.

Tucker's performance at Butler propelled the League's Preseason Player of the Year to sixth on the loop scoring charts at 16.1 points per game, four spots ahead of senior guard Boo Davis' 15,2 pace and seven positions ahead of Tigert's 12.8 norm. Tigert is third in the League at 7.7 rebounds per game and seventh as a 52.2 percent shooter from the field, while senior guard Chris Hill stands ninth in the circuit at 2.68 assists per contest.

As a team, the Panthers are second in the League in scoring (71.6 points per game), but have managed only 54 and 60 in their last two outings. That dropoff is due in large part to a .172 (five-of-29) showing from the tri-light zone at Dayton and in Indianapolis.

Bulldogs race up the charts
Butler is the hottest team in the League, running its season-best winning streak to five games in a row by defeating UIC (67-39 on Monday) and posting back-to-back overtime victories over UW-Green Bay (72-66 on Thursday) and UW-Milwaukee (63-60 on Sunday). Butler is now 14-8 overall and 7-3 in the League.

The Bulldogs were outrebounded 47-23 (27-7 in the second half) against UW-Milwaukee but committed only five turnovers in the game. BU had a total of 18 miscues in the three games, holding its No. 3 rank among Division schools in fewest turnovers per game (9.05).

Senior guard Bruce Horan hit a career-high seven three-pointers---all in the first half---at UIC, and nailed six more against UWGB plus three against the Panthers. He raised his school career record to 276 treys (second in League history) and has hit at least one tri-lighter in 69 consecutive games. He now leads the League as a 45.5 percent shooter behind the arc and also tops the circuit with 3.41 triples per contest.

BU's five-game streak is the school's longest since 2002-03, when the Bulldogs advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

Sophomore guard A.J. Graves averaged 15.3 points per game last week and now ranks 11th in the League at 13.4 per game. He also ranks 11th in assists (2.64 per game) and eighth in steals (1.27 per outing). Senior backliner Avery Sheets leads the League with his 2.73 assist-to-turnover ratio, committing only 26 errors in 725 minutes.

Senior forward Brandon Polk scored 22 points in the victory over UW-Green Bay and 18 more against UW-Milwaukee, extending his double-digit scoring streak to eight games. He is third in the League at 17.1 points per game on 54.5 percent shooting from the field. Junior forward Brandon Crone leads the Bulldogs at 5.0 rebounds per outing.

Butler ranks last in the League with its minus-8.0 per-game rebounding margin, but has overcome that disparity in several ways. The Bulldogs lead the League in scoring defense (59.8 points per game), scoring margin (plus-7.9 per contest), field-goal percentage (.461) three-point shooting (38.8 percent), three-pointers per game (8.45), turnover margin (plus-5.77 per game) and three-point percentage defense (.293).

Raiders reverse fortunes with two victories
Wright State snapped a four-game losing streak with three victories, posting home-court victories over Youngstown State (81-67 on Monday), UW-Milwaukee (59-54 on Thursday) and UW-Green Bay (59-49 on Saturday) to climb to 7-4 in the League and 11-10 overall.

Junior guard DaShaun Wood became the 25th player in Raider history to reach the 1,000-point mark, hitting a career-high 35 points against YSU for the highest single-game total in the League this season. He added 17 more against UWM and 20 against UW-Green Bay to push his double-figure-scoring rate to eight games. For the season, Wood's 16.8 points-per-game rate puts him fifth in the League; he also stands fourth in the circuit at 4.33 assists per contest and second with 1.71 steals per appearance.

Wright State limited the Panthers to 35 percent shooting Thursday, the team's best defensive effort against a Division I school this season. The Raiders held Toledo to 37.3 percent shooting on Nov. 23 and (Division III) Kenyon College to a .327 clip on Jan. 9.

Junior forward Drew Burleson and sophomore forward Jordan Pleiman each scored in double figures in all three games last week, supporting Wood's efforts. Burleson averages 12.7 points per game with six consecutive twin-figure finishes, while Pleiman is seventh in the League at 6.7 rebounds per game and ranks second with his .569 field-goal accuracy.

The current win streak is WSU's third of three or more this season. The Raiders also have a pair of four-game losing streaks in 2005-06.

Ramblers ready to hit the road
Loyola split its two games last week, losing to UW-Milwaukee 68-57 on Monday before defeating Cleveland State 81-75 on Saturday. The Ramblers start the week at 13-8 overall and 5-6 in the League, hitting the road for the first time since Jan. 11 when LU visits UW-Green Bay on Wednesday. Loyola had played six consecutive games at home but now has four of its last five League contests away from the Gentile Center.

The 13 wins match the Ramblers' total from last season when LU finished 13-17.

Junior guard Blake Schilb moved into 20th place in school history during his 27-point performance against Cleveland State. Schilb now has 1,178 points in his career, and has scored in double figures in 44 of his last 45 games. His current run of 12 in a row is second only to UW-Milwaukee's Joah Tucker. and Schilb has hit the 20-point mark in eight of his last ten games.

Schilb ranks among the League elite in several statistical categories, including scoring (second at 19.1 points per game), free-throw percentage (second at .833), assists (fifth at 3.62 per game) and steals (seventh at 1.29 per outing).

Freshman forward Leon Young came off the bench to score 20 points against CSU, his highest total since a career-best 21-point performance against Bradley on Nov. 30. He has averaged 15.5 points and seven rebounds in his last two games off the bench. Young continues to hold second place on the League charts with an average of 7.9 rebounds per game.

Junior guard Majak Kou maintained his League lead with a rate 1.43 blocked shots per game. He is also second in the circuit with 1.71 steals per appearance and ranks 12th in scoring with a norm of 13.2 points per game. As a team, Loyola boasts the League's top-scoring offense at 72.9 points per game.

Flames climbing the charts
Last week, UIC sat at the bottom of the League standings. Seven days later, the Flames stand fifth with a 5-7 loop mark, having climbed back to .500 (12-12) overall. UIC lost 67-39 to Butler on Monday but rebounded for a 70-63 win at Youngstown State on Thursday and a 63-57 triumph over Detroit on Saturday.

"Rebounded" is the key word, as UIC has dominated the glass of late. In their last four games, the Flames have outrebounded their opponents by an average of 10.5 caroms per contest. UIC was a plus-13 at Youngstown and a plus-12 against Detroit. Junior forward Jovan Stefanov had a career-high nine boards in each of those games.

No Flame scored in double figures against Butler, but four hit twin digits versus YSU, led by junior forward Danijel Zoric's career-high 19.

Senior forward Justin Bowen added 15 against the Penguins, and ranks ninth in the League at 15.2 per game for the season. The senior also is fifth in the League with his .532 field-goal percentage and sixth in rebounding at 7.1 per contest. Bowen has seven double-doubles this season.

Sophomore forward Othyus Jeffers recorded his fifth double-double with a career-high 19 points plus 11 rebounds against Detroit. He raised his season scoring average to 11.6 points per game and is now fourth in the League at 7.5 rebounds per game. The sophomore also tops the Flame charts with his 3.04 assists per contest.

Freshman guard Josh Mayo has re-gained the top spot on the League free-throw charts with a .849 percentage. He has missed just 11 of 73 attempts this season and is also 12th in the loop with his rate of 2.62 assists per outing.

The Flames defeated Detroit despite shooting just 38.6 percent from the field. UIC had been 0-4 this season when shooting under 40 percent prior to the game, but rallied from a 34-25 halftime deficit. UIC has now won four of its last five games following a six-game losing streak.

Titans take step back before busy week
Detroit slipped to 11-13 overall (5-7 in the League) after a 1-2 week. The Titans fell 45-42 at UW-Green Bay on Monday but rallied to defeat Cleveland State 84-73 on Thursday before suffering a 63-57 setback at UIC on Saturday.

Junior guard Brandon Cotton scored a career-high 30 points in Thursday's victory, matching League records with 19 free throws and 22 attempts. The 19 made charity tosses tied Tony Tolbert's mark set against Xavier in 1994, and the 22 tries equaled the school standard of Bill Ebben versus Saint Louis in 1957.

Cotton also became the first Titan to hit the 30-point mark since Elijah Warren had that many ---also versus CSU---in January, 2004. Since coming back from a hand injury on Jan. 18, Cotton has averaged 20.2 points a game in six contests. For the season, his 17.0 per-game pace is fourth-best in the League.

All 57 Titan points Saturday came from the five starters, including Cotton's game-high 21. Five Titan reserves combined for 42 minutes played, going 0-for-5 from the floor.

Sophomore guard Jon Goode had 16 points versus the Flames, including five three-pointers. Goode has scored in double figures in each of his last three games despite an ankle sprain suffered aganst Loyola on Jan. 28. He has averaged 14.7 points per game in that span and 11.4 for the season. Goode ranks second in the League as a 44.3 percent shooter behind the three-point arc and is eighth at 2.96 assists per game.

Seniors Torvoris Baker and Chuck Bailey are fifth and eighth in the League in rebounding at 7.3 and 6.1 per game, respectively. Bailey also leads the loop charts with his .585 field-goal rate.

The Titans are 9-1 in Calihan Hall but 1-12 on the road this season. What's the difference? UDM has averaged 72.6 points in those ten home games but only 55.0 on the road.

Phoenix turning up the defense
UW-Green Bay starts the week at 11-13 overall and 5-7 in the League after losing two of three contests last week. The Phoenix defeated Detroit 45-42 on Monday but came up short on the road in losses at Butler (72-66 in overtime Thursday) and Wright State (59-49 on Saturday).

UWGB's 45-point total marked the school's lowest in a victory since a 45-44 win at Arkansas State on Jan. 18, 1982. The Phoenix limited Detroit to 14 points in the first half, the fewest for an opponent since East Carolina had 14 in the first half of a 63-36 loss on Dec. 8, 1998. UDM's 44 points were also the fewest allowed in coach Tod Kowalczyk's tenure at the school and the fewest since UNC Wilmington's 46-38 loss to the Phoenix on Nov. 20, 1999.

The Phoenix outrebounded Butler 38-22 in Thursday's overtime loss, ending a run of four consecutive games in which the team lost the battle of the boards. UW-Green Bay had been outrebounded by 12 (42-30) by Cleveland State, by ten (41-31) at Loyola, by eight (40-32) at UIC and by two (31-29) by Detroit.

Freshman forward Ryan Tillema posted a career-high 20 points in the overtime loss at Butler. Tillema, who had a total of 19 points in his four games before Thursday, hit eight of 13 shots from the field including four three-pointers, and now averages 7.7 points per game for the season.

Junior guard Ryan Evanochko hit double figures in all three contests, giving him 19 twin-digit games this season. He had 15 at Butler and added 12 in Saturday's loss at WSU. Evanochko led the Phoenix with ten points Monday and starts the week ranked eighth in the League with his 15.7 points-per-game scoring average. He also stands third at 4.79 assists per outing and owns the League's third-best assist-to-turnover ratio (1.77).

Freshman forward Mike Schachtner is also averaging double digits at 10.2 points per game, while redshirt freshman Terry Evans ranks tenth in the League with his team-high 5.9 rebounds per game.

Penguins hit the skids
Youngstown State dropped to 7-14 overall and 4-7 in the League with a pair of losses last week, falling 81-67 at Wright State on Monday night and 70-63 to UIC on Thursday.

Senior guard Derrick Harris posted his first career double-double in Thursday's contest, netting 13 points and ten assists. He leads the League with a rate of 5.62 set-ups per game this year and is currently fourth on the circuit at 1.48 steals per contest.

Junior guard Quin Humphrey starts the week needing ten points to become the 30th player in school history to hit the 1,000-point plateau. He has already become the first YSU player to score 400 or more points in consecutive seasons since Reggie Kemp (1989-90, 1990-91). Humphrey had 402 points last season and 404 already in 2005-06. That total includes 20 double-digit efforts in 21 games this season.

Humphrey continues to lead the League in both scoring (19.2 points per game) and rebounding (8.6 per contest), keeping him on pace to be the first player to achieve that feat since 1991-92 (Evansville's Parrish Casebier). Junior guard Keston Roberts ranks seventh in the League at 15.8 points per game.

Sophomore forward John Barber had his first double-double of the year and the third of his career with 12 points and 12 rebounds against Wright State on Monday. The 12 boards matched his career-high and improved his season pace to 5.4 per game (13th-best in the League).

Vikings try to stop slide
Cleveland State dropped both of its games last week, losing 84-73 at Detroit on Thursday and 81-75 at Loyola on Saturday. Those two defeats push the Vikings to 8-13 overall and 4-7 in League play as the week begins. Those marks include a four-game losing streak with the four defeats coming by a combined 26 points.

CSU visits Butler on Wednesday before playing four of its last five regular-season games at home. Of course, the Wolstein Center hasn't been kind to the Vikings, as Cleveland State is 1-4 at home in League play---compared to a 3-3 road record.

Junior center Ije Nwankwo set a career-high with a 20-point performance at Loyola, hitting all ten of his attempts at the free-throw line. During the last seven games, the transfer from Purdue is averaging 14.3 points and 6.9 rebounds, and shooting 50 percent (30-for-60) from the field and 75.5 percent (40-of-53) at the line.

Nwankwo will not qualify for the League statistical charts, but leads the team at 11.6 points per game in his 13 appearances. Junior guard Raheem Moss is next at 10.9 points a night, just ahead of freshman forward J'Nathan Bullock (10.8). Bullock averaged 19 points in two games last week. Junior forward Patrick Tatham is 11th in the League at 5.7 rebounds an outing.

Junior guard Carlos English tops the loop charts with an average of 2.05 steals per game. He follows in the footsteps of former teammate Walt Chavis who led the League at 2.04 thefts a contest last season. English also ranks second in the League with 4.95 assists per appearance and owns a 1.70 assist-to-turnover ratio which is fourth-best in the circuit.

English's numbers also anchor CSU's place on the team statistical charts. Cleveland State leads the League in assists (13.76 per game) and steals (8.67 a contest), while also sitting atop the loop defensive list by holding opponents to 42.6 percent field-goal shooting for the season. Only Butler (.293) has done better than Cleveland State in defending opponents behind the three-point line. Viking opponents are shooting just 30.7 percent from the tri-light zone this season.

Spotlight Leaders

30-Point Games:
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State3
Brandon Cotton, Detroit1
Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay1
DaShaun Wood, Wright State1

20-Point Games:
Blake Schilb, Loyola12
Boo Davis, UW-Milwaukee9
Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay8
Brandon Polk, Butler9
Brandon Cotton, Detroit8
DaShaun Wood, Wright State8
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State7
Joah Tucker, UW-Milwaukee7
Justin Bowen, UIC6
Majak Kou, Loyola5
Keston Roberts, Youngstown State5
J.R. Blount, Loyola3
A.J. Graves, Butler3
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee3
Five players with2

10-Rebound Games:
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State9
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee9
Othyus Jeffers, UIC8
Torvoris Baker, Detroit7
Justin Bowen, UIC7
Chuck Bailey, Detroit6
Leon Young, Loyola 6
Jordan Pleiman, Wright State4
Joah Tucker, UWM3
Four players with2

Double-Doubles:
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State8
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee8
Justin Bowen, UIC7
Chuck Bailey, Detroit5
Othyus Jeffers, UIC5
Leon Young, Loyola 4
Torvoris Baker, Detroit3
Joah Tucker, UW-Milwaukee3

Active Double-Figure Scoring Streaks

Joah Tucker, UW-Milwaukee19
Blake Schilb, Loyola12
Brandon Cotton, Detroit8
Brandon Polk, Buter8
Ije Nwankwo, Cleveland State7
Drew Burleson, Wright State6
DaShaun Wood, Wright State6
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State5
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee5
A.J. Graves, Butler4
Jordan Pleiman, Wright State4