Men's Basketball Weekly Release #15

Feb. 13, 2006

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Horizon League Player of the Week

Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee
Senior Forward * Oshkosh, Wis.
Tigert scored his 1,000th career point while posting his fourth double-double in the last five games Saturday, leading the Panthers to a rout of Cleveland State. He had 16 points and ten rebounds in 22 minutes in that game after scoring 16 points in 25 minutes during a victory over Youngstown State on Thursday. For the week, the senior averaged 16 points, seven rebounds and 4.5 assists per game while shooting 84 percent (16-of-19) from the field.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending February 12

Brandon Polk, Butler
Senior Forward * Wichita, Kan.
Polk scored 15 points with four rebounds and three assists in a victory over Cleveland State. He added 21 points, seven boards and four assists in a double-overtime loss at Wright State. For the week, he was 15-of-17 (88.2 percent) from the field in averaging 18 points per game.

Ije Nwankwo, Cleveland State
Junior Forward * Ann Arbor, Mich.
Nwankwo led the Vikings with 17 points in Wednesday's loss at Butler, hitting seven of nine shots from the field. He also posted 11 points in a loss at UW-Milwaukee on Saturday, and shot 55 percent from the field for the week while collecting eight rebounds.

Brandon Cotton, Detroit
Junior Guard * Detroit, Mich.
Cotton led the Titans to a 70-66 victory over Wright State on Wednesday, scoring 22 points with three rebounds, an assist and a steal. The junior crossed the 20-point mark for the third consecutive game, hitting 13 free throws in his 37 minutes of action.

Justin Bowen, UIC
Senior Forward * Chicago, Ill.
Bowen tallied 19 points, nine rebounds (six off the offensive glass), three assists and two steals in the Flames' only game of the week, a 71-68 loss to Loyola. The senior was eight-of-15 from the field and hit all three of his free throws, raising his season average to 15.4 points per game.

Majak Kou, Loyola
Junior Guard * Hamilton, Ontario
Kou averaged 16 points and 3.5 rebounds in two games last week. He notched 11 points in the Ramblers' 69-59 loss at UW-Green Bay, and posted a game-high 21 points plus four rebounds and two assists in the Ramblers' victory at UIC on Saturday.

Josh Lawrence, UW-Green Bay
Junior Forward * Ashton, Ill.
Lawrence scored ten of his 12 points in the second half (seven in the final two minutes) to help the Phoenix rally from a 10-point deficit to defeat Loyola 69-59 on Wednesday. He grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds and scored nine points in Saturday's victory over Youngstown State.

DaShaun Wood, Wright State
Senior Guard * Detroit, Mich.
Wood averaged 30.5 points per game in his two outings last week, including a 33-point showing as WSU defeated Butler 86-83 in double overtime on Saturday. For the week, he was 18-of-34 from the field and averaged 3.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists plus 3.0 steals per contest.

Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State
Junior Guard * Ellenwood, Ga.
Humphrey scored 33 points in two games, including the 1,000th of his career. He reached the milestone in an 11-point showing versus UW-Milwaukee---becoming the 30th player in school history to reach four figures---and scored a team-high 22 in Saturday's loss at UW-Green Bay.

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 Bay25.0 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
Feb. 13 -- Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee -- 84% FG, 16 ppg. in two wins, 1000th career point

Around the Horizon League

Panthers re-gain confidence, command
UW-Milwaukee bounced back from a two-game skid to post a pair of decisive victories last week. The Panthers routed Youngstown State 98-57 on Thursday and added an 86-57 triumph at Cleveland State on Saturday to improve to 18-6 overall and 11-3 in the League. The Panthers have secured a first-round bye in the League Championship and could clinch a third consecutive regular-season title this week.

UWM finishes the regular season with three home games, beginning with Wednesday's contest versus UIC. The Panthers currently hold the nation's second-longest home-court winning streak at 19 games, trailing only Gonzaga (36). That streak also faces a challenge from Missouri State in Saturday's BracketBusters presented by eBay contest.

The combined 70-point margin of the two games last week marks the largest back-to-back League-contest disparity in school history. The Panthers shot a season-high 56.8 percent (42-of-74) versus YSU followed by a .500 (33-of-66) showing at Cleveland. The 42 field goals Thursday were the most by a League team this year.

UWM scored 58 points in the paint Thursday and 48 Saturday, with senior forwards Adrian Tigert and Joah Tucker dominating the interior. Tigert has four double-doubles in his last five games and now leads the League with nine this season. He is 13th in the circuit at 13.1 points per game while standing fourth at 7.6 reobunds per outing and fourth as a 55.0 percent shooter from the field. Tucker's 16.1 points-per-game norm is sixth-best in the League, three spots ahead of senior guard Boo Davis (15.3).

UW-Milwaukee paces the loop charts in three key categories: scoring (73.3 points per game), scoring margin (plus-9.0) and rebounding margin (plus-6.3).

Bulldogs going the distance...and then some
Butler had a six-game winning streak snapped in Saturday's 86-83, double-overtime loss at Wright State. The Bulldogs' 15-9 overall record includes an 8-4 mark in League place which also encompasses Wednesday's 78-49 win over Cleveland State.

Overtime is rapidly becoming commonplace for BU, which has gone past 40 minutes in three of its last four games. Butler defeated UW-Green Bay and UW-Milwaukee last week, while Saturday's contest featured ten ties and 13 lead changes. Senior forward Brandon Polk's two free throws with five seconds left in regulation forced overtime and his dunk at the end of the first extra session extended the game again.

Polk ranks fifth on the League scoring charts at 17.2 points per game and is third with a .565 field-goal percentage.

Senior guard Bruce Horan hit eight more three-pointers last week (five versus CSU, three at WSU), extending his streak of consecutive games with a trey to 71. That is the third-longest streak in NCAA Division I history, behind only Cory Bradford of Illinois (88) and Wally Lancaster of Virginia Tech (73). Horan could pass Lancaster's mark Saturday when BU visits Kent State as part of BracketBusters presented by eBay. Horan's 456 accuracy rate from the tri-light zone tops the loop charts, as does his pace of 3.46 triples per contest.

Horan needs 73 points to reach the 1,000 mark, but senior guard Avery Sheets should beat him to that mark. Sheets had 11 points in each game last week and needs 20 more to become the 29th player in Bulldog history to reach four figures. He is 11th in the League at 13.8 points per game, and also owns the circuit's top assist-to-turnover ratio (2.67), featuring a rate of 3.33 assists per game.

As a team, Butler leads the League in field-goal percentage (.466), three-point shooting (.392), three-point defense (.289) and scoring defense (60.5 points per game). The long-range accuracy is even more impressive considering BU has hit more tri-lighters (207, 8.62 per game) than any other team in the League.

Raiders ride Wood's success
Wright State split a pair of games last week, falling 70-66 at Detroit on Wednesday but rallying to outlast Butler 86-83 in double overtime on Saturday. That victory not only lifted WSU to 12-11 overall and 8-5 in the League, but also put the Raiders in position to secure a first-round bye in the League Championship.

Junior forward DaShaun Wood scored 33 points against the Bulldogs, the second time this season he has hit the 30-point barrier. As a team, the Raiders outrebounded BU 43-27 and shot 55.4 percent (31-of-56) from the field.

Wood also had 28 points in the loss at Detroit, and currently ranks among the League's top five players in scoring (third at 18.0 points per game), assists (fourth at 4.26 per outing) and steals (second at 1.83 per contest). In his last five games, Wood has scored a total of 133 points (26.6 per game).

Sophomore forward Jordan Pleiman had 14 points in each game last week, while junior forward Drew Burleson had 18 against Butler. Burleson now stands 14th in the League at 12.8 points per game, while Pleiman is seventh off the glass at 6.7 caroms per contest.

Pleiman is now the third Raider in double figures at 10.3 points per game this season, due in large part to his work in the last six contests. He has hit double figures in all six, averaging 13.8 points over that span. The sophomore also ranks second (behind Detroit's Chuck Bailey) as a 57.6 percent shooter from the floor.

Saturday's victory was the first double-overtime game in Nutter Center history and the first 50-minute game for WSU since Jan. 2, 2002, when the Raiders knocked off (then-20th-ranked) Butler 90-87.

Phoenix tries to get over .500
UW-Green Bay leveled its records both overall (13-13) and in the League (7-7) with two wins last week, defeating Loyola (69-59) on Wednesday and Youngstown State (80-58) on Saturday. The Phoenix is at .500 for the fifth time---UWGB has been 1-1, 9-9, 10-10 and 11-11 at various times ---but has not been above the break-even mark since winning its season-opener.

Junior guard Ryan Evanochko posted the first Phoenix double-double of the year with 12 points and a career-high 12 assists versus YSU. UWGB had been the last League school to record a double-double this season. Evanochko poured in 22 points in the victory over Loyola and now stands seventh in the League with his 15.8 points-per-game scoring pace. The junior also trails only Youngstown State's Derrick Harris with a rate of 5.12 assists per contest.

Freshman forward Ryan Tillema had a career-high 21 points against YSU, including five three-pointers. He had plenty of help as the Phoenix canned a season-high 13 tri-lighters, shooting 50 percent (13-of-26) behind the arc. The total was one short of the school record set at Wright State on Feb. 27, 2005. UWGB also had a season-best 23 assists against the Penguins.

In its last nine games, UW-Green Bay has limited opponents to 39.1 percent shooting from the field.

Freshmen continue to dominate the UWGB statistics as first-year collegian Mike Schachtner is second on the team in scoring (10.4 per game) and owns the top field-goal mark on the Phoenix roster (.485) while Tillema is fourth on the club at 8.0 points per game (junior forward Josh Lawrence is at 9.0). Schachtner could become only the second UWGB freshman in the last 15 years to average double figures (Chris Sager finished at 11.8 in 2000-01). Redshirt frosh Terry Evans is 11th in the League at 5.8 rebounds per game.

Ramblers keep upper hand in city rivalry
Loyola starts the week at 14-9 overall and 6-7 in the League after splitting two games last week. The Ramblers fell 69-59 at UW-Green Bay on Wednesday but rallied for a 71-68 triumph over cross-town rival UIC on Saturday, posting their fourth consecutive victory over their Chicago neighbors.

With Saturday's triumph, Loyola surpassed its win total from last season (13) and has now posted its best victory total since the 2002-03 squad had 15 wins.

Junior guard Blake Schilb has moved into 20th place on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,203 career points. He has scored ten or more points in 14 consecutive games overall and 29 straight regular-season Horizon League contests.

Schilb ranks second in the League in both scoring (18.5 points per game) and free-throw percentage (.840). Freshman Leon Young is right on his heels in the latter category, though, as the freshman forward is third at .838. As a team, Loyola leads the circuit with a .758 clip.

Young has now scored in double figures in four consecutive games, fitting into his role as the first player off the bench. Young is averaging 13.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game during that span and ranks second in the conference at 7.7 caroms per contest for the season.

Junior guard Majak Kou also sits on several League charts, topping the list with his 1.39 blocks per game and standing third at 1.70 steals per outing. At the offensive end of the floor, his 13.5 points per game is the 12th-best rate in the League. LU is 12-4 in the 16 games in which Kou has scored in double figures.

Freshman forward J.R. Blount returned to action Saturday after missing six games due to a stress fracture in his left foot. He posted four points, three rebounds and two assists.

Titans try to take winning ways on the road
Detroit improved to 12-14 overall and 6-7 in the League with a 70-66 victory over Wright State on Wednesday. The Titans are now 10-1 at home this season but just 2-13 away from Calihan Hall---a troubling trend considering two of the Titans' final three League games are on the road. UDM has lost its first six loop games outside Detroit this season after posting a 3-5 record last season.

Junior guard Brandon Cotton scored 22 points in Wednesday's triumph, continuing his solid play of late. Since returning from a hand injury which sidelined him for three games, Cotton has scored 20 or more in five of seven outings including each of the last three. During that span he is averaging 20.4 points per game. For the season, Cotton is fourth on the League scoring charts at 17.2 points per contest and has crossed the 20-point mark nine times in 2005-06.

Senior forward Torvoris Baker posted his fourth double-double of the year with ten points and a career-high-tying 12 rebounds versus WSU. His team-best rate of 7.5 boards per game is fifth on the League charts, three spots ahead of senior teammate Chuck Bailey (6.0), while Bailey leads the circuit with his .588 field-goal shooting.

Freshman forward Chris Hays posted career-highs with seven points and six rebounds Wednesday. He has seen double-figure minute totals in each of the last four games, including 16 versus the Raiders. Hayes has averaged 14.3 minutes in that four-game span, compared to 6.6 in his first 17 appearances (not including five "DNPs").

The Titans are shooting 48.6 percent from the field and and 75.1 percent from the line at home this season. Away from Calihan Hall, however, those numbers drop to 40.3 and 63.1. So it's no surprise that UDM's scoring pace falls from 72.4 points per game at home to 55.4 on the road---or that the Titans' have lost 13 of 14 games outside Detroit.

Flames stumble at home
UIC starts the week at 12-13 overall and 5-8 in the League after a 71-68 loss to intra-city rival Loyola on Saturday. The loss was the Flames' fourth in a row to its neighbor.

Senior forward Justin Bowen collected 19 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals against the Ramblers, falling just short of his seventh 20-point game of the year. He ranks eighth in the League with his 15.4 points-per-game scoring average, while his rebounding pace of 7.2 per game is sixth and his .532 field-goal clip is fifth.

Sophomore forward Othyus Jeffers grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds against Loyola, the ninth time this season he has collected ten or more. Among League players, only UW-Milwaukee's Adrian Tigert (ten) has more twin-figure carom counts. He currently stands third in the League with a rate of 7.6 rebounds per game that includes a loo-best 3.68 offensive caroms per outing. Jeffers is also 15th in the League with his 11.4 scoring pace.

Freshman guard Josh Mayo remains atop the Horizon League free-throw charts with his .851 percentage. Mayo is 63-of-74 from the charity stripe this season.

Sophomore guard Kevin Bond provided instant offense off the bench Saturday, matching his career-high with 11 points in just 14 minutes of action. He is now averaging 8.4 points in his last five outings.

UIC can only imagine how different things could have been this year. The Flames, who currently stand seventh in the League standings, are just 4-6 in games decided by six or fewer points, with three of those losses coming in League play.

Penguins' skid continues
Youngstown State has now lost four games in a row, falling to 7-16 overall (4-9 in League play) after a pair of defeats on its swing through Wisconsin. The Penguins suffered a 98-57 setback at UW-Milwaukee on Thursday before UW-Green Bay defeated YSU 80-58 on Saturday.

During the four-game skid, Youngstown State has been out-rebounded 150-104. That minus-10.5 per-game margin includes a 47-28 disadvantage against UWM. In addition, the Penguins' last four opponents have combined to shoot 51.8 percent (127-of-245) from the floor. UW-Milwaukee shot 56.8 percent on Thursday.

Junior guard Quin Humphrey became the 30th player in YSU history to reach the 1,000-point mark with 11 markers Thursday night, and added 22 more against UW-Green Bay to lift his career total to 1,023 (26th in school history). Humphrey has scored in double figures in 47 of his last 51 games and 22 of 23 this year. His 437 points this season are the most by a Penguin since Andre Smith had 441 during the 1994-95 campaign.

Once Humphrey passed that mark, Reggie Kemp (589 in 1990-91) would be next in line for the 6-4 junior, who continues to lead the League in both scoring (19.0 points per game) and rebounding (8.3 per contest). Humphrey remains on pace to be the first player to achieve that feat since 1991-92 (Evansville's Parrish Casebier). Junior guard Keston Roberts ranks tenth in the League at 15.2 points per game, while senior guard Domonique Crawford ranks seventh with his .515 field-goal accuracy.

Senior guard Derrick Harris tops the League assist charts with 5.35 helpers per game. He has handed out 123 assists this year, the most by a Penguin since Marlon Willamson's 144 three seasons ago. Harris also stands fifth with his 1.48 steals per contest.

With at least five games remaining on this year's schedule (four regular-season plus the League Championship), YSU has already surpassed last season's totals for three-point field goals made and attempted. The Penguins were 138-of-435 behind the arc last year but have canned 151 of 460 attempts this season.

Vikings also slidingCleveland State saw its losing streak reach six games with back-to-back 29-point losses at Butler (78-49 on Wednesday) and versus UW-Milwaukee (86-57 on Saturday). The Vikings now stand at 8-15 overall including a 4-9 League ledger.

CSU's opponents have shot 50 percent or better from the field in each of the last three games, including 60.8 percent by Butler and 55.4 percent by Loyola on Feb. 4. Two weeks ago, the Vikings led the League in field-goal defense but have dropped to fourth place, allowing foes to shoot 43.7 percent.

With three League games remaining, CSU needs two wins to match last year's 6-10 loop ledger and is one win short of last season's nine-win total overall.

Junior center Ije Nwankwo was the only Viking in double figures at Butler, scoring 17 points on seven-of-nine shooting from the field and three-of-six accuracy at the line. He also had 11 points versus UWM.

Nwankwo will not qualify for the League statistical charts, but leads the team at 11.9 points per game in his 15 appearances. Junior guard Raheem Moss is next at 10.3 points a night (20th in the League), just ahead of freshman forward J'Nathan Bullock (10.2). Bullock averaged 19 points in two games last week. Junior forward Patrick Tatham is tenth in the League at 5.8 rebounds an outing.

Junior guard Carlos English tops the loop charts with an average of 1.91 steals per game and ranks second in the League with 4.78 assists per appearance.

Nwankwo has made a difference in one other area: in the last five minutes of a game and overtime, he is a perfect 17-of-17 at the free throw line. The rest of the team is a combined 60 percent (48-of-80).

Spotlight Leaders

30-Point Games:
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State3
DaShaun Wood, Wright State2
Brandon Cotton, Detroit1
Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay1

20-Point Games:
Blake Schilb, Loyola12
Brandon Polk, Butler10
DaShaun Wood, Wright State10
Brandon Cotton, Detroit9
Boo Davis, UW-Milwaukee9
Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay9
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State8
Joah Tucker, UW-Milwaukee7
Justin Bowen, UIC6
Majak Kou, Loyola6
Keston Roberts, Youngstown State5
A.J. Graves, Butler4
J.R. Blount, Loyola3
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee3
Six players with2

10-Rebound Games:
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee10
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State9
Othyus Jeffers, UIC9
Torvoris Baker, Detroit8
Justin Bowen, UIC7
Chuck Bailey, Detroit6
Leon Young, Loyola 6
Jordan Pleiman, Wright State4
Joah Tucker, UWM3
Four players with2

Double-Doubles:
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee9
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State8
Justin Bowen, UIC7
Chuck Bailey, Detroit5
Othyus Jeffers, UIC5
Torvoris Baker, Detroit4
Leon Young, Loyola 4
Joah Tucker, UW-Milwaukee3

Active Double-Figure Scoring Streaks
Joah Tucker, UW-Milwaukee21
Blake Schilb, Loyola14
Brandon Polk, Butler10
Brandon Cotton, Detroit9
Ije Nwankwo, Cleveland State9
DaShaun Wood, Wright State8
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State7
Adrian Tigert, UW-Milwaukee7
A.J. Graves, Butler6
Jordan Pleiman, Wright State6
Ryan Evanochko, UW-Green Bay5
Mike Schactner, UW-Green Bay4
Leon Young, Loyola4

Horizon League All-Time Three-Point Field-Goal Leaders
Rashad Phillips, UDM (`97-'01)348
Bruce Horan, BU (`02- ) 284

NCAA Streaks of Consecutive Games With a 3-Point Field Goal
Cory Bradford, Illinois88
(Nov. 10, 1998-Feb. 10, 2001)
Wally Lancaster, Virginia Tech73
(Dec. 30, 1986-March 4, 1989)
Bruce Horan, Butler71
(Jan. 8, 2004-Feb. 9, 2006)
Luke McDonald, Drake67
(Nov. 21, 2000-Dec. 22, 2002)

Longest Active Home-Court Winning Streaks (NCAA)
(through games of Feb. 11)
Gonzaga36
UW-Milwaukee19
Duke17
Hofstra17
Connecticut16

Horizon League Active 1,000-Point Scorers
Joah Tucker, UWM (87 gms.)1,293
Blake Schilb, LU (80 gms.)1,203
DaShaun Wood, WSU (81 gms.)1,113
Quin Humphrey, YSU (78 gms.)1,023
Adrian Tigert, UWM (115 gms.)1,005