Men's Basketball Weekly Release #16

Feb. 19, 2007

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Horizon League Player of the Week

Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State
Senior * Guard * Ellenwood, Ga. (Stockbridge)
Humphrey averaged 28 points, five rebounds and 3.5 assists in two Penguin victories last week. He scored 36 points in a come-from-behind, 82-70 decision over Detroit on Wednesday, hitting 12 of 18 shots from the field. That total featured eight three-pointers, one of which was part of the go-ahead four-point play with 4:48 to play to give Youngstown State the lead for good. Humphrey came back to register 20 points---including the game-clinching free throws with :02.1 remaining---to push YSU past Eastern Kentucky on Saturday.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending February 18

Mike Green, Butler
Jr. * G * Philadelphia, Pa.
Green netted a career-high 24 points against Florida Gulf Coast and came back with 18 points plus seven rebounds versus 16th-ranked Southern Illinois. He was 8-of-16 from the floor and 23-of-29 at the line for the week.

Ryvon Covile, Detroit
Sr. * C * Detroit, Mich.
Covile led the Titans with 23 points and 12 rebounds for his 15th double-double of the year, helping Detroit snap a four-game skid with Saturday's 92-84 overtime victory at Buffalo. He shot 65 percent from the field for the week.

Othyus Jeffers, UIC
Jr. * F * Chicago, Ill.
Jeffers collected 24 points---all in the second half---and nine rebounds to power the Flames past Central Michigan on Saturday. He hit eight of nine shots from the floor and all eight free-throw attempts after the break.

Majak Kou, Loyola
Sr. * G * Hamilton, Ontario
Kou averaged 16.5 points, five rebounds and three assists in two victories last week. He had 20 points, three boards and four assists versus Eastern Illinois after Wednesday's 13-point, seven-rebound outing against UW-Milwaukee.

Ryan Tillema, UW-Green Bay
So. * G * Randolph, Wis.
Tillema provided a lift off the bench, averaging 16 points in two road victories. He hit five three-pointers at UIC on Wednesday and knocked down four treys in a 17-point showing at Northern Illinois on Saturday.

Avery Smith, UW-Milwaukee
Jr. * G * Milwaukee, Wis.
Smith scored a game-high 33 points---23 in the first half---in the Panthers' 84-76 loss at Drake on Saturday, his third game of 30 or more this season. He also finished with ten points versus Loyola on Wednesday night.

DaShaun Wood, Wright State
Sr. * G * Detroit, Mich.
Wood helped the Raiders extend their winning streak to nine games, averaging 16.5 points, five rebounds and 6.5 assists in two victories. He scored 19 points and handed out seven helpers versus Cal State-Fullerton on Saturday.

Positions on the Line in Final Week of Regular Season

Seven of the nine teams still have some unfinished business in terms of seeding for the 2007 Horizon League Men's Basketball Championship, which begins next Tuesday at campus sites. Only Loyola (third) and Cleveland State (ninth) are set, with this week's nine-game slate determining the other seven slots plus the location for the loop summit.

Action begins Monday night when Butler visits UW-Green Bay. The Bulldogs (11-2) start a stretch of three League games in six days, trying to catch front-runner Wright State (13-2) for the top spot. The Phoenix can wrap up the fourth seed with a victory on its home floor.

Wednesday's slate features Detroit (5-9) hosting Cleveland State (2-12) and UIC hosting UW-Milwaukee in a match-up of 5-9 teams. UDM, UWM and the Flames are battling with Youngstown State (6-8) for the fifth and sixth seeds, which would ensure first-round home dates in the League Championship, while the outcome between the Panthers and Flames could play a role in a possible tie-breaker between Wright State and Butler, if those teams win out this week. BU would have the edge and top seed if UWM finishes tied or ahead of UIC in the final standings, while the Raiders would get that break if UIC finishes ahead of the defending League champions.

Thursday has Butler hosting Loyola in front of a national (ESPNU) audience in a re-match of Butler's 70-66 overtime thriller in Chicago last month. Wright State closes out the regular season at Youngstown State, looking for its tenth consecutive victory.

The teams hit the finish line Saturday, with all four games likely having seeding implications. Detroit is at Butler to start the day, along with Youngstown State at Cleveland State. The evening's agenda has UIC traveling across town to Loyola, while UW-Milwaukee heads north to meet in-state rival UW-Green Bay.

News From Around the League

Raiders continue late-season surge
Wright State has won nine consecutive games, defeating Cleveland State (68-55) and Cal State-Fullerton (77-62) last week to improve to 21-8 overall. The Raiders have already secured their first 20-win season since 1992-93 when they finished 20-10. The 21 victories also match the most by a Raider squad since the school moved to Division I in 1987-88.

Wright State has never won a regular-season League title, but could clinch at least a share of the crown with a victory Thursday at Youngstown State.

The Raiders' nine-game winning streak matches the second-longest by a League team this year (Butler started the year 10-0), but WSU has a way to go to approach the school record. The 1985-86 squad won 22 in a row as part of a 28-3 overall ledger.

Freshman guard Todd Brown led the way against Cleveland State with 22 points including four triples. He is averaging nine points per game this season, trailing fellow freshman Vaughn Duggins (9.2) for second place on the team scoring charts.

Senior guard DaShaun Wood leads the Raiders---and the entire League---with his pace of 19.6 points per contest. He has hit the 20-point mark 15 times this season. Wood also ranks second in the circuit with 1.83 steals per outing, and fifth with a rate of 3.90 assists per appearance.

Senior forward Drew Burleson ranks ninth in the League with 5.9 rebounds per game, three spots ahead of junior forward Jordan Pleiman (5.7), who tops the loop with his .564 field-goal percentage.

The Raiders have won the last nine games by an average of 13.2 points (69.3-56.1). Wood is averaging 20.1 points per game during the stretch, with Burleson and Brown adding 11.7 and 10.9, respectively. Burleson had been at 7.2 per contest before the recent nine-game run.

Bulldogs still looking for place in history
Butler begins the final week of the regular season at 24-4 overal and 11-2 in League play. The Bulldogs return to loop action after a week away (defeating Florida Gulf Coast 79-65 on Tuesday before Saturday's 68-64 loss to No. 15 Southern Illinois), hoping to catch Wright State for the top seed in the League Championship.

Saturday's loss snapped a 22-game homecourt winning streak for the Bulldogs, who hadn't fallen at Hinkle Fieldhouse since a 59-58 loss to Indiana State on Dec. 17, 2005. The home-court streak was the fifth-longest in the nation.

Butler matched a season-low with six turnovers against the Salukis defense. The Bulldogs continue to lead Division I with an average of just 9.5 per contest for the season, and have posted signle-digit totals in ten of their last 13 games.

Junior guard A.J. Graves scored a season-low five points on one-of-eight shooting while battling stomach illness, but still moved into 20th place on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,215 career points. Graves ranks fourth in the League with a 17.1 points-per-game scoring pace, including a loop-high 79 three-pointers.

Junior forward Pete Campbell continued his strong play off the bench with 17 points in 14 minutes Saturday. He has scored in double figures in 13 of the team's last 14 games, averaging 14.3 points during that span compared to 2.8 in the first 14 games. He leads the League as a 51.7 percent shooter from three-point range, including 58.4 percent (45-of-77) against League foes.

Junior guard Mike Green led the Bulldogs with 18 points Saturday, lifting his season pace to 14.3 per game. He also leads the team in rebounding (5.8 per contest) and assists (third in the League with 4.04 set-ups per outing).

Freshman guard Willie Veasley has hit his last nine field-goal attempts and 13 of his last 14 shots from the field during the last four games. He scored ten points versus Florida Gulf Coast.

Mb>Ramblers try to join 20-win club
Loyola is one of two teams already set with its seed. The Ramblers, 19-9 overall and 9-5 in League play, will carry the third seed into the loop summit. Loyola stretched its winning streak to six games---the school's longest since 2005---by defeating UW-Milwaukee (66-56) and Eastern Illinois (66-43), and can become the League's third 20-win team with one victory this week. The Ramblers have not posted a 20-win season since the 1984-85 campaign.

Loyola is now 16-4 in February games under third-year bench boss Jim Whitesell, and has allowed only 50.3 points per game in the last three contests.

Freshman forward Andy Polka has stepped up his contributions of late, averaging 11.5 points and eight rebounds off the bench in his last two outings. Polka is third in the League at seven rebounds per game, four spots ahead of sophomore teammate Leon Young (6.2 caroms per contest.

Junior forward Tom Levin has added a total of 27 points in the last three contests, including a career-best 12 versus Eastern Illinois.

Senior guard Blake Schilb had aonly six points Saturday, but still stands eighth on the loop scoring chart at 15.6 points per game. He also ranks second with 4.22 assists per contest, while fellow senior Majak Kou and sophomore guard J.R. Blount add 13.5 and 13.2 points per game, respectively, as part of Loyola's loop-leading rate of 70.7 points per outing.

Phoenix return home after two road victories
UW-Green Bay remains in fourth place, starting the week at 7-7 in League play prior to Monday night's meeting with Butler. The Phoenix improved to 16-12 overall with two road victories last week, defeating UIC 65-55 on Wednesday and getting past Northern Illinois, 82-76, on Saturday.

Sophomore guard Ryan Tillema came off the bench to average 16 points in the two victories, canning nine five treys at UIC and four against the Huskies. UW-Green Bay matched a season-low with six turnovers at NIU. The Phoenix also hit 25 of 29 free-throw attempts with sophomore forward Mike Schachtner making nine of ten as part of his game-high 25-point total.

Schachtner hit the 20-point mark for the seventh time this season while senior guard Ryan Evanochko added 17 points and five assists. Evanochko currently stands ninth in the League in scoring at 15.4 points per game to go with a loop-leading 5.18 assists per contest. Schachtner is one spot behind his teammate on the scoring charts at 15.0 points per outing.

Sophomore Terry Evans leads the League with a rate of 1.86 steals per game, and is eighth in the circuit with 6.2 rebounsd per contest. He had three thefts and eight caroms at NIU, supplementing a ten-point scoring night.

UW-Green Bay is the League's top three-point shooting team, hitting 39.2 percent behind the arc. Individually, Schachtner ranks second at 48.5 percent, with freshman guard Troy Cotton third at 45.5 percent behind the arc.

Penguins look to extend home schedule
Youngstown State climbed to 6-8 in the League and took one step closer to a first-round home game with Wednesday's 82-70 victory over Detroit. The Penguins built on that momentum Saturday, defeating Eastern Kentucky 66-61 to improve to 12-15 overall.

YSU's 12 victories are the most for the progeam since the 1999-2000 squad registered 19. Youngstown State has never hosted a League Championship game, but could accomplish that feat with a victory Thursday over Wright State. Otherwise, the Penguins' quest will have to wait until Saturday's regular-season finale.

A victory this week would give head coach Jerry Slocum 600 triumphs for his career. The veteran mentor owns a 599-361 ledger during his 32-year tenure, including 19-36 at YSU.

Senior guard Quin Humphrey scored 36 points against the Titans, hitting eight triples during his 12-for-18 shooting performance. He also had 20 versus EKU in his 100th career start, and has moved up to eighth place in school history with 1,633 career markers. His season pace of 18.9 per game is second-best in the League, three spots ahead of fellow senior Keston Roberts (16.1). Humphrey also stands third on the loop rebounding chart at seven per game.

Sophomore forward Jack Liles has grabbed 64 rebounds in his last seven outings, including eight or more in seven of those appearances. He scored a career-high 18 points Saturday, making seven of 11 shots from the field.

Titans scrambling for key sixth seed
Detroit is one of three teams tied for the sixth position---and the final home game in the first round of the League Championship---with a 5-9 League ledger. The Titans improved to 10-17 overall with Saturday's 92-84, overtime victory at Buffalo.

The Titans reached the double-figure mark in victories for the 16th consecutive season, but the 17 losses are the most since 1991-92 when the late Ricky Birdsong coached the team to a 12-17 ledger.

Detroit is now 2-1 when working overtime this season, after splitting two extra-time contests versus UW-Milwaukee earlier this season.

Senior center Ryvon Covile has three double-doubles in his last four games, and leads the League with 15 this year---14 more than in his first three seasons. He is averaging 13.8 points and a League-high 10.6 rebounds per game, attempting to become the first Titan to average a double-double since Koe Kopicki in 1981-82 (18.6, 10.5). Covile hit the 20-point mark for the fifth time this year with 23 markers at Buffalo.

Senior guard Brandon Cotton added 22 points against the Bulls for his 13th game of 20 or more in 2006-07. Cotton climbed to 15th place in school history with 1,411 points and is third in the League at 18.1 markers per outing this season.

Junior guard Zach Everingham scored a career-high 16 points in Wednesday's 82-70 loss at Youngstown State. He eclipsed his previous high of 12 with 14 markers in the opening half.

Jeffers powers Flames to victory
UIC carries an 11-17 overall ledger including a 5-9 loop mark after a 65-55 loss to UW-Green Bay and an 84-62 win over Central Michigan. The Flames host UW-Milwaukee in a key positional battle Wednesday before visiting cross-town rival Loyola to end the regular season.

Junior forward Othyus Jeffers scored a game-high 24 points (all in the second half) Saturday to lead the Flames past CMU. He hit the 20-point mark for the sixth time this year. Jeffers ranks sixth in the League at 16 points per game, while his 8.9 rebounds-per-game norm is second on that chart.

Jeffers ranks sixth in the League in scoring at 16.1 points per contest, and is second with nine rebounds per outing. His 1.64 steals per game and .492 field-goal shooting are third and seventh, respectively.

Sophomore guard Josh Mayo adds 11.7 points per game, and also ranks sixth in the League at 3.13 assists per game. Sophomore guard T.J. Gray's 11.1 points per game come in part from 79 three-point field goals.

Sophomore center Scott VanderMeer has eclipsed the League's single-season record for blocked shots, boasting 97 rejections so far in 2006-07. In the process, he erased the previous mark of 92, set by Dan Godfread of Evansville in 1988-89 and tied by Marquette's Jim McIlvaine two years later. VanderMeer's 3.46 blocks per game are more than twice as many as any other League player.

Panthers could hold the key for seeding
UW-Milwaukee fell to 8-20 with a pair of losses last week, falling to Loyola, 66-56, and Drake, 84-76. The Panthers are in the midst of their first 20-loss season since a 3-24 mark in 1997-98, but still could play a pivotal role in several teams' League Championship positioning with games this week at UIC and at UW-Green Bay.

Wednesday's game in Chicago pits a pair of teams at 5-9 in League play, both looking for a first-round home date in the League summit. In addition, the final marks of those two teams might be the difference in determining the No. 1 seed for the tournament. See the list of tie-breakers on page 6 of this release for more details.

Junior guard Avery Smith hit the 30-point mark for the third time this year, posting 33 points at Drake. His 23 in the first half were the most by a Panther in a 20-minute span since Ed McCants scored 24 in the first half versus Detroit two years ago. Smith, who has led finished in double figures 21 times this year, ranks eighth on the League scoring charts at 15.8 points per game for the season. Junior forward Paige Paulsen adds 11.1 points per contest and is seventh in the League in rebounding at 5.9 per game.

UW-Milwaukee's bench made significant contributions Saturday, with Marcus Skinner scoring a collegiate-high 11 points and grabbing five rebounds. It marked the 18th time this year a UWM reserve has finished in double figures. The Panther bench has outscored its counterparts in 20 of 28 games this season.

Vikings' progress continues
Cleveland State starts the week at 9-19 overall after Saturday's 85-76 victory at Cal State-Northridge. The Vikings' ledger includes a 2-12 League mark.

CSU rallied from a 35-34 halftime deficit in California, marking the first time this season that the Vikings have won after trailing at the break. Cleveland State had been 0-13 in such games this year. The triumph also gives CSU a 7-7 record outside the League, the school's best showing since the 2000-01 campaign (6-6).

Cleveland State set season-highs with 30 free throws made and 40 attempted in Saturday's triumph. Senior guard Raheem Moss was perfect in eight attempts on the way to a team-high 16 points.

Senior guard Victor Morris took the court in his 100th game during Wednesday's 68-55 loss to Wright State, becoming the 26th player in Viking annals to play in 100 or more games. Morris averages a team-high 4.11 assists per game but does not have enough games played to qualify for the League leader boards.

Sophomore forward J'Nathan Bullock ranks among the League leaders in both scoring (12th with 13.8 points per game) and rebounding (sixth at 6.5 per contest). Bullock matched Moss' totals of 16 points and nine rebounds at Cal State-Northridge.

Moss is the other Viking scoring in double figures with 10.5 per contest, while freshman guard Joe Davis adds 9.4 points per outing.

Crusaders near finish line in Mid-Con
Valparaiso---which officially joins the Horizon League in 2007-08---starts the week at 14-14 overall and 7-5 in Mid-Continent Conference play. The Crusaders defeated Western Illinois 80-56 before suffering an 89-80, overtime setback at Western Michigan on Saturday.

Freshman guard Samuel Haanpaa came off the bench to score 37 points in the two games, including 19 at WMU. He was seven-of-11 from three-point range, lifting his season total to 65 treys on 45.1 percent accuracy from the tri-light zone. Bryce Drew holds the Valpo freshman record with 89.

Haanpaa has taken over the team scoring lead with an average of 11.9 points per game. He tops a quartet of double-figure scorers which also includes sophomore forward Urule Igbavboa (11.4 plus a team-high 7.1 rebounds per game), sophomore guard Brandon McPherson (11.4 along with a team-leading 3.32 assists per contest) and junior guard Shawn Huff (10.9).

The victory over Western Illinois was long-time sideline boss Homer Drew's 300th at Valpo. Drew has a 300-239 mark in 18 seasons on the Crusader bench and a total of 569 victories in 30 years of collegiate coaching.

Valpo shot 56.3 percent from the floor against WIU, including 69.2 percent (18-of-26) in the second half. Igbavboa scored a career-high 21 points and junior guard Jarry Loyd matched his collegiate-best with 14 points in a losing effort Saturday.

Horizon League Shines in O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters Competition

The Horizon League stepped into the spotlight during last weekend's O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters extravaganza. The League compiled a 7-2 record in the event, a mark matched only by the Western Athletic Conference among conferences with multiple entries (The West Coast Conference's 1-0 mark came from a triumph by that circuit's lone representative---San Francisco.

Wright State carried the League banner to victory over Cal State-Fullerton (77-62) in front of a national (ESPN360) audience, while three Horizon League teams posted wins against Mid-American Conference opponents. Visiting UW-Green Bay downed Northern Illinois, 82-76, with UIC running past Central Michigan, 84-62, and Detroit outlasting home-standing Buffalo, 92-84 in overtime. Two more victories came at the expense of Ohio Valley Conference foes, with Loyola routing Eastern Illinois, 66-43, and Youngstown State slipping past Eastern Kentucky, 66-61, while Cleveland State knocked off Big West Conference member Cal State-Northridge, 85-76. No. 13 Butler dropped the day's marquee match-up against 16th-ranked Southern Illinois, 68-64, with UW-Milwaukee falling at Drake, 84-76.

WAC teams won four of the 14 televised games, including Nevada's 69-64 triumph over Northern Iowa and Boise State's last-minute, 83-92 victory over Albany.

The Southern Conference went 3-1 for the day, followed by the Big South (2-1) and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (6-4). The Mid-American Conference and Missouri Valley Conference each finished the weekend at .500 (the MAC at 6-6, the MVC with five wins in ten games), while the Colonial Athletic Association posted a 5-7 ledger, the Big West Conference finished at 3-5 and the Ohio Valley Conference went 3-8.

BracketBusters, named because of the success of the teams in NCAA Tournament play in recent years, provides selected teams an opportunity to play other top non-conference opponents three weeks prior to Selection Sunday (March 11). The teams not selected for televised events were paired up for additional non-conference action, and all 51 pairings feature return games next season as part of a home-and-home series.

On the Horizon This Week:

Monday, February 19
#15 Butler at UW-Green Bay, 8:05 p.m. - *

Wednesday, February 21
Cleveland State at Detroit, 7:05 p.m. - *
UW-Milwaukee at UIC, 8 p.m. - *

Thursday, February 22
Wright State at Youngstown State, 7:05 p.m. - *
Loyola at #15 Butler, 9 p.m. - * (ESPNU)
Southern Utah at Valparaiso, 8:05 p.m.

Saturday, February 24
Detroit at #15 Butler, 2 p.m. - *
Youngstown State at Cleveland State, 5:30 p.m. - *
UIC at Loyola, 8 p.m. - *
UW-Milwaukee at UW-Green Bay, 8:05 p.m. - *
UMKC at Valparaiso, 8:05 p.m.

END OF REGULAR SEASON

ALL TIMES EASTERN / rankings noted are from Feb. 19 AP poll
* - Horizon League games