Men's Basketball Weekly Release #7
Dec. 18, 2006
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Horizon League Player of the Week
Mike Schachtner, UW-Green Bay
Sophomore * Forward
Somerset, Wis. (Somerset)
Schachtner averaged 27 points and 6.5 rebounds per game in a pair of Phoenix victories last week to earn his first career player-of-the-week honor. The six-foot-nine sophomore tallied a career-high 36 points Tuesday in a 92-81 victory over Chicago State, hitting 11-of-15 field-goal attempts, including seven-of-eight three-pointers, to go along with a perfect seven-of-seven at the free-throw line and seven rebounds. His 36 points were the most by a UW-Green Bay player in 10 years. He then had a game highs of 18 points and six rebounds in a 80-48 win Saturday over South Dakota State. For the week, Schachtner connected on nine-of-12 three-pointers (.750) and all 13 of his free-throw attempts.
Other Top Performances for the Week Ending December 17
A.J. Graves, Butler
Jr. * G * Switz City, Ind.
Graves scored a game-high 25 points in the Bulldogs' 68-65 win over Purdue Saturday in the Wooden Tradition, including 18 in the second half. He hit eight-of-14 field goal attempts, including four-of-seven three-pointers, and all five free-throw tries while adding three steals.
J'Nathan Bullock, Cleveland State
So. * F * Flint, Mich.
Bullock scored 23 points in the Vikings' only game of the week, a 78-76 double-overtime loss Sunday at Central Michigan. He netted 21 of his points in the second half and the overtimes. For the game, he shot eight-of-11 from the field and seven-for-11 at the free-throw line.
Ryvon Covile, Detroit
Sr. * C * Detroit, Mich.
Covile put a career high into the books with 25 points Saturday in the Titans' 75-72 loss to Canisius. He also added 13 rebounds -- one shy of his career best -- and two blocked shots while shooting .625 (10-for-16) from the floor. It was his League-best eighth double-double of the year.
T.J. Gray, UIC
Jr. * G * Chicago, Ill.
Gray sparked the Flames off the bench with a season- and team-high 19 points in an 86-80 victory Saturday over Akron. He connected on five-of-nine three-pointers and went four-of-four from the free-throw line, including two with 27 seconds left to give UIC a three-point cushion.
Blake Schilb, Loyola
Sr. * G * Rantoul, Ill.
Schilb scored a game-high 22 points and added six rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals in the Ramblers' 76-67 victory over Northern Iowa on Saturday. It was the second-highest scoring output of the season for the Preseason Horizon League Player of the Year.
DaShaun Wood, Wright State
Sr. * G * Detroit, Mich.
Wood averaged 23.5 points, five rebounds, three assists and 2.5 steals in a pair of games last week. He scored 24 points in a 79-72 loss at Marshall Wednesday and had 23 in a 59-56 home loss to Bowling Green on Saturday. Wood also was 13-of-15 from the line in the two games.
Quin Humphrey, Youngstown State
Sr. * G * Ellenwood, Ga.
Humphrey scored a game-high 25 points in the Penguins' 79-78 loss at Robert Morris on Saturday, including 16 in the second half. He also grabbed four rebounds, dished out three assists and had three steals while hitting 10-of-12 free-throw attempts.
Bulldogs rebound from first loss to defeat another in-state team
Butler (11-1, 1-0 Horizon League) bounced back from its first loss of the season to upend Purdue 68-65 Saturday in the Wooden Tradition at Indianapolis in the Bulldogs' lone game of the week.
With the victory, Butler swept its three games against in-state foes Indiana, Notre Dame and Purdue for the first time since the 1948-49 season. Coincidentally, all three games were played at Conseco Fieldhouse -- the first two in the NIT Season Tip-off -- with the Bulldogs wearing their black road uniforms.
Junior guard A.J. Graves led Butler with 25 points versus the Boilermakers, including 16 in the second half. It was the League-tying fifth 20-point game of the season for Graves, who ranks second in the conference with 17.9 points per game.
Graves continues to rank among the national leaders with a League-leading 98.4 percent from the free-throw line (60-of-61) and has made his last 32 in a row. (He also made first 29 of the season.) He also tops the conference with 2.75 three-pointers per game and is fourth in steals with 1.75 per contest.
Graves enters the week with 968 points and is on the verge of becoming the 31st player in Butlerâ€TMs storied history to score 1,000 career points.
The Bulldogs will wrap up their pre-conference schedule this Friday by hosting former Midwestern Collegiate Conference rival Evansville at Hinkle Fieldhouse. It will be the fourth straight game against a fellow Indiana team and seventh of the season for Butler, which is 5-1 against in-state foes.
Junior guard Mike Green reached double figures for the seventh consecutive game with 18 against Purdue. He ranks 10th in the League with 14.9 points per game, second with 4.0 assists and sixth with 1.42 steals.
Freshman Willie Veasley played without a split on his left hand for the first time since breaking it in the season opener and responded with season highs of seven points and a team-high nine rebounds in a career-best 28 minutes.
Ramblers continue mastery of Missouri Valley, get set for another MVC foe
In its lone game of the week, Loyola (8-3, 1-0 Horizon League) defeated Northern Iowa 76-67 Saturday for the Ramblersâ€TM fourth victory in their last five games against Missouri Valley Conference opponents.
Senior guard Blake Schilb led Loyola with 22 points, six rebounds and four assists and has now scored in double figures in 31 of his last 32 home games. Schilb, the Leagueâ€TMs Preseason Player of the Year, ranks fifth in the conference with 16.3 points per game and is second in free-throw percentage (47-of-51, .922) and tied for fourth in assists (3.64 apg).
Against UNI, the Ramblers become the first team in 43 games to tally more than 72 points against the defensive-minded Panthers. The win also was Loyolaâ€TMs first ever in the five-game all-time series.
Sophomore forward Leon Young returned to action after missing the previous two games with a foot injury and had two rebounds in 16 minutes.
Freshman Andy Polka, starting in place of Young, has averaged 9.3 points and eight rebounds in three starts. For the season, Polka is averaging 6.1 points and 6.6 rebounds per outing, which is the best board mark among League freshmen.
Senior guard Majak Kou enters the week just 48 points shy of becoming the 36th player in Loyola history with 1,000 career points.
Schilb, who leads all active Horizon League players with 1,530 career points, needs just eight rebounds to become the 18th Loyolan with 1,000 points and 500 rebounds.
The Ramblers will put their recent success against Missouri Valley teams on the line again this week when Loyola plays Bradley Tuesday. Loyola is looking to end a nine-game losing streak in Peoria dating to 1984.
Flames move back above .500, prepare for key road trip this week
UIC (6-5, 1-0 Horizon League) moved back above the .500 mark again with an 86-80 victory over preseason Mid-American Conference favorite Akron Saturday at the Pavilion in the Flamesâ€TM lone game of the week.
The Flames have now won five of their last seven games after opening the season 1-3 and are one of three League teams still undefeated at home (4-0).
Junior guard T.J. Gray scored a career-high 19 points off the bench to power UIC, including hitting five-of-nine three-pointers. He moved into 20th on the Leagueâ€TMs scoring chart with 9.7 points per game. Against Akron, Gray become the first player other than Othyus Jeffers and Josh Mayo to lead the Flames in scoring this season.
Jeffers just missed his fourth double-double of the season with 16 points and nine rebounds against Akron. For the season, he ranks ninth in the Horizon League in scoring with 15.3 points per game and second with 8.7 rebounds per contest. Jeffers also leads the conference in steals (1.91 spg) and is fourth in field-goal percentage (.500).
Senior Jovan Stefanov has quietly put together a solid season and now ranks 18th in scoring (10.4 ppg), ninth in rebounding (5.9 rpg) and seventh in field-goal percentage (.483).
UIC's Spencer Stewart is the top assist man among freshmen in the League with 3.36 per game to rank sixth in the Horizon League.
The Flames face a couple road tests this week with games at Mississippi on Tuesday and Pennsylvania on Thursday before returning home to host Illinois State on Saturday. Last season, UIC defeated Ole Miss in overtime at the Pavilion for the programâ€TMs first win against a Southeastern Conference opponent.
Raiders drop two but continue homestand with pair of games this week
Wright State (3-5, 1-0 Horizon League) lost both of its games last week, falling 79-72 at Marshall on Wednesday and then 59-56 at home to Bowling Green on Saturday.
Against Marshall, the Raiders led by 15 points at halftime but the Thundering Herd opened the second half with a 22-2 run and never trailed again. In the BGSU game, Wright State trailed 29-22 at the half, then rallied for a nine-point lead before losing by three. Three of the Raidersâ€TM five losses have been seven or fewer points.
The game with Bowling Green marked just Wright State's second home game this season (compared with six on the road) and the beginnig of a modest three-game homestand, which continues this week against Marist on Tuesday and Chicago State on Thursday.
Senior guard DaShaun Wood continues to lead Wright State and rank among the Horizon League leaders. He is third in scoring (17.1 ppg), second in steals (1.88 spg), fifth in free-throw percentage (.838) and seven in assists (3.0 apg).
Six-foot-three guard Vaughn Duggins is the leading scorer among freshmen in the League with 10.4 points per game to rank 17th among all players. He averaged 13 points in Wright State's two games last week, including career-highs of 15 points and eight assists at Marshall.
Penguins lose nail-biter, conclude four-game road trip with two this week
Youngstown State (4-7, 1-1 Horizon League) clawed back from a 14-point deficit but lost a heartbreaker at Robert Morris 79-78 Saturday in the Penguins' only game last week.
Senior guard Quin Humphrey led the â€~Guins with a game-high 25 points at RMU, including 16 in the second half the comeback effort. It was the 20th time in his career he has scored 20 or more points in a game and the fifth this season, which ties for the Horizon League lead (with Butler's A.J. Graves).
Humphrey leads the League with 18.5 points per game. He is trying to become the first player to pace conference in scoring in back-to-back years since Detroit's Rashad Phillips did so in 1999-2000 and 2000-01.
Backcourt mate Keston Roberts continued his potent play, netting 23 points against the Colonials for his third straight 20-point outing. He currently ranks seventh in the League with 15.8 points per game.
John Barber recorded his first double-double of the year with 10 points and 10 rebounds at Robert Morris. Of his five career double-doubles, four have been on the road.
Youngstown State concludes a season-long four-game road trip this week with games at James Madison on Tuesday and northeast Ohio rival Kent State on Friday. Last season, the Penguins came back from a 14-point deficit to beat JMU 72-65 at the Beeghly Center. The trip to Kent is YSU's first in six years. Youngstownâ€TMs road trip began with a 68-65 victory at defending Horizon League champion UW-Milwaukee on Dec. 10.
Vikings glad to be back home following four losses on the road
Cleveland State (5-7, 0-1 Horizon League) will return to the friendly confines of the Wolstein Center this week to begin a three-game home-stand after losing all four games on its recent road trip, including two to nationally ranked teams.
In their only game last week, the Vikings lost 78-76 in double-overtime at Central Michigan on Saturday. Sophomore forward J'Nathan Bullock led CSU with 23 points, including 21 after halftime, but fouled out with 3 1/2 minutes left in the second OT. He shot eight-for-11 from the floor and seven-of-11 from the line for the game en route to his second straight 20-point outing and fourth of the year.
Bullock ranks eighth in the League in scoring (15.4 ppg) and tied for seventh in rebounding (6.1 rpg).
The Vikings open their homestand against Chicago State on Tuesday and then do not play again until hosting UIC Dec. 27 in their Horizon League home opener. Cleveland State is 3-1 and on a three-game winning streak at home this season but has not played there since a 66-59 victory over Kent State on Nov. 29.
Prior to the recent losing streak, the Vikings had won four straight in late November.
Phoenix extends winning streak to three as Tillema returns to active duty
UW-Green Bay (5-5, 0-1 Horizon League) ran its winning streak to three with a pair of home wins last week over Chicago State (92-81) and South Dakota State (80-48).
Sophomore forward Mike Schachtner earned Horizon League player-of-the-week honors after averaging 27 points and 6.5 rebounds while canning nine-of-12 three-pointers in the two games. He scored a career-high 36 points versus Chicago State, hitting 11-of-15 goals, including seven-of-eight three-point attempts and all seven free throws.
The 36 points were the most by a Green Bay player since Jeff Nordgaard had 37 against UIC on Feb. 22, 1996. And, Schachtner's .875 three-point percentage set a Resch Center record and was the second-best in school history among those with at least eight attempts. Green Bay's 14 three-pointers also set a Resch record and tied the schoolâ€TMs single-game mark.
Schachtner is now 13th in the conference in scoring (13.2 ppg) and third in both field-goal (.506) and free-throw shooting (.879).
Senior Ryan Evanochko also enjoyed a plush stat line against CSU with 14 points and a career-high 16 assists, which were the second-most in the Green Bay record book to Frank Nardiâ€TMs 19 against Northern Iowa on Feb. 24, 1986.Evanochko currently leads the Horizon League with six assists per game and ranks fourth with 16.7 points per contest.
After averaging just 65.3 points per game through its first seven games of the regular season, six of which were played on the road, UW-Green Bay is averaging 87.0 points per game in its last three contests, all played at home. The Phoenix shot 39.6 percent from the field in those first seven games, but has hit 51.3 percent in its three most recent.
The highlight of the South Dakota State game may have been the return of sophomore swingman Ryan Tillema, who had 14 points and four assists off the bench after missing the previous six games due to mononucleosis. He had averaged 11 points and three rebounds in starting the season's first three games.
UW-Green Bay will play at Michigan State on Saturday in its only game this week. The Phoenix then will begin a five-game homestand, starting with Jacksonville State Dec. 27 in the first of three games in the Onieda Bingo & Casino Classic.
Titans continue struggles, but Covile notches yet another double-double
Detroit (2-7, 0-1 Horizon League) lost its only game last week, falling to Canisius 75-72 Saturday in normally friendly Calihan Hall.
The Titans have now lost seven of their last eight games overall and are 1-2 at Calihan, which is a marked contrast from their 13-1 home record a year ago. After a game at Toledo on Tuesday, Detroit will return home to host Northeastern Friday, looking to get back to .500 at home.
Senior center Ryvon Covile has done his part so far this season, averaging 14.9 points and a League-leading 11.3 rebounds, nearly 2 1/2 rebounds per game better than the next-best player and good for fourth in the nation. He registered his eighth double-double in nine games with a career-high 25 points and 13 rebounds -- one off his career best -- against Canisius. His eight double-doubles are more than twice as many as the second-most in the League (Othyus Jeffers of UIC has three). Covile also tops the League in field-goal shooting at .575 (50-of-87).
Sophomore forward Chris Hayes has taken a step forward of late, posting new career scoring highs in each of the last three games with eight against Wright State, 11 at Xavier and 12 versus Canisius. He also had career bests in blocked shots (four) and assists (five) against the Golden Griffins.
Junior guard Jon Goode netted a season-high 16 points off the bench versus Canisius, while fellow junior backcourtman Brandon Cotton had 11.
Panthers' losing streak reaches six with loss at Wisconsin
UW-Milwaukee (2-10, 0-1 Horizon League) saw its losing streak stretch to six last week with a 68-49 loss at nationally ranked Wisconsin on Wednesday.
In their lone game this week, the Panthers will play at Sam Houston State on Friday, looking for their first road win of the season after dropping six straight.
The loss to Wisconsin dropped UWM to 3-4 in its last seven games against ranked foes. Next season, the Panthers will host Wisconsin at U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee.
Junior guard Avery Smith leads Milwaukee and ranks 12th in the Horizon League with 14.6 points per game, while junior forward Paige Paulsen is 16th with 11.5 per contest. Paulsen also is tied for seventh in rebounding with 6.1 a game.
Former walk-on Nick Hansen saw the most extensive action of his career against Wisconsin and responded with six points and three rebounds in 21 minutes. On defense, the 6-foot-5 swingman was matched against former Appleton West High teammate and McDonald's All-American Brian Butch, a 6-11 center.
Following the Sam Houston game, the Panthers will begin a three-game homestand Dec. 27 against Wyoming.
Crusaders hope trip to Hawai'i rights the ship following losing streak
Valparaiso (3-6) -- which officially joins the Horizon League in 2007-08 -- lost its sixth consecutive game last week, falling at Ball State 61-40.
The losing streak comes on the heels of three straight wins to begin the season and includes losses to three top-20 opponents (Marquette, Butler and Ohio State).
Sophomore forward Urule Igbavboa paces three Crusaders in double figures with 11 points and a team-best 8.9 rebounds per game. Junior swingman Shawn Huff averages 10.8 points per contest, while sophomore guard Brandon McPherson adds 10 a game.
Igbavboa recorded his fourth double-double of the season against Ball State with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Valparaiso returns to action later this week in the 43rd Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic in Honolulu, Hawai'i. The Crusaders will face Creighton in the first round Friday and then either Houston or Charlotte.
On the Horizon This Week:
Tuesday, December 19
Detroit at Toledo, 7 p.m.
Marist at Wright State, 7 p.m.
Youngstown State at James Madison, 7 p.m.
Chicago State at Cleveland State, 7:30 p.m.
UIC at Mississippi, 8 p.m.
Loyola at Bradley, 8:05 p.m.
Thursday, December 21
Chicago State at Wright State, 7 p.m.
UIC at Penn, 7 p.m.
Friday, December 22
Valparaiso vs. Creighton (Rainbow Classic, at Honolulu, Hawaiâ€TMi), 12:30 a.m.
Evansville at #16/16 Butler, 7 p.m.
Youngstown State at Kent State, 7 p.m.
Northeastern at Detroit, 7:05 p.m.
UC Irvine at Loyola, 8 p.m.
UW-Milwaukee at Sam Houston State, 8 p.m.
Valparaiso vs. Houston or Charlotte (Rainbow Classic, at Honolulu, Hawaiâ€TMi), 5:30/9 p.m.
Saturday, December 23
UW-Green Bay at NR/#25 Michigan State, 12 p.m.
Illinois State at UIC, 3 p.m.
Valparaiso in placement round of Rainbow Classic, at Honolulu, Hawaiâ€TMi, time and opponent TBA
ALL TIMES EASTERN / rankings noted are from Dec. 18 AP/coaches polls
