Men's Basketball Notes: Truman vs. Lincoln Christian (Dec. 4; 7 p.m.)

Truman Men's Basketball Game Notes (December 4, 2014)
PDF Notes | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics

Game #6: Truman (3-2) vs. Lincoln Christian (1-8)

Date: Thursday, December 4, 2014 (7 p.m.)
Location: Kirksville, Mo. || Pershing Arena

Series Record: Truman leads, 2-0.
Series Record in Kirksville: Truman leads, 2-0.
Last Meeting: Nov. 9, 2013 || Truman won, 92-52 in Kirksville.
Series Streak: Truman, W-2

Media Links: Live Stats || Live Audio || Live Video
Social Media: @TrumanAthletics || @TSUBulldogHoops || #TSUGameDay

Probable Starters

Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	PPG	RPG	APG	Extra
G	#2	Seth Jackson	6'4"	210	SR	22.0	4.2	1.4	3 20+ pt gms (14-15)
G	#4	Reed Mells	5'11"	160	SR	15.2	4.6	3.6	32.6 min/gm; 11 stls
G	#22	Kyle Kanaskie	5'11"	180	SO	8.2	2.6	1.6	77% FG; 5 steals
C	#35	Patrick Burmester	6'9"	220	SR	4.8	4.0	0.2	25.6 min/gm; 3 blocks
F	#40	Billy Daniel	6'6"	200	SO	4.8	2.8	1.2	47% FG; 6 O-Reb

Off the Bench

Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	PPG	RPG	APG	Extra
G/F	#1	Nikola Pesic	6'5"	190	FR	-	-	-	Possible redshirt in '15
G	#3	Isaac Gardner	6'4"	195	r-SR	6.2	1.0	0.8	9 3FG (39%); 11.2 m/g
G	#5	Taurin Hughes	5'11"	185	FR	-	-	-	Possible redshirt in '15
G	#10	Hank Mathews	6'2"	190	r-FR	-	-	-	0 GP
G	#11	Cole Myers	6'3"	200	JR	5.8	2.4	1.2	6 steals; 73% FG
G	#12	Cory Myers	6'3"	195	r-SO	4.0	2.6	1.6	46% FG; 100% FT
G	#13	Zach Fischer	6'4"	180	r-FR	-	-	-	0 GP
G	#20	Jack Green	6'3"	170	FR	-	-	-	Possible redshirt in '15
C	#24	Kiefer Starbird	6'10"	210	SO	-	-	-	0 GP
F	#25	Connor Lusso	6'6"	220	r-FR	-	-	-	0 GP
G	#30	Andrew Vander Zwaag	6'3"	200	JR	4.8	3.0	0.6	5 O-Reb; 2 stls; 6 3FG
F	#32	Connor Erickson	6'8"	200	SO	1.6	1.8	0.2	6 O-Reb; 6.8 min/gm

Staff
Head Coach: Chris Foster
Career Record: 3-2 || .600 || 1^st season (all at Truman)
GLVC Record: 0-0 || .000 || 1^st season

Assistant Coach: Joe Barrer (1^st season)
Graduate Assistant Coach: Nik Koprivica (1^st season)
Athletic Trainer: Morgan Loscher (1^st season)

Opening Tip:
Fresh off a first-place finish at the Kentucky Wesleyan Holiday Classic last Friday and Saturday, the Truman men's basketball team will play in front of its home crowd for the first time this season on Thursday (Dec. 4) night, when the Bulldogs host Lincoln Christian (Ill.) at 7 p.m. in Pershing Arena.

The Bulldogs, now 3-2 on the season, picked up a championship trophy after earning two wins in 26 hours at the KWC Holiday Classic in Owensboro, Ky., last weekend. Truman defeated North Alabama 87-74 in the semifinals before holding off the host Panthers 70-65 in the championship game. It was a clash of new vs. old in the title bout, as the Bulldogs replaced KWC in the Great Lakes Valley Conference prior to the 2013-14 season, as the Panthers moved on to the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

During the weekend, three Bulldogs played their way onto the six-member all-tournament team, as senior guard Seth Jackson, senior guard Reed Mells, and sophomore guard Kyle Kanaskie were each recognized by tournament organizer's for their play during the two games. In addition, Jackson was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player – tying his career-high with 29 points in the championship game against Kentucky Wesleyan.

Thursday night's contest features a re-match of last year's season-opener, where the Bulldogs dispatched the Red Lions with ease by a 92-52 score to open the year 1-0. Mells scored 21 points in his Truman debut, adding six rebounds and three steals in 28 minutes of action, while senior Isaac Gardner dropped 12 points off the bench. The Bulldogs shot 59% as a team from the floor, hitting 34-of-58 field goals, but went just 7-of-23 from three-point range (30%). Truman forced19 turnovers and led by as many as 42 in the second half. LCC never led in the contest.

Head coach Chris Foster is in his first season as the program's leader, having shifted over one seat after serving as the team's associate head coach last year under then-head coach Matt Woodley. This is Foster's first season as a collegiate head coach, and he is the 13^th head coach in program history.

K-9 Checkup:

With a win, Truman will raise the program's all-time record to 1,114-1,067. A loss would drop the all-time record to 1,113-1,068. This is the 95^th season of Bulldog men's basketball at the University.
The Bulldogs are going for the second straight win in a home opener.
Truman went 12-2 at home last season, going a perfect 4-0 against non-conference opponents and winning by an average margin of 42.7 points. The Bulldogs allowed just an average of 49.3 points per game against non-conference opposition at home last year.
The Bulldogs are shooting 46.3% from the floor this year, including 35.1% (39-of-111) from three-point range. Opponents are shooting 43.2% overall, including 36.3% (29-of-80) from three-point range.
Truman is connecting at 71.5% (98-of-137) from the foul line, while opponents are shooting 69.2% (74-of-107) at the stripe.
The Bulldogs have been out-rebounded in all five games so far, with the team holding a -9.4 margin on the glass.
On the flip side, the Bulldogs have been extra careful with the basketball this year, posting equal or fewer turnovers than their opponents in all five games. Truman has a turnover margin of +4.6.
Seven different Bulldogs have hit multiple three-pointers this season, led by nine from senior guard Isaac Gardner.

Scouting the Opponent:
Lincoln Christian checks into Thursday night's contest at 1-8 overall on the season, with the team's lone win coming in the second game of the season against Central Christian (Mo.) College – a Dec. 13 home opponent of Truman.

The Red Lions are averaging 61.6 points per game and are 0-5 in true road games this season. In the Faith Baptist Bible College Classic on Nov. 21-22, LCU was led by Jimmy Smylie and Josiah Gordon against host-FBBC, as the tandem scored 13 points apiece, while Drew Stribling took home top honors against Ozark Christian with 17 points. The team's last game was on Nov. 25 against Greenville (Ill.) College, where the Red Lions were handed a 104-43 setback.

Mac Ingmire is in his second season as the program's head basketball coach and athletic director. He has an 11-25 record at the helm.

#UniWatch:
The Bulldogs added a third jersey to their uniform arsenal this season, picking up an anthracite-gray to go along with the team's traditional purple and white choices. The full game notes will be tracking the team's record in each color this year, with the gray being the jersey of choice so far in four contests to a tune of 2-2, while the Bulldogs are 1-0 in their white jerseys this season.

Jackson, Kanaskie Set New Career-Bests:
After senior guard Seth Jackson set a new career-high with 29 points against Northern (S.D.) State two weekends ago, he matched that mark last Saturday by scoring 29 points again – this time against Kentucky Wesleyan in the KWC Holiday Classic title game. He has scored 20 or more points already three times this season and is the Bulldog leader offensively at 22.0 points per game.

Meanwhile, sophomore guard Kyle Kanaskie set a new personal-best with an 18-point game against North Alabama in the KWC Classic semifinals on Friday afternoon. He hit 6-of-7 field goals (including 4-of-5 three-point attempts) along with a pair of free throws to reach his new high in 30 minutes of action. The Pennsylvania-native also grabbed five rebounds, dished out three assists, and nabbed a pair of steals.

And I Would Walk 500 … or, 3,000 Miles:
The Bulldogs have faced a brutal travel schedule to open the 2014-15 regular season, as Truman put more than 3,000 miles on the tires traveling to Nashville, Tenn., Aberdeen, S.D., and Owensboro, Ky.

GLVC Preseason Poll Released:
The Bulldog men's basketball program was picked fourth in the Great Lakes Valley Conference West Division preseason coaches' poll, announced on Oct. 29 by the league office.

Truman garnered 77 points to check in two points back of West No. 3 Quincy. Drury picked up all 15 possible first-place votes (coaches could not vote for their own team) to lead all teams with 120 points, followed by West No. 2 Missouri-St. Louis at 95 points.

The Bulldogs were followed by Maryville (72 points), William Jewell (53 points), Missouri S&T (42 points), and Rockhurst (30 points) in the West Division.

Meanwhile, Bellarmine took home the top spot in what's predicted to be a highly-competitive East Division with six first-place votes and 102 total points, followed by Lewis (96 points, five first-place votes), Indianapolis (93 points, three first-place votes), and Wisconsin-Parkside (90 points, two first-place votes). Southern Indiana (79 points) sits a clear-cut fifth, followed by a tight cluster of Illinois Springfield (39 points), Saint Joseph's (36 points), and McKendree (33 points) to round out the poll.

A Whole New Venue:
The Great Lakes Valley Conference's 20 league championships sites have been determined for the 2014-15 season, with the most notable change to the GLVC Championship schedule coming in basketball.

The 2015 GLVC Men's and Women's Basketball Championship Tournament will enter into its first of a two-year agreement with the Family Arena in St. Charles, Mo., just minutes outside St. Louis. The league's premiere event had been held the past two years at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana, but a two-year schedule conflict with the venue required the GLVC to relocate. The 2015 event will begin with first-round competition on campus sites on March 1, with eight quarterfinalists on both the men's and women's side advancing to Family Arena for tournament action, March 5-8. Tickets for the 2015 GLVC Men's and Women's Basketball Championship Tournament are expected to go on sale in late November.

Found: 20 Wins!:
Last year's Bulldog team became the first to win 20 games since the 2005-06 team capped its season with a 20-9 record. Only five previous Bulldog teams – 1946-47 (30-2), 1947-48 (29-2), 1978-79 (20-9), 1998-99 (26-7), 2005-06 (20-9) – reached the 20-win mark in a season.

In addition, the Bulldogs' 13 conference wins last season set a new program record, as only two other Bulldog teams reached the dozen win mark during their respective conference slates.

Letting It Fly:
Last year's Bulldog team made 233 three-pointers through 27 games, marking the second-most all-time on the single season chart. That number has topped 200 each of the last three seasons, beginning with 205 in 2011-12 and 201 in 2012-13.

The Bulldogs have also made at least one three-pointer in every game since Feb. 12, 2003, a stretch of 311 consecutive games.

Up Next:
Truman will play the second of eight straight regular season games at home this Saturday, when the 'Dogs welcome Quincy for both program's 2014-15 GLVC opener. Tipoff from Pershing between the long-time rivals is set for 3 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

#35 Patrick Burmester: C; 6' 9"; Senior

#40 Billy Daniel: F; 6' 6"; Sophomore

#32 Connor Erickson: F; 6' 8"; Sophomore

#03 Isaac Gardner: G; 6' 4"; Redshirt Senior

#02 Seth Jackson: G; 6' 4"; Senior

#22 Kyle Kanaskie: G; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#25 Connor Lusso: F; 6' 6"; Redshirt Freshman

#10 Hank Mathews: G; 6' 2"; Redshirt Freshman

#04 Reed Mells: G; 5' 11"; Senior

#11 Cole Myers: G; 6' 3"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#35 Patrick Burmester
: 6' 9"; Senior
: C

#40 Billy Daniel
: 6' 6"; Sophomore
: F

#32 Connor Erickson
: 6' 8"; Sophomore
: F

#03 Isaac Gardner
: 6' 4"; Redshirt Senior
: G

#02 Seth Jackson
: 6' 4"; Senior
: G

#22 Kyle Kanaskie
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: G

#25 Connor Lusso
: 6' 6"; Redshirt Freshman
: F

#10 Hank Mathews
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Freshman
: G

#04 Reed Mells
: 5' 11"; Senior
: G

#11 Cole Myers
: 6' 3"; Junior
: G