KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - The Truman State Men's Basketball team will tip off their season against a pair of familiar opponents when the Bulldogs travel to Cedarville, Ohio for the GLVC/GMAC Challenge this weekend. Truman will open with the host Yellow Jackets at 7:45 p.m. (ET) on Friday night then face Findlay (Ohio) on Saturday at 2 p.m. (ET).

This will be the sixth straight "non-COVID" season that the Bulldogs will play Cedarville in the opening weekend while fourth straight year of having Findlay on the schedule. 

The Bulldogs tested themselves in the exhibition season against a pair of powerhouses from the Big Ten conference. Truman State lost 118-72 to the University of Iowa and two days later fell 102-57 to Purdue (Ind.). Elijah Hazekamp led all Bulldog scorers in each game with 15 coming against the Hawkeyes and 11 against the Boilermakers. 

Head coach Jeff Horner begins his fifth season at the helm of the Bulldogs who have qualified for five NCAA Division II tournaments in the last six seasons and the last three. Truman State was 20-10 last year and posted a 13-6 record in the GLVC while earning the #4 seed in the Midwest Regional before bowing out against Missouri-St. Louis in the opening round game. 

Hazekamp is the top returning scorer for the Bulldogs at 12.8 points per game while also averaging 7.1 rebounds. He was second on the team in three-pointers made at 66 and shot 44% from outside. Hunter Strait led the squad in assists last season at 4.8 per night and started 24 of 30 games played.

The Bulldogs were picked to finish fourth in the GLVC preseason coaches' poll. The team tallied 98 points to sit behind Indianapolis (136), Southwest Baptist (131) and Lewis (107) and just in front of William Jewell (94) and McKendree (91). 

Cedarville posted a 19-13 overall record a season ago and were 12-8 in their league. The team was selected to the NCAA Midwest regional and lost to #3 Hillsdale 68-61 in their first round game. The Yellow Jackets were picked seventh out of 12 teams in the GMAC coaches poll and lost to Valparaiso 83-79 in an exhibition game in late October. Jacob Drees and Jayvon Maughmer combined for 41 points, with Drees adding 14 rebounds for the double-double.

Truman holds a 3-2 advantage in the overall series with Cedarville breaking the tie last year with an 87-80 win in Quincy's Pepsi Arena. Hazekamp set a career-high with 23 points and Masen Miller chipped in 21 as five players scored in double figures for Truman. The Bulldogs led by as many as 17 at the halftime break

Findlay was 19-11 and qualified for the NCAA Midwest regional last season. They were knocked out in the first round by Ferris (Mich.) State 87-81. They were picked second in the GMAC preseason poll with only Walsh (Ohio) ahead of them. They lost to Toledo in their exhibition opener 100-88 with senior Nathan Bruns leading with 19 points. 

The teams have split the four previous meetings with the Bulldogs winning the last two. Cade McKnight scored 27 points and Dylan Peeters added 13 in the Bulldogs 90-61 win last season. Peeters and Hazekamp both had double-doubles and Truman 54% for the game and 52% from three. Tre'Maine Gray led the Oilers with 15 points.

Truman will open up their home slate of games with a non-conference tilt against Upper Iowa University on Wednesday in Pershing Arena. Tip time is scheduled for 7 p.m.