McKendree Bearcats (8-7, 1-0) at 1 UIndy Greyhounds (15-0, 7-0)
Thursday, Jan. 22, 7:45 pm ET, Nicoson Hall
live stats  |  video  |  audio  | game notes
Radio: 88.7 FM

Illinois Springfield Prairie Stars (7-8, 1-6)* at 1 UIndy Greyhounds (15-0, 7-0)*
Saturday, Jan. 24, 3:15 pm ET, Nicoson Hall
live stats  |  video  |  audio  | game notes
Radio: 88.7 FM
_{* as of Jan. 21}

ON TAP
The Greyhounds put their newly-earned No. 1 ranking on the line when they host a pair of GLVC East Division opponents this week.  McKendree invades Nicoson Hall Thursday night at 7:45 p.m., followed by a visit from Illinois Springfield Saturday afternoon at 3:15 p.m.

ABOUT McKENDREE
The Bearcats are 8-7 overall but just 1-6 in conference play.  Their lone GLVC win came in an 88-84 final versus Quincy Jan. 10.

Six Bearcats average at last nine points per night.  Leading-scorer Brandon Book puts up 15.2 points per bur has not played Jan. 10.  Senior Logan Carson is next in line at 14.9 ppg, while senior Matt Holmes (12.6 ppg, 7.7 rpg) ranks sixth in the GLVC in rebounding,

McKendree ranks last the GLVC in free throw percentage (.622).  Individually, Carson is 52 for 58 (.897) from the line, good for fourth in the league, but the rest of the team has made foul shots at an unsightly .553 clip.  Carson has missed only one of 24 free throw attempts in conference play.

GREYHOUNDS vs. BEARCATS
UIndy has swept the six previous meetings with McKendree.  After downing the Bearcats three times in the 60s, the series was renewed after McKendree joined the GLVC in 2012-13.  Last season, the Greyhounds shot 58 percent from the field in a 99-91 win in Lebanon.

The Hounds, ranked 16th at the time, led by as much as 17 midway through the second half, but the persistent Bearcats whittled it down to six by the two-minute mark.  UIndy held on, however, as Joe Lawson's 21 points led six Greyhounds in double figures.

ABOUT ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD
The Prairie Stars (7-8, 1-6) earned their first conference win with a 67-63 home win versus McKendree Monday.  As a result, UIS, McKendree and Saint Joseph's enter play Thursday with matching 1-6 conference records.  Either the Stars or the Pumas are guaranteed the move out of the GLVC East cellar, as the two play each other in Rensselaer Thursday night.

Junior Jamall Millison leads the team in scoring at 13.8 ppg.  He shots 43 percent from behind the arc and ranks fifth in the GLVC in 3-pointers made per game (2.3).

GREYHOUNDS vs. PRAIRIE STARS
Like McKendree, Illinois Springfield has a relatively short history versus the Hounds.  In a series that dates back to 2004, UIndy is 5-0 versus the Prairie Stars, including a convincing 104-79 win at Springfield last January.  Brennan McElroy delivered a career-high 23 points, four steals and two blocks while shootinng a perfect 8 for 8 from the floor, including a pair of 3-pointers.

LAST TIME OUT
Two days after a hard-fought 66-62 victory over then-No. 4 Bellarmine, the Greyhounds handed Southern Indiana an 84-67 defeat.  UIndy received a pair of impressive performances that include 31 points from Lawson and 15 assists from Lucas Barker.

GLVC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
The Greyhounds earned another GLVC Player of the Week award Monday as Lawson garnered his second weekly honor from the conference this season.  The 6-7 senior notched a 15-point, 10-rebound performance versus Bellarmine, followed by a 31-point, nine-board outburst versus Southern Indiana.

The Bellarmine performance marked his fourth double-double of the season, while his point total versus USI fell one shy of his career high.

Lawson (2), Barker (1) and Jordan Loyd (1) have accounted for four of this year's GLVC Player of the Week accolades this season.  No other GLVC school has managed more than two.  Meanwhile, eight of the nine weekly winners hail from the East Division.

TOP DOG
For just the second time ever, UIndy earned the No. 1 ranking in the NABC/Division II Top 25 poll, released Tuesday.  The Greyhounds joined their 1996-97 counterparts as the only teams in program history to grab the top spot in the weekly coaches poll.
 
Last week's win over then-No. 4 Bellarmine coupled with a loss by formerly top-ranked West Liberty helped the Hounds leapfrog two spots to No. 1, passing fellow unbeaten Lincoln Memorial in the process.  LMU received two more first-place votes than UIndy – nine to the Hounds' seven – but the Railsplitters remained in second for the second straight week.

Meanwhile, Bellarmine dropped just three spots to No. 7 in this week's rankings, keeping two GLVC teams in the top 10.  Wisconsin-Parkside, who is tied with the Hounds for the GLVC East Division lead, climbed three rungs to No. 19.

PLAY MAKER
Barker's 15 assists Saturday represent the highest total in the GLVC this season.  The sum is just one short of the most assists in any Division II game this season and just two behind the UIndy school record of 17 set by Vasco Walton back in 1966.

Meanwhile, Barker's average of 8.7 assists per game is the highest in all of NCAA men's basketball, all divisions.

START YOUR ENGINES
UIndy's current 15-0 record is among one of the hottest starts in program history.  The previous best start for a Stan Gouard-led team was 12-0 in 2012-13, while the school record for wins to start a season is 18 by the aforementioned 1996-97 club.  Below is a list of the Greyhounds' all-time best starts:
 

RECORD	YEAR
18-0	1996-97
16-0	1941-42
13-0	2014-15
14-0	1933-34
12-0	1937-38
12-0	2003-04
12-0	2012-13
10-0	1932-33
9-0	2013-14