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Truman State University Athletics

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George Barlow

Men's Basketball Tyler Madsen, AMR Assistant Director

Men's Basketball Closes Calendar Year at QU Classic

Truman Men's Basketball Game Notes (QU Holiday Classic)
Full Notes (PDF) | 2013-14 Schedule | 2013-14 Statistics
 Game #8: Truman (7-0, 0-0 GLVC) vs. Hillsdale (Mich.) (3-3, 1-3 GLIAC)
Date: Saturday, December 21, 2013 (3:00 PM CDT)
Location: Quincy, Ill. || Pepsi Arena

Series Record: First meeting.
Last Meeting: First meeting.
Woodley vs. HC: 0-0
Series Streak: First meeting.
 
Game #9: Truman (7-0, 0-0 GLVC) vs. Central (Ohio) State (7-3, 0-0 GMAC)
Date: Sunday, December 22, 2013 (3:00 PM CDT)
Location: Quincy, Ill. || Pepsi Arena

Series Record: Central State leads, 1-0.
Last Meeting: Central State won, 71-58, on Dec. 20, 2009 in Quincy, Ill.
Woodley vs. CSU: 0-0
Series Streak: Central State W-1
Live Stat Links: Regular/Mobile || Media
Live Audio: 104.7 FM KRES (Moberly, Mo.); Brad Boyer (PBP), Hank Janssen (Color)
Live Video: AmericaOne/B2 Networks (Pay-per-View)
Social Media: @TrumanAthletics || @TSUBulldogHoops || #TSUGameDay || #GLVCmbb
Opening Tip:
The Truman men's basketball team closes out a busy slate of games this Saturday and Sunday, wrapping up the 2013 calendar with two contests at the Quincy University Holiday Classic against in-region opponents.
 
The Bulldogs will play at 3 p.m. both days inside QU's Pepsi Arena, taking on Hillsdale (Mich.) on Dec. 21 before battling Central (Ohio) State on Dec. 22.
 
This weekend will mark the first time that Truman has played Hillsdale but will denote the second time in five seasons that the Bulldogs will have faced CSU at the QU Holiday Classic. In December 2009, Central State defeated Truman 71-58 in the only meeting all-time between the squads.
 
Truman is off to its best start since the 1999-2000 season at 7-0, joining only eight other Bulldog teams in program history to begin its season with seven consecutive victories. Included in those seven tallies are wins against long-time, now-GLVC rival Quincy, long-time, former-MIAA rival Northwest Missouri, and 2012-13 NCAA tournament team Cameron (Okla.). All three of those wins count as "regional" wins for Truman.
 
Each of the final 19 contests on Truman's slate will be Div. II, in-region games, with two final non-conference tilts this weekend before closing the season with 17 consecutive GLVC games.
 
Matt Woodley is in his third season as the head coach of the Bulldog program, having compiled a 25-37 record in his two-plus seasons at the school.
 
Projected Starters:
G – #2 – Seth Jackson – 6'3" – 200 – JR – 11.7 ppg | 4.4 rpg | 1.4 apg | 48% FG; 5 steals
G – #4 – Reed Mells – 5'11" – 165 – JR – 10.6 ppg | 3.1 rpg | 5.4 apg | 45% FG; 13 steals
F – #5 – Mike Carlson – 6'9" – 200 – SR – 20.7 ppg | 5.4 rpg | 1.0 apg | 71% FG, 9 blocks
C – #21 – Marek Bush – 6'6" – 245 – SR – 4.6 ppg | 3.0 rpg | 0.7 apg | 65% FG, 7 O-Rebs
G – #22 – Kyle Kanaskie – 5'11" – 170 – FR – 9.0 ppg | 2.9 rpg | 3.0 apg | 94%FT; 8 steals
 
Off the Bench:
G – #3 – Isaac Gardner – 6'4" – 205 – SR – 5.3 ppg | 0.8 rpg | 0.0 apg | 7 3-ptrs, 3 steals
G – #11 – Cole Myers – 6'3" – 190 – SO – 7.8 ppg | 3.4 rpg | 2.6 apg | 58% 3FG
G – #12 – Cory Myers – 6'3" – 190 – SO – 6.3 ppg | 1.8 rpg | 1.5 apg | 4 steals; 100% FT
G – #20 – Dominic Kacich – 6'3" – 170 – JR – 4.2 ppg | 1.8 rpg | 1.4 apg | 47% FG; 4 steals
C – #24 – Kiefer Starbird – 6'10" – 200 – rFR – 0.6 ppg | 1.0 rpg | 0.0 apg | 7.8 MPG; 2 steals
G – #30 – Andrew Vander Zwaag – 6'3" – 185 – rSO – 8.1 ppg | 1.7 rpg | 1.1 apg | 49% FG; 7 steals
F – #32 – Connor Erickson – 6'8" – 190 – rFR – 2.4 ppg | 2.6 rpg | 1.4 apg | 46% FG; 9 O-Rebs
C – #35 – Patrick Burmester – 6'9" – 235 – JR – 2.0 ppg | 3.7 rpg | 1.0 apg | 5 O-Rebs; 1 block
F – #40 – Billy Daniel – 6'6" – 200 – FR – 3.0 ppg | 0.8 rpg | 0.5 apg | 57% FG ; 4 blocks
 
2013 Redshirts:
G – #10 – Hank Mathews – 6'2" – 185 – FR
F – #25 – Connor Lusso – 6'6" – 210 - FR
 
Staff:
Head Coach: Matt Woodley
Career Record: 25-37 || .403 || 3rd season (all at Truman)
GLVC Record: 1-0 || 1.000 || 1st season

Associate Head Coach: Chris Foster (1st season)
Assistant Coach: Mike Annese (1st season)
Athletic Trainer: Nicole Buck (1st season)
 
Off to a Blazing Start:
  • This year's Bulldogs are just the ninth team in school history (94 seasons) to start a season 7-0.
  • Teams in 1999-2000, 1998-99, 1963-64, and 1953-54 opened with seven straight wins before suffering their first loss.
  • Teams in 1960-61 and 1955-56 both opened 8-0 before experiencing a setback in game No. 9.
  • The 1947-48 team has the second-best start in school history, opening 10-0 en route to finishing 29-2.
  • The 1946-47 team holds the distinction of the hottest start to a single-season, posting 19 straight wins before their first loss. That season was Boyd King's first as the program's head coach, with the squad finishing 30-2 that year.
  • Truman's win on Dec. 7 at Quincy marked the first time the program started 1-0 in league play in back-to-back seasons since the 1993-94 / 1994-95 years.
  • Only two teams in the GLVC West division remain unblemished, as Truman joins nationally-ranked Drury. Like the Bulldogs, the Panthers started their season 7-0 and will have the opportunity to move to 9-0 with two non-conference games in Florida this week. Currently, four teams in the East division remain undefeated (UIndy at 8-0; Bellarmine/USI at 7-0; Lewis at 6-0).
 
Top 'Dogs:
  • The Bulldogs entered the week (prior to Monday/Tuesday's games) as the nation's top-ranked team in NCAA Div. II turnovers per game (8.4) and were just one of 25 total teams to remain unblemished through all games up to Dec. 15. Truman also ranked second nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.02) and fourth in fewest fouls (89 total).
  • On an individual level, Mike Carlson was a seventh overall in field goal percentage, while Kyle Kanaskie was 19th in assist-to-turnover ratio.
  • Counting Monday and Tuesday's games, Truman boasts the GLVC's top scoring defense (58.4 ppg), scoring margin (+29.4), turnover margin (+7.14) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.47). The Bulldogs are ranked second in the GLVC in free throw percentage (77.5%), field goal defense (40.4%), and rebounding defense (28.1), while sitting third in three-pointers (9.9/game).
 
Super Senior Carlson:
Senior forward Mike Carlson is out to one of the top individual single-seasons in Bulldog history, as he is averaging 20.7 points per game and is shooting nearly 71% from the floor. The Wisconsin-native is getting it done both inside and out, as his overall field goal percentage ranks fourth in the GLVC while he also is second in the league in three-point shooting at 53.6%. His scoring total ranks fourth in the conference, with his 1.3 blocks per game placing him sixth in the league.
 
Earlier this season, Carlson went off for 37 points – a career-high in the team's GLVC-opener at Quincy, connecting on 13-of-16 field goals (5-of-7 three-pointers). It marked the sixth-most in program history and was the highest single-game total by any Bulldog in nearly 20 years, dating back to January 1994 when Scott Matthews set the program benchmark with 43 against Emporia State.
 
It marked the second time in three games, and third time for his career, that he surpassed the 30-point mark. His previous career-high came in a 34-point effort at Central Missouri in 2012.
 
Carlson is also inching closer to the 1,000-point club, as he has scored 896 points in his two-plus seasons as a Bulldog after transferring in prior to his sophomore season.
 
Welcome to Kirksville:
The Bulldogs' new 1-2 punch of junior Reed Mells and freshman Kyle Kanaskie has paid early dividends, as the tandem has combined for nearly 20 points and nine assists per game. The duo has also taken care of the ball, helping the Bulldogs to the nation's No. 1 turnover rate, while each rank in the GLVC's top-five in assist-to-turnover ratio (with Kanaskie ranked No. 1).
 
In addition, Mells is third in the GLVC at 5.4 assists per game and fourth in steals (1.9/game), while Kanaskie sits third in the league with a 93.8% clip from the charity stripe.
 
Jackson Moves Into Starting Five:
After coming off the bench in the team's first four games this season, junior guard Seth Jackson rewarded his head coach after being moved into the starting lineup for each of the team's past three games. During that stretch, he has averaged 13.3 points per game and shot 46% from the floor, including an 88% (15-of-17) mark from the foul line.
 
For his career, he has appeared in 60 games and is averaging 12.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.
 
Scouting the Chargers & Marauders:
Hillsdale checks into Saturday afternoon's game at 3-3 overall, having gone 1-3 in early GLIAC games to start the 2013-14 season. The Chargers are most recently coming off an 88-64 home win against Northern Michigan to break a three-match skid to start GLIAC play.
 
The Chargers are averaging 78 points per game and are led by senior forward Tim Dezelski's 25.0 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. Sophomore forward Kyle Cooper is the only other player in double-figures at 12.3 ppg, while senior guard Brandon Pritzl has a team-high 4.5 assists per game.
 
John Tharp is in his seventh season at the helm of the HC program.
 
Central State, meanwhile, comes to Quincy and will face the Hawks on Saturday with a 7-3 overall record before taking on Truman on Sunday afternoon. The Marauders opened the season with losses to UW-Parkside (95-83) and Saint Joseph's (128-127, 2OT), before rattling off seven wins in eight tries. The squad is averaging a shade more than 88 points per game and is shooting 48% from the field. However, the foul line has been CSU's kryptonite, as the team is just 63% from the stripe.
 
LeDonte Body leads five players in double-figures at 13.6 ppg, while Anthony Rule (11.9 ppg, 7.4 rpg) and Raheem Lemons (10.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg) have been dominating on the glass through the team's first 10 games.
 
Blazing 12:
The Bulldogs have gone 10-2 in their last dozen regular season games, dating back to the close of last season. During that time, defense has been the key, as Truman has limited eight of the teams to 68 points or fewer, with only one team surpassing 80 points in a contest.
 
The Bulldogs have also gone 5-1 in their last six regular season games away from Pershing Arena.
 
Inching Towards 1,100:
With three more victories, the Truman men's basketball team will become just the 60th Div. II program to accumulate 1,100 program wins. There have been 254 all-time Div. II programs, meaning the Bulldogs sit in the top-quarter of all Div. II programs in total victories.
 
Making a Splash from Downtown:
The Bulldogs have made at least one three-pointer in every game since Feb. 12, 2003, a stretch of 286 consecutive games.
 
After getting out to a slow start from behind the arc this season, the Bulldogs have been – in the words of Dan Patrick, "en fuego" – from long-distance in the past four contests. Truman has connected on 43 of its last 84 (51.2%) of its three-point opportunities, hitting at least 10 in each of its last three outings.
 
Bulldogs Pegged Fifth in GLVC West:
Head coach Matt Woodley's squad was picked to finish fifth in the GLVC West Division preseason coaches' poll.
 
The Bulldogs finished six points ahead of William Jewell for the fifth spot in the West division, as selected by all 16 league coaches. Defending NCAA Div. II national champion Drury (Mo.) earned 10 first-place votes and 115 total points to lead the West, while Maryville (Mo.) notched the remaining six first-place votes in the West to land second with 107 points.
 
A tight battle put third and fourth separated by just one point, with Missouri-St. Louis (87) and Quincy (86) taking those spots. The Bulldogs and WJC were followed by Missouri S&T (37) and Rockhurst (34) to round out the West.
 
On the Eastern side of the league, Bellarmine logged nine first-place votes and 113 total points to earn preseason favorite status, followed by Southern Indiana (101; three first-place votes), Indianapolis (95; two first-place votes) and Lewis (83; two first-place votes) in the top half. UW-Parkside, Illinois Springfield, Saint Joseph's and McKendree slid in fifth through eighth respectively.
 
The Bulldogs will play an 18-game conference slate in 2013-14 during their first season as GLVC members, playing Maryville, Missouri-St. Louis and Quincy twice each, while facing the other 12 programs just once. The top four teams from each division, along with four wild card teams, will qualify for the 12-team conference tournament that follows the regular season.
 
Up Next:
The Bulldogs celebrate the Christmas holiday with an 11-day layoff, before returning to action at Lewis (6-0, 0-0 GLVC) and UW-Parkside (6-1, 0-0 GLVC) on Jan. 3 and 5.
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