After a very hard fought loss to Oral Roberts last Saturday, the Leathernecks are looking to get back in the win column tonight when they take on UMKC at home. WIU comes in with a 13-11 overall record and sits alone in 6th place in the Summit with a 7-8 conference record. They have also lost three games in a row. Meanwhile, UMKC enters with a 10-17 overall record and is tied for last in the conference as they are currently have a 4-11 record in the Summit.
UMKC did defeat the Leathernecks earlier this season in Kansas City 72-50 in what was a very tough game for WIU. They were never able to get anything going. However, the Kangaroos were red hot and made 13 thre pointers in that game. Reggie Chamberlain led the charge as he was 7-11 from the field. All of those shots were three pointers and he ended the day with 23 points. WIU only managed to have two guys in double digits and shot just 35% for the game.
WIU looks to avenge that loss tonight and come in still boasting the best defense in the Summit as they are giving up just 60 points per game, good enough to put them at 30th in the nation. They also own the best three point shooting percentage in the conference at 38.9% (I put in that extra .9% because UMKC is not far behind as they shoot 38.8% from three). WIU also has the best turnover margin in the conference at +2.75 which puts them at 37th in that nation. Also, the Leathernecks come in turning the ball over just 11 times per game, good enough to put them at 11th in the nation. Despite their three game losing streak, they have continued to take great care of the ball. The thing that has really hurt Western in that past few games is their free throw shooting. They are now shooting just 68% from the line this season and have not hit over 60% in their past three games. They NEED to do better at the line.
Ceola Clark is still 2nd in the Summit in three point percentage, but is only .1% off the lead. He is currently connecting on 47.5% for the season, good enough for 5th in the nation. He is number one in assist to turnover ratio and is third in steals and assists. Meanwhile, Terell Parks is still sitting at 2nd in field goal percentage in the conference at 62% and is leading the Summit in rebounds (8.8 per game). Obi Emegano is shooting 51% this year and is 13th in the conference in that stat. However, he has struggled a bit the past couple games and will need to play better tonight.
As I mentioned earlier, UMKC is 2nd in the conference in three point percentage, something that really hurt us in the first game. They are just ahead of WIU in points per game at 65 points per game (Western averages 63) and are 6th in scoring defense, giving up 71 points per game. They are not much better than Western at free throws as they are 8th in the Summit and hitting 69% of their free throws. The Kangaroos ave struggled to make shots (other than three's) this year as they are 9th in field goal percentage and making just 43% of the shots.
As for individuals, they are led by the aforementioned Reggie Chamberlain who averages 17 points per game. That puts him at 7th in the Summit League. He is also 3rd in free throw percentage (86%) and tied for 5th in three point percentage (46%). Containing him is a big key tonight. He really hurt us in the last game and when he is on, UMKC is tough to beat. North Dakota State (currently 3rd in the conference) found that out the hard way when UMKC beat them last week.
This is a very important game for a couple reasons. One is that we are on a three game losing streak and have a tough finish to the season, so etting a W tonight would be huge for us. Another reason is that a win would lock us up a spot in the Summit League Tournament at the end of the season. Locking up a spot now would be great because then we can focus on getting a good seed in the tournament. The Leathernecks have GOT to do better at the line tonight. 60% at the free throw line is just not going to get it done and we found that out the hard way in the past three games. Hopefully Western Hall will pack it in again tonight and give these guys the home court advantage the deserve. That'll do it for now...GO LEATHERNECKS!!!
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