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(LEBANON, Ill., January 16)—After making a short two-game road swing through St. Louis, the McKendree University men's basketball team will return to the Harry M. Statham Sports Center this week to open up a three-game home stand in Great Lakes Valley Conference play. The Bearcats will host Lewis University Thursday at 7:30 p.m. before taking on the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Saturday at 3 p.m.

The two contests this week will open up GLVC East Division action for McKendree, which played its first four league games in crossover games against West Division foes. The Bearcats' home stand will wrap up on Monday (Jan. 21) when Bellarmine University comes to town for a 7:30 p.m. match-up.

ABOUT McKENDREE: The Bearcats will look to shake off a pair of GLVC crossover losses last week, dropping a nailbiter on Jan. 10 at Maryville University by a score of 72-69 before falling at the University of Missouri-St. Louis on Jan. 12, 78-54. McKendree enters the week with an overall record of 7-7, and is 1-3 in GLVC action. McKendree will look to add to its impressive home record for 2012-13 as the Bearcats take a 7-1 mark at the Statham Center into this weekend's play. The tandem of junior guard Clinton Happe (Evansville, IN/F.J. Reitz) (18.0 PPG) and senior guard/forward John Steppe (Effingham, IL/St. Anthony) (17.4 PPG) rank second and third in the GLVC, respectively, in scoring. As a team, the Bearcats lead the conference in three-point field goal defense (.265) while making a league-best 8.86 three-point field goals per outing. Head coach Harry Statham, the all-time wins leader in men's college basketball history, has 1,068 career victories.  
   
ABOUT LEWIS: The Flyers bring an 8-4 overall record and 2-2 GLVC mark to Lebanon. Lewis is led by sophomore guard Ryan Jackson, who is fifth in the GLVC in scoring at 16.8 points per contest. Fellow sophomore guard Jeff Jarosz is the only other Lewis player averaging in double figures at 10.6 PPG. The Flyers set the tone for their style of play on the defensive end, as they allow their opponents a league-low 60.2 points per game. Lewis is also a close second in field goal percentage defense at .394. Head coach Scott Trost is in his seventh season on the Lewis bench, and has led the Flyers to 110 victories in that span.

ABOUT WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE: The Rangers are one of the early surprise teams in the GLVC East Division as they are undefeated in conference play at 4-0 coming into the weekend. Wisconsin-Parkside is 9-3 overall and brings a four-game win streak into the week, which begins with a Thursday battle at Bellarmine University. Senior forward Jeremy Saffold leads the GLVC in scoring, averaging 21.4 points per outing. Saffold is shooting just over 50 percent from the field and 81 percent from the free-throw line. The Rangers have won this season by taking care of the basketball as they rank second in the GLVC in both turnover margin (+5.42) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.42). Head coach Luke Reigel is in his 10th season on the sidelines for Wisconsin-Parkside.

TOP SCORERS IN ACTION AT THE STATHAM CENTER THIS WEEKEND: Four of the GLVC's top five scorers will take the court this weekend in Lebanon. McKendree's Clinton Happe (Evansville, IN/F.J. Reitz) (18.0 PPG) and John Steppe (Effingham, IL/St. Anthony) (17.4 PPG) rank second and third, respectively, in the league in the scoring column. Wisconsin-Parkside's Jeremy Saffold currently tops the conference at 21.4 PPG, while Lewis' Ryan Jackson is fifth at 16.8 PPG.

IT'S BEEN A WHILE...: Thurday's meeting with Lewis will mark the first time since the 1975-76 season that the Bearcats and Flyers have met on the basketball court. That season, the teams split a two-game series, with each team winning on its home floor. McKendree won the first contest 93-72 in Lebanon before Lewis returned the favor with a 98-91 triumph in Romeoville, Ill. Saturday's match-up with Wisconsin-Parkside will be the first between the two programs since the 1988-89 season. The Rangers posted an 81-67 road win over McKendree.