LISTEN LIVE (BEARCAT SPORTS NETWORK) | LIVE STATS | WATCH LIVE

(LEBANON, Ill., Nov. 29)--The McKendree University men's basketball team gets back to action following a week-long layoff with a trip to Nashville, Tenn., on Saturday for a contest against Trevecca Nazarene University. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. at the Trojan Fieldhouse.

The Bearcats faced Lincoln University twice in a four-day span last week, including the team's most recent game on Nov. 23 at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center. After dropping a 105-85 decision in Jefferson City, Mo., on Nov. 20, McKendree bounced back to post an 84-71 win over the Blue Tigers last Saturday. Senior forward Will Kirksey (St. Louis, MO/Lafayette) notched his first double-double of the season with 22 points and 10 rebounds in leading the Bearcats to the win. McKendree raced out to a 17-3 lead and never looked back in improving to 3-1 on the season.

McKendree enters Saturday's game at Trevecca Nazarene averaging 92.8 points per game. The Bearcats are shooting 51.2 percent from the floor, while holding their opponents to 45.8 percent from the floor. McKendree has put together a balanced attack through its first four games of the season, with five players averaging in double figures. Kirksey leads the way at 19 points per game, while junior forward Matt Holmes (Houston, TX/Marshall) has posted 16.5 points per outing, while senior guard Clinton Happe (Evansville, IN/F.J. Reitz) has connected for 15.8 points a contest. Junior forward Arthur Williams (Cairo, IL/Cairo), who is scoring 11 points per game, leads the Bearcats and is tied for second in the Great Lakes Valley Conferenc in rebounding at 10.8 boards per outing.

Trevecca Nazarene, which is in its provisional year of NCAA Division II membership, brings a 2-5 record into the McKendree game. The Trojans snapped a five-game losing streak in their last contest, a 65-59 win at home on Tuesday over the University of Alabama-Huntsville. Junior guard David Woodard tops Trevecca Nazarene is scoring at 15.3 points per game, while sophomore guard Byron Sanford is next at 12.6 points per outing. Sanford also has a team-leading 25 assists and 10 steals. The Trojans are averaging 75.4 points a contest while allowing just over 84 per game. 

The two teams met twice in the first half of the 2012-13 season, with each team winning on its home floor. McKendree registered an 80-70 win over Trevecca Nazarene on Dec. 1, 2012 at the Statham Center before the Trojans returned the favor with a 73-63 triumph over the Bearcats on Dec. 15, 2012 in Nashville, Tenn.

Saturday's game at Trevecca Nazarene marks the Bearcats' final non-conference road game of the 2013-14 season. The Bearcats will have 10 days off before opening a five-game home stand on Dec. 10 by hosting Robert Morris University-Springfield. McKendree will have two five-game home stands during the season, and will play 10 of their next 12 games at the Statham Center after returning from Nashville.