Saint Joseph's at McKENDREE -- Thursday, Feb. 7, 7:30 p.m.
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No. 21 Indianapolis at McKENDREE -- Saturday, Feb. 9, 3 p.m.
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(LEBANON, Ill., Feb. 7)—The McKendree University men's basketball team will host a pair of Great Lakes Valley Conference foes this week as Saint Joseph's College and the University of Indianapolis come to the Harry M. Statham Sports Center. The Bearcats will meet Saint Joseph's on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. before Indianapolis visits Lebanon on Saturday at 3 p.m.

ABOUT McKENDREE: The Bearcats are 7-14 overall and 1-10 in GLVC play. The Bearcats battled then No. 13-ranked Southern Indiana deep into the second half before the visiting Screaming Eagles pulled away for a 78-68 win. John Steppe (Effingham, IL/St. Anthony) poured in a career-high 32 points in that contest, with 18 of those points coming in the second half. Steppe and Clinton Happe (Evansville, IN/F.J. Reitz) are neck-and-neck for team-high scoring honors this season. Happe currently leads the Bearcats in scoring at 18.1 PPG, while Steppe is just a tick behind at 18.0 PPG. The duo ranks second and third in the league in scoring. Harry Statham, now in his 47th season at the helm of the McKendree program, is college basketball's all-time wins leader on the men's side with 1,068 victories.

ABOUT SAINT JOSEPH'S: The Pumas are 5-13 overall and 3-8 in GLVC action. Saint Joe's has dropped its last two games, including a 69-49 decision in its latest outing on Saturday at Lewis University. Senior guard/forward Damon Ellison, Jr., is perhaps the Pumas' best all-around performer. Ellison averages 14.2 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. He is shooting nearly 53 percent from the floor and has made just over 60 percent of his free throw attempts. Eillson came off the bench and scored a game-high 25 points when Saint Joe's defeated McKendree 99-80 in the first meeting between the two schools back on Jan. 26 in Rensselaer, Ind.

ABOUT INDIANAPOLIS: The Greyhounds are ranked No. 21 in the latest NABC/NCAA Division II poll released on Tuesday. Indianapolis is 15-4 overall and 7-4 in the GLVC. The Greyhounds are coming off a 77-71 loss on Saturday at Wisconsin-Parkside in a battle of two of the top teams in the GLVC East Division. Junior guard Reece Cheatham paces UIndy in scoring at 16.5 points per game. He has connected on nearly 47 percent of his field goal attempts and 83.6 percent of his free throw tries. Quinten Hunter scored 22 points in a reserve role in leading the Greyhounds to a 100-66 win over McKendree in the first game between the two schools back on Jan. 24 in Indianapolis.

STEPPE CAREER WATCH: John Steppe (Effingham, IL/St. Anthony) currently sits in 29th place on the Bearcats' all-time scoring list with 1,340 points. He needs just four points to surpass Chaun Lewis for the No. 28 spot. Steppe recently moved into ninth place on the team's career list for steals with 132, while he in 10th in career assists with 295.

BOMBS AWAY: McKendree leads the GLVC in three-point field goals made per game at 8.95. McKendree also leads the league in three-point field goal defense, holding opponents to just 30.2 percent shooting from beyond the arc.