GAME DAY LINKS -- 
McKENDREE at MARYVILLE -- LISTEN LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network) | WATCH LIVE | LIVE STATS
McKENDREE AT MISSOURI-ST. LOUIS -- LISTEN LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network) | WATCH LIVE | LIVE STATS

McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
MARYVILLE SEASON STATISTICS
MISSOURI-ST. LOUIS SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Jan. 2)--The McKendree University men's basketball team will return to the court this weekend by opening Great Lakes Valley Conference play with a pair of games in St. Louis. The Bearcats will tip off their 18-game GLVC slate on Friday with a 7:30 p.m. contest at Maryville University, then will visit the University of Missouri-St. Louis for a 3 p.m. tilt on Sunday.

McKendree has been away from action since Dec. 16, when the Bearcats rallied in the closing minutes to post a 69-59 victory at Central State University in Ohio. The Bearcats closed the game on an 18-2 run, which included 14 consecutive points to grab the lead for good. The win boosted McKendree's record to 6-1, giving the team its best win percentage at the holiday break (.857) since the 2002-03 campaign. Sophomore guard/forward Michael Jackson (O'Fallon, IL/O'Fallon) poured in a career-high 18 points and added three steals to lead the way at Central State, while senior guard/forward Logan Carson (DuQuoin, IL/DuQuoin) netted 13 of his 17 points in the second half for the Bearcats. Junior guard A.J. Schmidt (New Albany, IN/New Albany) dished out a career-high eight assists as junior forward John Murphy (Peoria, IL/Richwoods) grabbed nine rebounds in the effort.

As a team, McKendree is averaging 79.9 points per game while allowing its opponents just 61.3 points per contest. The Bearcats currently rank third in the GLVC in scoring margin while also sitting third in the league in rebound margin. McKendree has outrebounded teams by just over eight caroms per game through seven games in 2014-15. Junior forward Brandon Book (Albers, IL/Breese Central) leads a balanced scoring attack for the Bearcats at 14.5 points per contest, while Carson is close behind at 13.4 points a game. Senior forward Matt Holmes (Houston, TX/Marshall) is next at 12.9 PPG, and Jackson has moved up the McKendree scoring chart to fourth at 10.1 PPG. 

ABOUT MARYVILLE
The Saints are 5-4 overall entering Friday's game, and will also be playing their GLVC opener for the 2014-15 season. Maryville has alternated wins and losses through its first nine games of the year, and have not played since a 72-56 win over Westminster College back on Dec. 20 at home. Senior guard Armon Provo leads the way for the Saints at 17.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Senior guard Trae Pemberton is the only other Maryville player averaging in double figures at 16.9 points per contest. The Saints are among the GLVC's top three-point shooting squads at 38.8 percent, with Pemberton connecting on 51.4 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc. Maryville also distributes the basketball well, posting just under 17 assists per contest

McKendree and Maryville were scheduled to meet in the first week of GLVC play last January, but the contest was postponed until Feb. 17, 2014 due to a snowstorm. In the contest played at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center, the visiting Saints rallied to register a 75-72 win over the Bearcats. McKendree had a chance to tie in the closing seconds, but a three-point attempt by Clinton Happe (Evansville, IN/F.J. Reitz) at the buzzer was just off the mark. Happe scored 18 points to lead the Bearcats while Carson added 15 points. 

The teams have met twice since McKendree joined the GLVC, with both contests resulting in three-point victories for the Saints. In their first game at GLVC foes back on Jan. 10, 2013, the host Saints edged the Bearcats 72-69. 

ABOUT MISSOURI-ST. LOUIS
The Tritons won their first eight games of the 2014-15 season before dropping a pair of contests in Florida just before the holiday break. Senior guard Aareon Smith has helped the Tritons to their 8-2 start by averaging team-high totals of 15.1 points and 8.6 rebounds per outing. Junior guard Tre Ogles (10.3 PPG) and junior forward Kevin Swanson (10.0 PPG) also average in double figures for UMSL, which will also be kicking off its GLVC schedule this weekend by hosting the University of Illinois Springfield on Friday. 

Sunday's contest will feature two of the top scoring defenses in the GLVC. McKendree comes into the weekend's play second in the league in scoring defense (61.9 PPG), while Missouri-St. Louis is close behind in fourth place (62.9 PPG). The Tritons also boast one of the top perimeter teams in the conference as they shoot 39.8 percent from three-point range. 

UMSL has taken both meetings with McKendree since the Bearcats joined the GLVC for the 2012-13 season. The Tritons defeated the Bearcats 105-78 almost one year ago -- Jan. 3, 2014 -- at the Statham Center. Happe led the scoring charge for McKendree with 21 points. 

BEARCAT BITS -- 
Bearcats vs. Saints -- The Harry Statham Era
McKendree has a record of 4-4 against Maryville since Harry Statham became the Bearcats' head coach in 1966-67. The Bearcats won the first four meetings in the series, which included an 83-72 triumph over the Saints on Dec. 1, 2004 at the Statham Center. That marked career win No. 880 for Statham, which enabled him to pass Dean Smith for the top spot on the all-time wins list in men's college basketball history at the four-year level. 

Third Time a Charm in GLVC Openers?
Tonight's game will mark the beginning of McKendree's third season as members of the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The Bearcats have dropped their GLVC opener in each of the previous two seasons -- 69-66 at home against the University of Illinois Springfield on Jan. 3, 2013 and 105-78 -- also at home -- against the University of Missouri-St. Louis on Jan. 3, 2014. 

Home Sweet Home
The Bearcats are in their 27th season of play at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center, which is part of the Melvin Price Convocation Center. McKendree has an overall record of 354-77 in the facility for a winning percentage of .821. 

Fast Starters
McKendree opened the 2014-15 season with five consecutive victories. That matched the best start for the Bearcats since the 2009-10 season. That year, McKendree collected wins in each of its first five games, and the fifth win in 2009-10 marked the 1,000th career victory for head coach Harry Statham.   

Jackson Action
Heading into tonight's game against Maryville, sophomore guard/forward Michael Jackson (O'Fallon, IL/O'Fallon) has registered career-highs in points in each of the Bearcats' last two games. He netted 15 points against Trevecca Nazarene University on Dec. 13 and followed that three days later with an 18-point outburst at Central State University. 

Getting Defensive
The Bearcats have already held two opponents -- Robert Morris University-Peoria and Central Christian College -- below the 50-point mark this season. This the first time since the 2010-11 campaign that McKendree has allowed fewer that 50 points to multiple opponents. That season, the Bearcats accomplished the feat three times.