GAME DAY LINKS --
McKENDREE vs. WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE -- Thursday, Feb. 19, 2015 -- 7:30 p.m.
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McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE SEASON STATISTICS

McKENDREE vs. LEWIS -- Saturday, Feb. 21, 2015 -- 3 p.m.
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McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
LEWIS SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Feb. 18)--The McKendree University men's basketball team heads into the home stretch of its 2014-15 regular season by hosting two Great Lakes Valley Conference East Division foes this week. The Bearcats will take on the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center before wrapping up the weekend against Lewis University Saturday at 3 p.m.

McKendree enters Thursday's play with an overall record of 11-12 and a 4-11 mark in the GLVC. The Bearcats collected a pair of important league victories last week as they opened their five-game home stand with wins last Thursday over Rockhurst University (84-78) and on Saturday versus William Jewell College (79-72). In the William Jewell contest, McKendree trailed by 12 at the half and overcame a 14-point deficit with just over 11 minutes to play to rally for the win. Thanks to those two wins, McKendree is now 9-3 at the Statham Center this year, including a 4-2 mark in conference action. 

The Bearcats enter the games against Wisconsin-Parkside and Lewis tied with the University of Illinois Springfield for the 12th and final playoff spot in the upcoming GLVC Tournament. The Prairie Stars will also entertain the Flyers and Rangers this weekend before coming to Lebanon for the regular-season finale on Feb. 26. 

Senior forward Logan Carson (DuQuoin, IL/DuQuoin) averaged 25 points per game in the Bearcats' two victories last week. He netted 25 of his game-high 31 points in the come-from-behind win over William Jewell on Saturday. It marked the third time in 2014-15 that Carson has topped the 30-point mark in a contest. He now leads the Bearcats in scoring this season at 15.8 points per outing. Carson has moved up to ninth in the league in scoring average, while he remains second in the conference in free throw percentage at 88.3 percent.

Senior forward Matt Holmes (Houston, TX/Marshall) tallied his third double-double of the season thanks to a 15-point, 10-rebound performance versus William Jewell. Holmes has climbed to sixth in the GLVC in both field goal percentage (59.7 percent) and rebounding 7.7 RPG). 

By adding those two wins last week, McKendree head coach Harry Statham now has 1,088 career victories in his 49-year career. Statham has moved to within 10 victories of former University of Tennessee women's coach Pat Summitt for the all-time lead by a head coach at the four-year level, men's or women's programs. 

ABOUT WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE
The Rangers bring a 22-2 overall record and a 14-1 mark in GLVC play into Thursday's game. They are tied atop the GLVC East Division standings with Bellarmine University. Wisconsin-Parkside held its No. 12 ranking in the latest NABC-NCAA Division II coaches' poll this week. The Rangers are also ranked second in the initial Midwest Region rating released earlier this week. UW-Parkside brings a nine-game winning streak to Lebanon. Head coach Luke Reigel has three players averaging in double figures, led by junior guard Jimmy Gavin at 15.4 points per game. Senior forward Zygimantas Riauka is one of the top all-around threats in the conference as he has posted 14.6 points and 7.9 rebounds per outing while shooting better than 56 percent from the floor. Riauka also has 40 blocked shots and just 38 turnovers for the Rangers.

McKendree and UW-Parkside met back on Jan. 17 in Somers, Wis., with the host Rangers pulling away down the stretch for a 90-63 win. The Bearcats trailed by just three points with nine minutes remaining before the Rangers took control. Matt Holmes (Houston, TX/Marshall) led a balanced attack for McKendree with 15 points and seven rebounds, while sophomore guard Michael Jackson (O'Fallon, IL/O'Fallon) added 14 points. Riauka and Gavin shared team-high scoring honors for UW-Parkside with 18 points each. Riauka also grabbed eight rebounds in the contest.

ABOUT LEWIS
The Flyers begin the week with an 18-6 season record and a 10-5 ledger in the GLVC. Lewis has won each of its last six contests and will be at Illinois Springfield for a Thursday evening battle before heading south to the Statham Center. The Flyers are tied with the University of Southern Indiana for fourth place in the GLVC East Division and -- like Wisconsin-Parkside -- have already clinched a GLVC Tournament berth. Head coach Scott Trost has had a lot of stability in the starting lineup this season, with four Flyers having started every game in 2014-15. Among that group is the team's top three scorers -- senior guard Ryan Jackson (14.5 PPG), freshman guard Max Strus (13.1 PPG) and senior guard Jeff Jarosz (12.3 PPG). The same trio is also shooting better than 80 percent from the free throw line. Senior forward Julian Lewis leads the squad in rebounding at 7.2 RPG. 

Back on Jan. 15 in Romeoville, Ill., the host Flyers built a 20-point halftime lead on their way to a 97-70 win over the Bearcats. Logan Carson (DuQuoin, IL/DuQuoin) led McKendree with 16 points, while Matt Holmes (Houston, TX/Marshall) added 14 points and eight rebounds. Strus poured in a game-high 24 points to show the way for Lewis