GAME DAY LINKS --
McKENDREE at MISSOURI S & T -- Thursday, Feb. 5, 2015 -- 7:30 p.m.
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McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
MISSOURI S & T SEASON STATISTICS

McKENDREE at DRURY -- Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015 -- 3:15 p.m.
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McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
DRURY SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Feb. 5)--The McKendree University men's basketball team will set out for its final road trip of the 2014-15 regular season with a pair of contests against Great Lakes Valley Conference foes from the West Division. The Bearcats will open the weekend Thursday in Rolla, Mo., when they take on Missouri S & T for a 7:30 p.m. tip. On Saturday, McKendree will be in Springfield, Mo., for its first visit to Drury University. The Bearcats and Panthers will tangle at 3:15 p.m.

McKendree split its GLVC games last week, with the highlight coming in an 88-82 win last Thursday at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center against the University of Southern Indiana. Logan Carson (DuQuoin, IL/DuQuoin) dropped in a career-high 35 points, hitting seven three-pointers in leading the Bearcats to their first home win over the Screaming Eagles since the 1973-74 season. On Saturday, it was Matt Holmes (Houston, TX/Marshall)' turn to register a career-high in the scoring column as he netted 28 points in McKendree's 82-63 loss to No. 6-ranked Bellarmine University.

Heading into the weekend, McKendree has an overall record of 9-10 with a 2-9 mark in GLVC play. With three weeks remaining in the regular season, the Bearcats are still very much in the hunt for a GLVC Tournament berth. Following this weekend's games at Missouri S & T and Drury, McKendree will play its final five regular-season contests in the friendly confines of the Statham Center. The Bearcats are 7-3 in home games this year. 

Carson leads the Bearcats in scoring at 15.6 points per game. He has moved into second place among all GLVC players in free throw percentage at .892. He is looking to become the second McKendree player in as many years to lead the conference in that category. Clinton Happe (Evansville, IN/F.J. Reitz) won the GLVC free throw title a year ago by hitting nearly 88 percent of his attempts from the stripe. Holmes is averaging 13.2 points per outing and ranks in the league's top 10 in both field goal percentage (.581) and rebounding (7.6 RPG). John Murphy (Peoria, IL/Richwoods) has moved up to ninth in the GLVC in minutes played, averaging just over 31 per contest. 

ABOUT MISSOURI S & T
The Miners bring an 8-11 overall record into Thursday's game, and they are 1-10 in the GLVC. Missouri S & T also brings a nine-game losing streak into the contest, with its last victory coming on Jan. 2 at Saint Joseph's College. Head coach Jim Glash has two players averaging in double figures this season, and is led by junior guard Desmond Buerge at 13.3 points per outing. Buerge is also the Miners' top rebounder at 5.1 per game. Despite serving as Missouri S & T's sixth man, junior guard Zach Ellis is second on the squad in scoring at 12.5 points per contest. Ellis also has a team-leading 35 steals for the Miners. Missouri S & T leads the GLVC -- and ranks fifth in NCAA Division II -- in steals per game at 11.4 per game. 

Last season, McKendree and Missouri S & T waged an offensive shootout with the Bearcats prevailing at home by a score of 106-99. Mike DiGregorio (Morton Grove, IL/Niles Notre Dame) and Clinton Happe (Evansville, IN/F.J. Reitz) each matched career-highs in the game for the Bearcats as DiGregorio netted 30 points while Happe added 27. DiGregorio also set a new McKendree program record by hitting 21 free throws on 22 attempts. Holmes also posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds in the game, which marked a season-high in points scored for McKendree.

ABOUT DRURY
The Panthers are 14-5 overall and 8-3 in the GLVC heading into their home game Thursday against the University of Illinois Springfield. Drury has won five of its last six games, including a thrilling 90-88 overtime victory last Saturday at the O'Reilly Family Event Center against Quincy University. Junior guard Kameron Bundy was the hero, hitting a 40-foot shot as time expired in the extra period to cap a comeback from a 20-point deficit in the second half. 

Head coach Steve Hesser has relied on the strength of his Cameron and Kameron connection throughout the season. Cameron Adams leads the Panthers in both scoring (17.5 PPG) and rebounding (5.3 RPG) this season while shooting nearly 66 percent from the field. Kameron Bundy is right behind Adams in the scoring column at 17.4 points per outing while pacing Drury in both assists (68) and steals (41). 

In last season's meetings between the two schools, McKendree led for most of the contest against the then-defending NCAA Division II champions. The Bearcats built a 10-point cushion in the first half and took a four-point lead into the final minute before Drury scored the final five points of the game to post a 78-74 victory. DiGregorio led the Bearcats with 16 points while Carson added 14 points in the contest.