GAME DAY LINKS -- 
McKENDREE at BELLARMINE -- Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017, 8 p.m. ET
Knights Hall -- Louisville, Ky.

WATCH LIVE (Bellarmine Broadcast)
LIVE STATS
McKENDREE GAME NOTES
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
BELLARMINE SEASON STATISTICS

McKENDREE at SOUTHERN INDIANA -- Saturday, Feb. 18, 2017, 3:15 p.m.
Physical Activities Center -- Evansville, Ind.

WATCH LIVE (USI Broadcast)
LIVE STATS
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
SOUTHERN INDIANA SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Feb. 15)--The McKendree University men's basketball team continues its six-game road trip this weekend with a pair of contests out east. The Bearcats will first visit Bellarmine University for an 8 p.m. ET tip-off on Thursday before heading to the University of Southern Indiana for a Saturday matinee at 3:15 p.m.

McKendree wrapped up a lengthy road journey late Monday night with an 87-81 loss at William Jewell College. The Bearcats are now 9-13 overall and sit at 3-12 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference standings. Just three games remain in the regular season for all 16 teams in the GLVC, and McKendree is still in the hunt for a conference post-season berth. 

A pair of nationally-ranked foes await McKendree this coming weekend. Up first is Bellarmine, which currently sits at No. 4 in the latest National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II ranking. The Knights have won their last nine contests, and are a perfect 10-0 on their home floor at Knights Hall. Meanwhile, Southern Indiana checks in at No. 14 in the NABC poll. The Screaming Eagles have posted four straight victories and have seven wins in their last eight outings. USI is nearly perfect at home, winning 10 of 11 times at the Physical Activities Center. 

Junior guard Justin Blanks (Barberton, OH/Norton) has been the hot hand of late in the Bearcats' lineup. Blanks has averaged 26.7 points over his last three games, which includes a season-high 32-point effort on Monday at William Jewell. He also matched a season-high with 12 rebounds versus the Cardinals. Blanks has moved up to second in scoring on the Bearcats' squad at 16.4 PPG. He trails only Michael Jackson (O'Fallon, IL/O'Fallon), who leads McKendree at 17 PPG. In all, five Bearcats are averaging in double figures in the scoring column. 

Following this weekend's action, McKendree will head to Springfield, Ill., on Feb. 23 to close out the 2016-17 regular season against the University of Illinois Springfield. 

ABOUT BELLARMINE
The Knights are 22-3 on the season and sit atop the GLVC East Division standings at 14-1. Bellarmine has the best conference record in the league and needs just one more win to lock down a bye in the opening round of the GLVC Tournament, which tips off Feb. 26 at campus sites. Head coach Scott Davenport boasts one of the top players in the country in Adam Eberhard, who leads the Knights in scoring at 17.1 PPG. Eberhard is shooting 58.4 percent from the field and 88.1 percent from the free throw line entering Thursday's action. He is one of the top contenders for the Bevo Francis Award, which is presented to the top player among NCAA Division II, Division III and NAIA institutions. Eberhard also leads Bellarmine in rebounding at 7.3 RPG. 

Back on Dec. 3 at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center, Bellarmine won the first meeting of the season against McKendree, 95-66. Darin Winkelman (Steeleville, IL/Steeleville) netted a career-high 21 points to lead the Bearcats, while Nate Michael (St. Joseph, IL/St. Joseph-Ogden) chipped in with 14 points. Eberhard paced the Knights with 20 points and six assists.  

ABOUT SOUTHERN INDIANA
The Screaming Eagles are currently 23-2 overall this season entering Thursday's match-up against Illinois Springfield. Southern Indiana is 13-2 in GLVC play, and sit behind only Bellarmine in the league standings. Head coach Rodney Watson has relied on the talents of Jeril Taylor, who leads the GLVC in scoring at 20.9 points per game. Taylor has knocked down just over 43 percent of his three-point field goal attempts and is shooting 79.4 percent from the foul line. In addition, Taylor leads the Screaming Eagles in rebounding at 8.1 RPG and leads the squad with 38 steals. He is also second on the team with 72 assists. 

McKendree and Southern Indiana met in the GLVC opener for both schools back on Dec. 1 in Lebanon. The Screaming Eagles rolled to a 104-58 triumph over the Bearcats in that contest. Justin Blanks (Barberton, OH/Norton) scored a game-high 23 points while coming off the bench to lead McKendree, while Nolan Gerling (Germantown, IL/Mater Dei) helped out with 17 points and six rebounds. Marellous Washington paced Southern Indiana with 20 points in a reserve role.