GAME DAY LINKS --
McKENDREE vs. EUREKA -- Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018, 3 p.m.
Statham Center -- Lebanon, Ill.
WATCH LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network)
LIVE STATS
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
EUREKA SEASON STATISTICS
(LEBANON, Ill., Dec. 18)--The McKendree University men's basketball team will host its final game before the Christmas break Wednesday afternoon when Eureka College visits the Statham Center. Tip-off is slated for 3 p.m. Wednesday's game will also be carried live on the Bearcat Sports Network at
www.glvcsn.com/mckendree.
The Bearcats enter Wednesday's contest with an overall record of 4-6. McKendree was edged by Lincoln University Sunday afternoon on the final day of the Quincy/Subway Holiday Classic in Quincy, Ill., 73-69. The Bearcats nearly overcame a 17-point deficit in the second half, getting as close as 68-67 with just under two minutes to play.
Nolan Gerling (Germantown, IL/Mater Dei) registered a season-high 23 points to show the way for McKendree, adding a team-best five rebounds in the effort.
Alijah Thomas (Des Moines, IA/Hoover) and
Nate Michael (St. Joseph, IL/St. Joseph-Ogden) each connected for 17 points against the Blue Tigers. Thomas also posted four rebounds and three assists on his way to All-Tournament Team accolades at the conclusion of the weekend.
Through 10 games this season, McKendree is one of the top free throw shooting teams in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The Bearcats have made 78.3 percent of their tries from the foul line, which is good for second in the league. McKendree also has the fourth-best assist-to-turnover ratio in the conference at 1.28.
Michael leads the team -- and is ninth in the GLVC -- in scoring at 15.8 PPG. Thomas (11.2 PPG) and Gerling (11 PPG) are also averaging in double figures for the Bearcats.
Giovanni Offard (Freeport, IL/Freeport) continues to lead McKendree in rebounding at 5.2 RPG. Offard also has a team-best 44 assists. Thomas has registered a team-leading 14 steals, while Michael is right behind with 13.
After hosting Eureka on Wednesday, McKendree will have 10 days away from the court. The Bearcats will head to Des Moines, Iowa, on Saturday, Dec. 29 for its their final NCAA Division I exhibition game of the season at Drake University. McKendree will jump back into the heart of its GLVC schedule in the new year on Saturday, Jan. 5 with a contest at the University of Illinois Springfield.
ABOUT EUREKA
The Red Devils bring a 2-8 overall record and a 1-3 mark in St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference games into Wednesday's match-up with McKendree. Eureka last played on Saturday in a 76-73 win at Blackburn College. All five starters scored in double figures for the Red Devils, led by Dakota Bennington with 17 points. Austin Juergens and Alex Wiegand each posted 12 points and six rebounds in the win.
Hank Thomas is Eureka's leading scorer this season at 21.7 PPG and top rebounder at five per outing. Thomas is shooting 93.8 percent from the foul line and has registered team-leading totals of 50 assists and 17 steals. Bennington is also averaging over 20 points per game at 20.4 PPG. Juergens is the third and final Red Devil scoring in double figures at 13.4 PPG.
