ROLLA, Mo. -- Missouri S&T opens a weekend Great Lakes Valley Conference homestand Thursday night looking to get back into the conference playoff race as it plays host to Rockhurst here at Billy Key Court. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m.
It will be the first of two weekend contests against the GLVC's Kansas City-area schools, as S&T will also host William Jewell in a 5 p.m. contest Saturday afternoon before embarking on a four-game road trip.
The Miners, who knocked off Rockhurst in Kansas City a year ago, are looking to snap a six-game losing streak as they come into Thursday's contest at 7-7 overall and 1-6 in the GLVC. Meanwhile, the Hawks have won their last two games and are 9-6 overall and 3-4 in the GLVC.
Despite getting five three-pointers and 17 points from
Jalen Myers (Shorewood, IL/Minooka) Saturday, the Miners dropped an 88-76 decision at Saint Joseph's. The five treys gave Myers 43 on the year as he ranks fourth in the GLVC for three-pointers per game. He is also hitting 44.3 percent from beyond the arc for a team that has made 38.5 percent ot its long range tries.
Myers is averaging 15.2 points per game on the season, while
Randy Holmes (St. Louis, MO/Soldan International Studies) -- who has reached double figures in six straight games -- is scoring 11.5 a game and
Telloy Simon (Kitchener, Ont./St. Mary's) is at 10.4 per contest.
Juwan Miller (Kitchener, Ont./Huron Heights), with a team-high 67 assists, moved into the top 10 in S&T history for assists in Saturday's contest at Saint Joseph's.
ABOUT ROCKHURST: After opening its GLVC slate by losing four of its first five games, the Hawks rebounded last week with wins over McKendree and Illinois Springfield to move to 3-4 in conference play and 9-6 overall.
Alex Hagan leads Rockhurst in scoring with an average of 17 points per game and is coming off a double-double Saturday against UIS as he recorded 22 points and 10 rebounds in the win. Hagan, who is shooting nearly 60 percent from the field, is also the leading rebounder for Rockhurst with 7.7 per contest.
Kaleb Warner is scoring 13.4 points a game in his first season with the Hawks and Malachi Nix is averaging 13.1 points a game with a team-high 53 assists. Travis House is just shy of the double figure mark at 9.5 points a game and leads Rockhurst with 40 three-point baskets, a mark that ranks among the top 10 in the GLVC.
ABOUT WILLIAM JEWELL: The Cardinals enter the week still seeking their first win in conference play, but did snap a nine-game losing streak Monday when it beat Avila 89-62 in a rescheduled game from December. Matt Laasen had 19 points to lead four Cardinals in double figures in the win.
Patrick Whelan has paced the Cardinals throughout the season, as he ranks fifth in the GLVC in scoring with an average of 17.4 points per game. Whelan, who has connected on 51.2 percent of his field goal attempts this year, has also shot the ball well from three-point range as he has made 35 at a rate of 45.5 percent.
Three other Cardinals are scoring in double figures, as Jorge Perez-Laham is averaging 13.6 points a game, Larry Fitzgerald -- who scored 34 points in WJC's win over S&T last season -- is at 11.9 a game and Emil Ostafiicuic is scoring 10.4 per game while shooting 62.7 percent from the field, the third-best mark in the GLVC.
Austin Regier is William Jewell's top rebounder with seven per contest, while Perez-Laham leads the Cardinals with 54 assists.
