ROLLA, Mo.  --  Missouri S&T is ranked 17th in the nation with a 10-1 record as they host Drury Saturday afternoon in Gibson Arena. The Miners have won three games in a row and are undefeated against conference opponents at 4-0.

About the Panthers

The Panthers had a solid opening month of the season and went 5-1 to begin the year. They have struggled since moving into conference play though, dropping six of their last seven and losing five of those against GLVC opponents. Drury has benefited from three key scorers this season in Logan Applegate, Zach Howell, and Juok Riak, who are all averaging double digit points per game. Howell is the front runner though, scoring 14.8 per game which is tied for 13th in the conference. Additionally, Colin Hardrick and Applegate rank 3rd and 5th, respectively, in the conference for steals per game.

The Panthers hold an 84-38 lead over S&T in the all-time series. The Miners have won six of the last eight though and have not lost a game in Rolla since the 2020-21 season... winning four in a row. This month is the 115th anniversary of the first time that these two teams met back on January 18th, 1910, making this the Miners' oldest rivalry in the GLVC.

About the Miners
S&T extended their win streak to three in a row with a victory over Truman State last week, defeating the Bulldogs in a close contest at 72-69. The team is first in the conference in thirteen different categories, including assist/turnover ratio, assists per game, field goal percentage, scoring margin, and rebounding margin. The Miners also rank fifth in the nation in defensive rebounds per game at 30.2 per game & sixth in scoring margin at 20.7.

Alex Benassi (Lee's Summit, MO/Lee's Summit) is third in Division II and first in the GLVC in assist/turnover ratio at a 4.88 ratio. Andrew Young (Ballwin, MO/Marquette) is a top three performer in three GLVC categories: 3rd in blocks per game (1.5), 3rd in rebounds per game (7.9), and 3rd in field goal percentage (.570).

Record Book Watch
The best season start through 12 games in S&T history is 10-2... a win today would set a new best for the Miners. Andrew Young (Ballwin, MO/Marquette) currently has 86 career blocks, which is the 6th most in S&T history. Jeff Kokal holds the fifth most with 88. Lovell Williams (Rogers, MN/Maple Grove) has 278 career assists, which is the 7th most in S&T history. Rod Jackson sits at 6th alltime with 279.

What's Next
S&T hosts two more games next week, with Maryville on Thursday and Misouri-St. Louis on Saturday.

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