Complete Game Notes
Game #14: #RV Lincoln (10-3, 3-1 MIAA) at Lindenwood (9-7, 2-2 MIAA)
Date: Saturday, January 12, 2019
Time: 3:30 p.m. CST
Site: Hyland Arena (3,000) in St. Charles, Mo.
Tickets: Available at Site
Live Video: http://www.themiaanetwork.com/lubluetigers/
Live Stats: https://lindenwoodlions.com/sidearmstats/mbball

THE TIP OFF:  Seeking its seventh-consecutive win and 11th of the season, the Lincoln men's basketball team travels to St. Charles, Mo. on Saturday (Jan. 12) to play Lindenwood at 3:30 p.m. CST. For the first time in John Moseley's five-year tenure as head coach, the Blue Tigers received votes in the National Association of Basketball Coaches' Division II poll after LU ran its winning streak up to six with a 90-83 home victory over No. 20 Missouri Southern last Saturday (Jan. 5). Lindenwood, meanwhile, is 9-7 on the year and is coming off an 85-76 loss at home to Pittsburg State on Saturday. This is the first of two meetings between the teams this season, as a rematch will be played in Jefferson City on Feb. 19.

FAST BREAKS
- Lincoln and Lindenwood meet for the 19th time this weekend, with the Lions leading the series, 11-7. Lincoln has won each of the past three meetings, including a sweep over the Lions last season.

- At 10-3, the Blue Tigers have their best 13-game start to a season since 2000-01. That year, LU started 13-3 before finishing the season 20-7.

- Lincoln enters the weekend with a six-game winning streak, its first such since the 2000-01 season.

- A win would give Lincoln its first seven-game winning streak since early in the 1992-93 season.

PREVIEWING THE BLUE TIGERS:  Terrance Smith leads Lincoln with 17.9 points and 7.0 boards per night while Ni'Sean Rigmaiden leads LU with 4.8 assists while scoring 10.8 per night. Amariontez Ivory (14.0 ppg.) and Jonell Burton (12.8 ppg.) are LU's other offensive leaders, and L'Kielynn Taylor is averaging 4.8 rebounds.

HEAD COACH JOHN MOSELEY:  Now in his fifth season as the head coach of the Blue Tigers, Moseley has led LU to three-straight postseason appearances as well as three-consecutive winning seasons. In 2015-16, he became the first coach to take Lincoln to the postseason since 1986-87 and led LU to its first winning campaign since 2001-02. Over the past two years, Moseley has guided Lincoln to 32 victories.

LAST TIME OUT:  Terrance Smith scored 35 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead Lincoln to a 90-83 win over Missouri Southern, ranked No. 20 in the NABC Division II poll, on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 5). Amariontez Ivory chipped in 20 points and Grant Olsson scored 17 as Lincoln held the Lions to .269 shooting beyond the arc en route to a sixth-straight victory.

SCOUTING THE LIONS:  Chandler Diekvoss is leading Lindenwood in rebounding (6.9) while averaging 15.8 points per game for a Lion squad that is averaging 78.4 points per game. Both Brad Newman (17.9 ppg.) and Chris King (10.0) are having strong offensive seasons while Diego Womack is averaging 5.7 rebounds and Adam Pohlman is averaging 5.1 assists.

LWU HEAD COACH LANCE RANDALL:  The fourth-year head coach of the Lions, Randall joined Lindenwood after going 78-44 in four seasons at St. Leo. In his first year, Randall led St. Leo to its first winning season in 14 years, and eventually he led the team to three trips to the NCAA DII tournament. In each of the past three seasons, Randall has led Lindenwood to berths in the MIAA postseason tournament.

POLLING:  The Blue Tigers received two votes in the National Association of Basketball Coaches Division II poll, marking the first time in the John Moseley era that Lincoln has received votes in the official national poll. Lincoln also got some good news from the Division II Sports Information Director's Central Region Media Poll, which had LU ranked ninth.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK:  After leading the LU men's basketball team to three-straight wins, including a victory over No. 20 Missouri Southern, Terrance Smith was selected as the MIAA Men's Basketball Co-Player of the Week. Smith, who scored 35 points and grabbed 14 boards against No. 20 Missouri Southern, averaged 21.7 points and 8.3 rebounds on .605 shooting for the week.

BURTON TO BURTON:  Lincoln has a pair of outstanding point guards who happen to share a last name. Jonell Burton and John Burton (unrelated) each scored 20 points in the win over Pittsburg State, and Jonell, with 12.8 points per game, is third among the Blue Tigers in scoring. John, meanwhile, is averaging 8.3 points and has made 28 three-pointers on the season while shooting .431 from long distance, and rates 14th in the MIAA with 2.2 treys per game.

IVORY TOWER:  Amariontez Ivory scored at least 10 points in 21 of his 29 games last year, and is off to another strong start in 2018-19. Ivory led Lincoln with 20 points in the season-opener, then scored 21 against Lane. An All-MIAA honorable mention last year, Ivory now has tallied 14 total performances with 20-plus points and averages 14.0 points this season with 10 double-digit point performances.

THREE'S COMPANY:  Amariontez Ivory has been hot from beyond the arc, as he is ranked among the best in NCAA Division II in three-point shooting. Ivory ranks 31st in the nation with 3.2 treys per game, and his .494 shooting percentage from long range is also 10th.

AGENT SMITH:  Terrance Smith has doubled up in four games this season, including tallying season-highs in points (35) and rebounds (14) in LU's win over Missouri Southern. Smith, who also had double-doubles against Ecclesia, Missouri S&T and Northwest Missouri, leads the team with 17.9 points and 7.0 boards per game.

DIALING LONG DISTANCE:  Lincoln is once again one of the top teams in the MIAA in three-point shooting, as LU is second in the conference with a .438 percentage from long distance. That percentage is the second-best this year in NCAA Division II. LU is averaging 10.1 treys per night, the third-most in the conference.

HE GIVES AND HE TAKES:  Ni'Sean Rigmaiden has been a huge asset to the Blue Tigers in nearly every facet of the game, but especially in assists and steals, where he leads the team with 62 and 23, respectively. Rigmaiden, who is sixth in the MIAA in assists and third in total steals, also averages 10.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game and had a 20-point game against Missouri Western.

POINTS FOR FREE:  LU utilitzes its opportunities at the line, as the Blue Tigers are shooting .779 on free throws, a percentage that is second in the MIAA and 19th in NCAA Division II. Amariontez Ivory is 31-for-33 at the line while Terrance Smith's .878 free throw percentage rates fifth in the MIAA and 54th in Division II.

GRANTED:  Grant Olsson has stepped up his game in his second season with the Blue Tigers, as the senior averages 9.9 points and 3.9 boards per game. Olsson, a starter in 12 games this year, has scored in double figures in six of the past seven games and has grabbed at least four rebounds in nine contests.

RESERVATIONS:  You can reserve your seats for all of Lincoln's home games today! Reserved seats cost $100 and include admission to all of LU's regular season home games. To purchase your seats, visit https://14186.thankyou4caring.org/2017-18-sports-passes.

GEAR UP FOR THE GAME:  Lincoln fans can get everything they need for the game at www.BlueTigersStore.com, the official online store for LU athletics. Everything from jerseys to office supplies can be found on the site, with a portion of all sales going to benefit Lincoln athletics.

NEXT UP:  Lincoln takes on Central Missouri in Warrensburg, Mo. on Wednesday (Jan. 16) at 7:30 p.m. CST.